There's a specific method to becoming every podcast host's favorite guest! In this episode, Juliet Hahn dives deep into the art of storytelling from the perspective of articulating your personal narrative effectively to fit the expectations of podcast hosts and their guests. Whether a 30-minute interview or an hour-long conversation, Juliet will explain how to tailor your story for different podcast formats and timeframes. Get ready to gain valuable insights and practical tips to become every host's favorite guest who connects deeply with the audience!
00:00:15 - The Power of Storytelling 00:01:26 - Childhood Memories and Life's Path 00:03:25 - Uncovering Hidden Connections 00:06:12 - Finding Your Authentic Voice 00:08:34 - Connecting Through Stories 00:12:35 - Finding Space and Connecting with Audiences
Timestamped Summary:
00:00:15 - The Power of Storytelling Juliet Hahn discusses the importance of storytelling in podcasting and how it can create a deeper connection with listeners. She explains that sharing significant moments and experiences from our lives can evoke emotions and engage the audience.
00:01:26 - Childhood Memories and Life's Path Hahn encourages listeners to reflect on their childhood and past experiences that may have shaped their current path. Even seemingly insignificant moments can have a profound impact on our lives and can be powerful storytelling material.
00:03:25 - Uncovering Hidden Connections Hahn shares an example of a podcast guest who discovered a hidden memory from her childhood that revealed her true passion for entrepreneurship. By exploring and articulating these memories, we can connect with our audience on a deeper level.
00:06:12 - Finding Your Authentic Voice Hahn emphasizes the importance of being authentic when sharing our stories. She suggests that we consider how our brains work and whether we prefer a linear or non-linear storytelling approach. Being genuine and passionate in our delivery helps build a stronger connection with listeners.
00:08:34 - Connecting Through Stories Hahn reminds us that while it is important to share information about our products or services, the real connection with our audience comes from sharing personal stories. Passionate storytelling captures the listeners' attention and makes them want to learn more about us and our journey.
00:12:35 - Finding Space and Connecting with Audiences Juliet Hahn emphasizes the importance of finding space and articulating effectively on a podcast. She highlights the significance of connecting with audiences on a deeper level through storytelling, regardless of the topic being discussed.
You're listening to Podcasting Made Simple. I'm your host, alex Sanfilippo. For this episode's guide and resources, please visit podprosecom. And now let's get to the episode.
Speaker 2:
Hi, this is Juliette Hahn, and my pod talk today is going to be on how to articulate your story for podcasting. Stories connect us. Stories connect us deeper to individuals. When they hear something about us, they feel like they know us a little bit more, they want to know a little bit more about us, or they just feel a little bit deeper connected. So I'm going to give you guys some points that I want you to think about your story and then some examples of where that looks and what that can look like.
Speaker 2:
So there are memories. We have memories that are memory feelings, and then we also have memory that are visual. So if you think about times in your life and I really want you to think about this so I want you to either meditate, sit in a quiet space however it works for you. I have to walk my dogs, I cannot sit still and daydream, so you really go out and find that space that is really good for you. You could be sitting at a beach, you could be taking a shower, you could be driving the car, but pay attention but places that you're allowed, that your mind can wander. I want you to really think about times in your life and there could be some trauma in there. So be prepared to where you are but think, okay, and then if you have those feelings but you can't really get a visual for it, try to explore those. Try to explore where that is. And then, where it is, if there was an experience that maybe has shaped you into kind of the path that you're going to now, the pivots that you've taken in life, was there something in your childhood, something in your adolescence, something in your early teens and 20s that really was a significant time in your life, but you do not think it's really that important. What you don't realize is those times when you are able to articulate that and talk about it, people are going to feel the passion and then feel where those dots are connected.
Speaker 2:
So, for instance, there was someone that was on my podcast and she wanted to be an entrepreneur. She said she always wanted to be an entrepreneur her whole life and I found that really interesting because she had already expressed that there was no entrepreneurs in her life. She never really saw it, she just always wanted to. I was like did you read about it somewhere? Did you learn about it in school? Because I really wanted to connect the dots of how this happened. She said no, no, no, no.
Speaker 2:
And then all of a sudden, as we were talking, she stopped me and said oh my gosh, wait, I just had a memory and it was my dad had a store for about four years. He was a professor by profession but he had the store for like a little stint. She said she was like four or five and he had a store with the neighbors. So they used to have dinners where they would get together with the neighbors and the kids and it was like this really fun time. And she's like I haven't thought about this in forever and I said, okay, take me through this a little bit more.
Speaker 2:
And as she was talking about it and as she was getting these memories back, you could just feel the excitement and I had, time and time again, other listeners listen to this episode and say that was the coolest thing, because we were invested in her story, because of feeling the energy, seeing the energy that like she was unfolding this. So I basically asked her. I said, okay, was there, you know, the man that walked through the door as a professor? Your father was there, a different energy of the man that walked through as the entrepreneur, and she literally was like, oh my gosh, I've been chasing that feeling 100%. My dad, you know, liked being a professor and it was like fun for him, but when he was the store owner, there was this energy, there was this excitement. There was this daydreaming there was. You know, my mom and him used to dance and talk about it. There was this dream that she was chasing. She did end up being an entrepreneur and leaving the Fortune 500 life that she was in the previous job that she had, but that's what it was. And she said I never thought about that.
Speaker 2:
So those are the kind of things that I really challenge you to do, because when you do those, you come up with stuff that really are going to connect deeper with audiences. When you're on a podcast whether you're, you know, on a podcast for 30 minutes to an hour these little parts of your life are the parts that are going to deep connect with the audiences, more than really what you're selling or what you're sharing. It's about those parts of your life that you don't realize, that you actually are kind of. There's a little bit of an energy that comes up the way that you talk, the way that you stand, that, again, a listener, an audience, are going to be like wait, I want to know more about that person. So that is the first thing I want you to do.
Speaker 2:
I really want to challenge you to kind of go and find that place to daydream, think about those times and then think about the times in your life where maybe you know you've pivoted or you've been in a rut or things are really great, and kind of try to tie those backs. A couple of ways that you can practice this is you can, you know, pull your iPhone up, record yourself talking about those, so then you can go back and listening and ask questions you know, to family members, to friends, about those kinds of times in your life. If you're especially someone, that's hard, you know really you don't look back, you don't really know about the times that you, you know were a kid, because you really don't think about it. You had, you know, a good life, but you didn't really think of anything significant. Those are the things that I really want you to try to think about and pull out. So when you're doing that, then the dots are starting to connect because you're like, okay, well, oh, my gosh, that did happen and I didn't even think about that. Later in life I did pivot and it really had to do with that time in my life.
Speaker 2:
Again, those are the kind of things that you're going to want to express because you're going to deeper connect with the audience and the listeners. The other thing is I want you to think about is how you talk about it. So some people need to really write things down, they need to have bullets. Other people, if they have bullets, they get distracted. So you need to think about how you work. Best Is it that you have bullets so you can touch on those parts Even if the podcast host doesn't ask you those questions.
Speaker 2:
This is like, if you're a listener, now if you're also a podcast host, adding little parts of your story also are going to deeper connect. So, like if you have a guest on and something is brought up, you can bring up a personal experience of yourself because, again, it's going to give a little insight to the people that are listening and they're going to want to know a little bit more about you. They're going to want to connect a little deeper with you. So if you're on a podcast and the interviewer doesn't ask, the host doesn't ask a specific question, but you know it's an important part of your life. It's really important to be able to entwine that in your story without making it weird. It's like you know the host didn't ask you a question. You can't just bring something up that doesn't have any significance to it, because then you're not going to connect with the audience. It's going to be weird and not really natural. And that's where people again are going to connect deeper. When you're natural and you're talking with the passion and the flow is when people connect.
Speaker 2:
Now some people tell their story in a circle and it really depends on the way your brain works. So it's really also good to think about how your brain works. Are you more of a, you know, beginning to the end person or an end to the beginning person, or you're more comfortable starting in the middle of your story and then wrapping it together? Or are you someone that actually is really able to kind of go from different parts and then tie it all together and there's always, like you know, the ending kind of result of your story? So again, I want you to kind of dive a little bit deeper into who you are and how your mind works and how it is best, because you want to be the most authentic. When you're authentic, again, you're going to connect deeper.
Speaker 2:
So when you're on different podcasts, if you have a 30 minute podcast or you have an hour podcast, it is important to know who the audience is and then what parts of that, parts of your stories, the important parts of your stories, that you want to bring out. Sometimes it's good that you can just kind of the beginning of your life and kind of flow over it. But there's those three key points that you want to kind of mention. If the host asks you questions on it, you can elaborate a little bit more. But you know that the end is kind of where you want to get the end part of your life, what you're doing now, especially if you have something that you're selling a product, a service. You're an entrepreneur, you have a small business and you really want to talk about that part.
Speaker 2:
But you know hitting a podcast and selling is not going to connect. It's about the stories that are deeper going to connect when someone hears a really passionate story whether there's big parts of the story or it's just the person knows how to articulate it is really when you, a listener, is going to be like, wait a second. I want to know more about this person. And then it kind of is like oh, they're doing this, they're doing that. Now I feel connected. Now I want to know more, now I want to follow them. Now I want to listen to other podcasts they are, you know, on. I want to be in their community because you're connected through their stories.
Speaker 2:
So again, a couple little points that I want you to take as find that space to kind of go back and think about your story, think about the feelings as you think about your story and dive into those Again. It could be hard because you might have some trauma, but think about what. That trauma, where you are today, what lesson you learned in that trauma, that is going to help you kind of connect the dots and tie things together and connect with more people. If there's nothing, right again, even if you think that there's nothing that is important or like, oh, my story is kind of insignificant, it's not that big of a deal, that's not true. Everyone has a story and everyone has something significant to share that is going to connect deeper. It's just the way you articulate it. So really dive in again to your life. Kind of think about that, think about times, practice, right, practice in your phone, practice with a friend, if that's how you're going to be able to learn how you flow, how you articulate, where you're comfortable, where you're not comfortable, where you need to kind of like practice a little bit more.
Speaker 2:
The other thing is when you start going on podcasts or if you're a podcast host, you need to think about the little pieces of your story that maybe someone's not going to ask you but you know are really are important because they are what shaped you. And it could be just one sentence. Figure that sentence out where you know you're going to be able to kind of tie it into your story at all times. It's always the things that you approach. 30-minute podcast is going to be a little different because you're not going to be able to elongate all the parts that you think, but you need to practice on. Okay, I'm touching on here are three things in my beginning of my life. I'm touching on three things here in the middle of my life, and now I'm touching on the meat of where I want to go the product, the service. You know something that you want to sell. So those are the things that are really important and really for you to think about how excitable you get when you tell your story, how authentic you are when you tell your story. Those are the things that are going to deep connect with listeners and audiences.
Speaker 2:
The better you're comfortable, the more comfortable you are. So if you have to have bullet points or if you're someone that bullet points kind of distract you and then you get off, you know, off kilter, and it's just better that you practice, because the more I know it's annoying, but the more you practice, the better you are and it's anything in life. Trust me, I am someone that is like you know what I'm great doing the first time. I usually nail it I do for some things, but it's because I've also practiced those things throughout the years and so it's really not always the first take. If I really think about it, it's okay. I've been doing this for years now. I'm just really comfortable with it because I've practiced so figuring out how you work best, whether you need bullets, whether you need again nothing.
Speaker 2:
If it's just practicing on people on your phone so you can listen, oh wait, you know, when I sound a little dead there, I need to kind of stir things up there, or oh my gosh, I really didn't realize how excited I got when I talked about. You know what I learned from that college professor. You know my first year of college and how much that shaped me into where I am today and what I did and where I pivot. Or, again, I had this experience in elementary school that I didn't realize was a scar, but now I see why it happens, because then I see my journey throughout my entire life. So those are the things that I want and I'm challenging you to think about.
Speaker 2:
And do I again? I walk. That's where I daydream the best. I cannot sit. If I sit, I think of laundry and other things that I don't want to think about. So I really I need to move. That's the way I do my best daydreaming. Find that space, do it safely and then make sure that you're aware of how you are articulating, how much time you have on a podcast, what are the important things that are going to dig deeper and connect deeper with those audiences. And it doesn't have to be about what you're selling, what you're sharing books, products, services, small businesses it's really about your story. That is going to connect deeper. Thank you very much and I hope you enjoy. Bye.
Speaker 1:
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