Storytelling is ingrained in human nature.
Since prehistoric times, humankind has tried to impose the order of story structure on the chaos of existence. Just think about ancient societies that invented myths to explain the origin of the universe, life, and human purpose. These stories transformed the confusion of natural forces like floods, storms, and death into ordered statements with gods, heroes, and moral lessons, giving people a sense of understanding.
Think about the stories around you
they are everywhere: soap operas, news reports, computer game plots, crime stories, gossip, science fiction, and sacred stories of religion. Stories live in paintings, sculptures, books, and comics. At night, we dream — unconscious stories created by our minds. Even our daily conversations are built from stories: stories of ourselves, our families, and those around us. The Storytelling Animal: How Stories Make Us Human, the title of Jonathan Gottschall’s book, speaks for itself.
Storytelling has always been a powerful tool. In ancient times, travelers with the most captivating tales were admired like wizards, casting a spell of emotional immersion on their audiences. Through their words, listeners entered unknown worlds filled with remarkable characters and novelties. These stories shaped people’s beliefs, fears, and aspirations, influencing collective actions. They entertained, taught lessons, preserved history, and connected communities. Gottschall explains that stories still influence us today—often more powerfully than facts or logic.
A business without a story fades…
Sooner or later, storytelling became not only a way of engaging and persuading, but also of controlling and conducting social moods. Having the most compelling story meant winning people’s attention. And where attention goes, energy and money flow. The world eventually created structures to capture this attention. In our era, we call them algorithms. These algorithms have revealed a timeless truth: stories driven by anger and fear capture attention most easily. Out of this dynamic, the turmoil of adversities and anxieties about the future has been amplified. Storytelling is now monetized.
Have you ever noticed that every business must nowadays stand out and craft its own story, knowing that different bait catches different fish? A business without a story fades into obscurity.
The most powerful person in the world is the storyteller. The storyteller sets the vision, values, and agenda of an entire generation that is to come
I hope I have effectively conveyed the importance of storytelling. Used wisely, it remains one of the most enduring sources of attention and influence.
How can you become a master storyteller and inspire the masses? The craft of storytelling becomes clear when you examine successful narratives and incorporate some of their structures into your own.
Five-Step Plan
Let's take a closer look at story structures. What makes the most captivating and well-known stories truly immortal? One of the earliest and most influential frameworks was Freytag’s Pyramid (19th century), which broke stories into five dramatic phases: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. While this model remains foundational, I have found that a simpler five-step plan makes the process easier to understand and apply in practice. Remind yourself of several stories from literature, the film industry, fairy tales, and other narratives passed down through generations: King Arthur and the Sword in the Stone, Pinocchio, Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, The Wawel Dragon, Frankenstein, Forrest Gump, and The Matrix. The structure is often repetitive. The pattern typically follows these elements:
Main character's starting position: Presenting who the character is and their ordinary world helps the audience connect and sympathize
Triggering point/ Aspiration: Showing what the character wants, what their aspirations are, and moving the plot forward.
Task / Challenge: The obstacles or conflicts the character faces create tension and reveal their strengths and weaknesses, which keep the audience engaged in the process.
Transformation / Shift: The character’s journey leads to inner change, insight, or newfound abilities, marking a turning point in the story.
Outcome / Wisdom: The resolution shows the consequences of the journey and conveys the story’s core lesson or meaning.
By adding specific examples to the points mentioned, it becomes easier to see their correctness and accuracy. Let’s break down the great story
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Starting position: Santiago, a shepherd in Spain, is living a simple, predictable life..
Aspiration: He dreams of finding a treasure near the Egyptian pyramids.
Challenge: He leaves home, faces hardships crossing the desert, encounters thieves, and questions his own path.
Transformation: He realizes that the real treasure is not gold, but the wisdom he gains by following his dreams and understanding the world around him.
Outcome/Wisdom: Discovers that fulfillment comes not from external riches, but from the journey and self-discovery.
In case you want to remind yourself of the story of Alchemist, I recommend playing a video: Beware of Unearned Treasure - Lessons from 'The Alchemist' by Paulo Coelho,
Do you know the story of
Rocky Balboa (1976, starring Sylvester Stallone)?
Here is how it fits the five-step plan
Photo by Joel Muniz on Unsplash
Starting point: Rocky Balboa, a boxer in Philadelphia, struggles to make ends meet..
Aspiration: He dreams of proving himself as a real fighter and finding self-respect.
Challenge: He gets the chance to fight the world champion Apollo Creed, but must train hard and overcome self-doubt.
Transformation: Through discipline and resilience, he transforms from a nobody into a serious contender.
Outcome/Wisdom: Rocky doesn’t win the fight, but he “goes the distance,” earning respect, self-worth, and showing that true victory is about heart, not titles.
Now your turn - think about a story and check if it suits the framework above
Photo by Etienne Girardet on Unsplash
Unfortunately, this story structure doesn't come with alignment with all that business needs.
I take a closer look, especially at the seller-customer relation.
Here, we need to take a different approach and make a shortcut that allows us to incorporate a story seamlessly into our conversation or dialogue with a customer
Photo by Amina Atar on Unsplash
Customer Storytelling Template
Customer Question / Pain Point
Introduce your previous customer or acquaintance and their main question or need.
Example: “Mark, a homeowner renovating his bathroom, wanted to find stylish tiles that fit his budget and are easy to clean. His question: ‘How can I choose high-quality ceramic tiles without overspending or making the wrong design choice?’”
The Struggle / Frustrations
Outline the challenges they faced before finding a solution.
Example: “He visited several stores but felt overwhelmed by options, confused by unclear pricing, and unsure which tiles would match his vision.”
The Breakthrough / Solution
Show how your product or service helped directly.
Example: “By consulting with our showroom team, Mark received personalized guidance, saw samples in his preferred setting, and quickly narrowed down his choices to tiles that fit both his style and budget and have preferable surface parameters.”
Transformation / Benefits
Highlight the positive outcome or measurable change.
Example: “Mark confidently selected tiles that elevated his bathroom’s look, stayed within budget, and avoided costly mistakes or returns.”
Takeaway / Call to Action
Close by answering the original question and inviting the audience to imagine similar results.
Example: “With expert guidance and a well-curated showroom, you can find the perfect tiles for your project without stress — just like Mark did.”
Get to the point already!
Think back to a time when you wanted to say to someone, “Get to the point already!” and recall why you felt that way.
Often this happens when one stage of a story is overextended. The storyteller lingers too long on a single point — for example, the main character’s starting position — adding details that aren’t relevant to the outcome.
When your brain encounters a stream of sentences that add nothing new, it loses interest, grows bored, or becomes impatient.
Tip: Don’t just summarise events — focus on one main incident and tell it with an appropriate, captivating tone and voice modulation. As long as you don’t overload the story with details, your audience will be delighted to let their imagination do the work.
In closing, I have an important insight into storytelling that I discovered in Philipp Humm's videos — the storytelling master.
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Philipp Humm presents the five key ingredients of a good story:
Location – Ground your audience by setting the scene, but avoid over-describing.
For example, it’s enough to say: “It all started when Mark entered the airport.” Don’t paint every detail of the place — let your audience imagine their own version of the airport.
Action – Describe what is happening. Movement and events keep the story dynamic and engaging. Use strong verbs: “He accidentally kicked an object,” “He came across a fascinating character,” “He suddenly heard…”
Thoughts – Share inner dialogue. Revealing what you told yourself in that moment makes the story relatable and authentic. For example: “I thought, This is so silly — why am I trusting a stranger?” or “Oh no, I forgot to switch it off!”
Emotion – Show how the character felt. Let the audience see emotions through expressions, gestures, so they connect more deeply. Use visual cues: “He bent down in sadness, almost falling to his knees…”, or “ Then she scratched her head..” - confusion.
Dialogue – Add spoken lines between characters. Direct speech brings the story to life, making it more vivid. For example:
Mary said: “I’d rather quit my job than switch to this program.”
Mike laughed: “If you quit, don’t forget to take me with you.”
Now roll up your sleeves — it’s time to practice. Let me know how you liked the tips and examples. I wish you an enjoyable time and an excited audience for your stories.
