3 Pieces Of Advice I Offer As A Storytelling Coach

The first is to stop telling yourself your story doesn’t matter

Years ago I started a website where young adults could submit their stories of grief and loss. In simple terms the only requirement to be qualified to submit is that you had to have lost someone. Yet, I still got emails cushioned with phrases like “I’m not sure if my story will be good enough…” or “I totally understand if you don’t want to publish this…”

Looking through my inbox it would break my heart. Still does now.

We learn very young that our stories don’t matter. No matter how transformative, impactful, or worthy of telling they may be, we are forced to commit to the idea that the only stories that matter are the ones that are already being told.

I know that it’ll be hard for you to believe me if I told you that your story mattered and that someone out there needs to hear it in order to feel hope to keep building their own. I’m not offended when I have clients who are skeptical that our time together will lead to any real unlocks.

I am committed though and I know they are too. It’s true that our adult life is spent trying to replace what we’ve learned as kids, the earlier you can start unlearning and replacing, the better.