🤭 Failure Stories: Why Your Next Story Shouldn’t Have a Happy Ending

Most stories have a happy ending. So if you want your stories to stand out, you should be doing the opposite.

I’m not talking about sob stories; they’re manipulative. I’m talking about failure stories. Audiences love it when leaders talk about their epic fails. It humanises them. Especially when they do this…

The biggest misconception about failure stories is that they need to be sad. But just because something that happened to you wasn’t funny at the time, it doesn’t mean it can’t be funny now.

A well-told failure story…

1. Removes the status gap 🎖️

2. Boosts credibility and trust ✨

3. Is enjoyable to listen to 😁,

Case and point? This 102-second failure story from Ernesto Sirroli. It’s the reason his talk has been seen nearly 4 million times… 🍿

Deliver failure stories like Ernesto Sirolli in three easy steps…

1. Start building a list of your epic fails 🚨
   The kind that most people would never dare share. If the thought of sharing them triggers a sense of shame/fear/embarrassment you’re on the right track! I keep mine in the notes section of my phone and choose one to use ahead of all my speaking engagements.

2. Use the Hourglass Technique to build tension ⏳
   This is about slowing down the speed of your story to create a dramatic climax. Permit yourself to get a little wordy, a bit more descriptive, make your audience wait. Then change the energy and sweep them off their feet when you deliver the punchline.
   

3. Do not give your story a happy ending! 🤭
   A failure story with a happy ending is not a failure story! This is the opposite of the hero’s journey! But that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t make you and your audience smile. So remember to find the fun in it. Without that, there’s a risk of it becoming a sob story.

Bringing this style of failure story into your repertoire will give you an edge, make you more memorable and help you to make an instant connection with your audiences. So open the notes section of your phone and take 5 minutes to build a list of your most memorable ‘fails’.

Alex

p.s. In January, I’m bringing together a small group of leaders who want to create a TED-style talk to deliver at conferences in 2024. Reply to this message with the word ‘visionary’ for more info.