Show Notes
The greatest stories leave us feeling inspired, motivated, and moved to take action. But…the best stories are arguably the ones that make our eyes water and sides split with laughter.
Hall of Fame Speaker, Tim Gard, knows the worth of a great story. Many of his ‘greatest hits’ are drawn from his traveling experiences, including a hilarious story about a big sweaty guy on a plane.
Self-claimed to be his ‘million-dollar story’, you’ll hear it for yourself on this episode of Standing Ovation, where Tim Gard takes the mic and delivers his secrets to turning life’s frustrations into story telling gold.
Find out about:
- Tim’s ‘million-dollar story’ that has had audiences laughing for years
- How the ‘Big Sweaty Guy’ on a plane story was born
- How to make a long story work on stage
- Why you should view your stories on stage as more of a feature film than a documentary
- How your word choice can help make your stories funnier
- How to use humor to enhance the audience’s experience
- How often Tim plans, adds, and rehearses new stories
- The rejuvenating power of learning to look at the funny side of life more often
Quotes from the episode:
“Every story has a core that’s the accurate truth.”
“The stories we tell aren’t documentaries…we create a feature film with the story and either enhance it or take a bit out.”
“With stories this long, you need a series of pay-offs as you go with a big pay-off at the end.”
Connect with Tim Gard
2 Key Questions
What would you tell people who are trying to tell better stories?
“Don’t just stop at accepting a laugh. If you tell a story and you get a laugh, mark it down and then work on it to see if you can build an even bigger laugh and see how you can add to it. Don’t settle for a laugh or a giggle. Work on it until you get the audience responding strongly.”
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given about the speaking business?
“Mark Scharenbroich told me that the time to market is when you’re busy. Don’t wait until you need business. If things are going really well right now, market and use that momentum to keep going.”
Who is your dream guest for Standing Ovation?
“One of the best in the business is Hall-of-Fame speaker, Lou Heckler. Lou is one of the best storytellers I know…he is one of my heroes.”
Standing Ovation is sponsored by Prezi Video and Content 10x.
