Storytelling In Corporate Presentations

I got fired twice because I had poor soft skills. Then, I became VP at Amazon, where my job was more than 80% based on soft skills. This was possible because I stopped being an outspoken, judgmental critic of other people and improved my soft skills. Here are 4 areas you can improve: Soft skills are one of the main things I discuss with my coaching clients, as they are often the barrier between being a competent manager and being ready to be a true executive. Technical skills are important, but soft skills are the deciding factor between executive candidates a lot more than technical skills are. Four “soft skill” areas in which we can constantly improve are: 1) Storytelling skills Jeff Bezos said, “You can have the best technology, you can have the best business model, but if the storytelling isn’t amazing, it won’t matter.” The same is true for you as a leader. You can have the best skills or best ideas, but if you can’t communicate through powerful storytelling, no one will pay attention. 2) Writing Writing is the foundation of clear communication and clear thinking. It is the main tool for demonstrating your thinking and influencing others. The way you write will impact your influence, and therefore will impact your opportunities to grow as a leader. 3) Executive Presence Executive presence is your ability to present as someone who should be taken seriously. This includes your ability to speak, to act under pressure, and to relate to your team informally, but it goes far beyond any individual skill. Improving executive presence requires consistently evaluating where we have space to grow in our image as leaders and then addressing it. 4) Public Speaking As a leader, public speaking is inevitable. In order the get the support you need to become an executive, you must inspire confidence in your abilities and ideas through the way you speak to large, important groups of people. No one wants to give more responsibility to someone who looks uncomfortable with the amount they already have. I am writing about these 4 areas because today’s newsletter is centered around how exactly to improve these soft skills. The newsletter comes from member questions in our Level Up Newsletter community, and I answer each of them at length. I'm joined in the newsletter by my good friend, Richard Hua, a world class expert in emotional intelligence (EQ). Rich created a program at Amazon that has taught EQ to more than 500,000 people! The 4 specific questions I answer are: 1. “How do I improve my storytelling skills?” 2. “What resources or tools would you recommend to get better in writing?” 3. “What are the top 3 ways to improve my executive presence?” 4. “I am uncomfortable talking in front of large crowds and unknown people, but as I move up, I need to do this more. How do I get comfortable with this?” See the newsletter here: https://lnkd.in/gg6JXqF4 How have you improved your soft skills?

Most people think storytelling is just for writers and filmmakers. But the best business leaders know better. They use stories to close deals, inspire teams, and build movements. After studying how the best in the world communicate, I noticed something fascinating. They don't wing it. They use specific frameworks that turn messages into movements. 💡 The Pixar framework? It turns any change story into something memorable. "Once upon a time, retail was only in stores. Every day, people drove to shop. One day, Amazon changed everything." Simple. Memorable. Powerful. 💡 Simon Sinek's Golden Circle works because humans buy into purpose before products. Start with why you exist. Then show how you're different. Finally, reveal what you deliver. Watch how Apple does this in every launch. 💡 The StoryBrand approach flips traditional marketing. You're not the hero. Your customer is. You're just the guide helping them win. 💡 The Hero's Journey isn't just for movies. It brings founder stories to life. The call to adventure. The obstacles faced. The transformation achieved. We see ourselves in their struggle. 💡 Three-Act Structure works because our brains naturally think this way. Setup. Conflict. Resolution. Beginning. Middle. End. It's how humans have shared knowledge forever. 💡 ABT (And, But, Therefore)? It's beautifully simple. Here's the situation AND here's the context. BUT something changed. THEREFORE here's what happens next. Clear thinking in three beats. These aren't scripts to memorize. They're lenses to see through. Each one helps you connect differently. Each one moves people in unique ways. The magic happens when you know which framework fits which moment. And sometimes, when you blend them together. Which one are you trying this week? ♻️ Repost if this resonates with you. Follow Desiree Gruber for more insights on storytelling, leadership, and brand building.

Most founders think storytelling is for marketers. It is not. Storytelling is how you get people to care. Care is how you get people to act. A great story does three things: It builds connection. It inspires action. It makes your message memorable. If you want to get better at it, keep it simple. Start by knowing who you are talking to. Then open with a hook that creates curiosity. Then build emotional depth with one real detail. Then follow a clear arc. Beginning, middle, end. And do not overcomplicate it. The best business stories are not polished. They are specific. A customer moment. A hard lesson. A mistake you fixed. A decision you almost avoided. That is what people remember. Quick checklist I use: 1/ One main message only 2/ One character the reader can relate to 3/ One conflict that creates tension 4/ One takeaway that changes how they think Edit ruthlessly until it is clean If you are building a business, you are sitting on stories already. You just need to start telling them. What is one business story you have not shared yet, but should? ♻️ Repost this if you want more founders to write with clarity P.S. I share my business stories weekly in my newsletter (link in comments).

After decades of working with leaders at companies like Apple, Salesforce, and Cisco, we've identified 4 storytelling techniques that consistently work to deliver important messages in high-stakes settings: 1. Start with the unexpected Don’t begin your presentation with context. Instead, begin with the moment that makes people think, “Wait…what?” Instead of something like: “Here’s an update on our September campaign…” Try starting with the most interesting detail: “I broke our biggest marketing rule last month, and it worked.” Lead with the surprise. You can add context later. 2. Let people feel the tension After the surprise, don’t rewind to the beginning. Take your audience to the moment where things weren’t working. Flat numbers. Missed goals. Stalled progress. Instead of: “The campaign was underperforming, and our team went back to the drawing board.” Try:  "We were two weeks out from the end of the quarter. The campaign wasn’t producing results, and the team was out of ideas. That’s when I decided to take a risk...” You don’t need to explain the problem. You need to make people feel it. 3. Use real dialogue When your audience hears what was actually said, they stop listening to you and start visualizing the moment. This helps them connect emotionally with what you’re saying. Instead of: “The campaign manager said team morale was low and they were struggling to find a solution.” Try: “My campaign manager pulled me aside in the hallway and said, ‘We’ve tried everything. The team has been working overtime, and we don’t know what else to do.’” Dialogue brings listeners into the moment with you. It makes the story real. 4. Share the lesson Never assume people will infer the meaning you intended. End your story by answering: - What does this mean? - How should someone act differently now? Example: “Breaking our biggest marketing rule helped us turn this campaign around and hit our numbers. I strongly suggest we revisit our marketing guidelines. We could be leaving a ton of revenue on the table.” Without the lesson being clear, even a good story feels unfinished. These are the same techniques we teach to our clients at Duarte. Try them out during your next presentation and watch how people lean forward and tune in to your message. #ExecutivePresence #BusinessStorytelling #PresentationSkills

Everyone talks about big ideas, multilayered narratives, and endlessly complex campaign worlds, but..... Sometimes the most powerful brand storytelling comes from one simple, recognisable hook, played out consistently, creatively, and meaningfully across every touchpoint. And no one proves this better than Acne Studios 🎀 Each year, Acne takes its signature house bow, a single, tangible, deeply them brand element, and brings it to life in ways that feel festive, fresh, and unmistakably Acne. No long explanation needed. No dense narrative. Just a beautifully executed idea that says everything without saying much at all. The bow becomes a beacon. A gesture of gifting. A nod to craft and the creative process. A symbol of festive joy, wrapped in Acne’s iconic pink and scaled beautifully across formats. What makes it brilliant isn’t its complexity, it’s its clarity. You see the bow, and you instantly know the brand, the mood, the season, the story. From giant bows draped across facades, to tactile installations, CGI executions, social storytelling mechanics, window displays, product styling, and global touchpoints… the concept travels effortlessly. It adapts. It evolves. And yet it stays true. Because the strongest brand worlds aren’t always built from layers upon layers. Sometimes, they’re tied together by one smart, intentional, ownable asset, repeated, refined, reimagined, until it becomes part of the brand’s DNA. For me, Acne’s bow is a masterclass in: Storytelling without overexplaining. Consistency without repetition. The power of a single visual cue. Seasonal creativity done with restraint and impact. How to make a brand feel warm, festive, and human, but still unmistakably cool. It's a reminder that you don’t always need more. You need meaning. You need recognisability. You need a device that can stretch, scale, surprise, and still feel like home. Sometimes, the best campaigns aren’t wrapped in layers of complexity, they’re simply tied together with one clear, powerful idea that makes sense wherever you meet it. ________________ *Hi, I am Tim Nash. I help global brands build connected campaigns that resonate across every touchpoint. 🚀 #BrandStorytelling #ExperientialRetail #CreativeStrategy #DesignThinking #BrandExperience

If your audience didn’t feel anything… you didn’t give a speech. You gave a TEDx audition. The best speakers don’t just inform or entertain. They move people emotionally. Case in point: that viral Thai ad “The Dog” by Kiatnakin Bank. No dialogue. No celebrities. Yet millions cried. Why? Because it tapped into something universal: human emotion. So… how do you do that as a speaker? After 15 years of speaking in 39 countries to half a million people, here's how I evoke emotions in my audience. 1. Choose the emotional entry point, not just the story. Every speech has two beginnings: - the first line you say - and the first feeling your audience registers Before you write anything, ask: “What’s the emotional state they’re in right now?” Are they burned out? Feeling stuck? Hopeful but scared? Then ask: “What emotion do I want them to leave with?” When those two emotions connect, where they are and where you want to take them, your speech becomes a journey, not a monologue. 2. Use emotional contrast, not just chronology. So instead of storytelling like “this happened, then this…” (boring!) Build it like a movie trailer. What creates suspense? Contrast. Here’s how I structure it now: Before the storm - Life was okay… or so I thought... The disruption - Something happened I didn’t see coming... The emotional cost - I didn’t just lose money/time/status, I lost sleep, confidence, myself... The turning moment - And then suddenly... (a moment of truth, a wise mentor, or a shift in perspective) changed everything The ripple effect - That shift led to action, small at first, but it created a wave of momentum, and the results started to follow (yay!) The transfer – And here’s what that means for you. This format works because it mirrors the emotions of transformation and that’s what people want to feel. 3. Give emotional language, not just a moral. Most speakers end with “So… never give up.” (boring!!) But audiences can’t act on vague encouragement. What they need is emotional vocabulary. Say: “If you’re in that same dark place… you don’t need motivation. You need clarity. And here’s how I found mine...” or “Maybe today you’re like how I was, smiling on the outside yet quietly panicking inside.” Insight lands when people feel seen. 4. Don't just end hope. Instill self-belief in them. Our job as speakers isn't to impress the room. Our job is to transfer belief and courage so they are empowered to make the necessary changes even after you have left the stage. Here's how I do it. I say: “You don’t need my story to be inspired. You need to see yourself in my story. And if a guy who used to panic before every speech can now speak globally… I promise, there’s more in you than you know.” Remember, your audience will likely forget what you say but they will never forget how you make them FEEL. This is how you get asked back again and again! #publicspeaking #getpaidtospeak

“Are you Karla?” Someone asked me that in my gym in Bali. But it’s also happened: → On a street in Manchester → In a bathroom in Amsterdam → At a wedding in Valencia → And again, in London, Paris and Glasgow Being recognised on the other side of the world is a surreal feeling 🥹 But every time it’s happened, it’s been because of one thing: Showing up on LinkedIn and building a meaningful & strategic personal brand. Each of them recognised me from photos. They had read my posts. And knew parts of my story. They were aware of my business journey. My marketing knowledge & expertise. My ADHD. My love for health and wellness. Where I've been- and where I'm going. When they saw me in real life, they felt like they already knew me. It opened the door for conversation. And immediately built trust and connection. That’s the halo effect in action. In psychology, when someone forms a positive impression in one area... They subconsciously assume you're credible in others too. It’s a powerful cognitive bias that works in your favour. Here's how I've seen it compound: → I share authentic, story-driven content → That builds emotional connection and authority online → When people meet me IRL, there's already trust → They feel safe enough to: Say hi, ask questions, share their own stories → Then they go back online and engage even deeper → That builds a stronger connection → And creates more inbound opportunities (from them directly or through referrals) That’s why building a personal brand is such a valuable business asset. It takes you from: > Silent lurker / unknown founder To: > Someone your dream clients already recognise & resonate with That’s why I don’t work with clients who just want virality. Trends and overused templates can get attention. But they rarely build connection. Emotion sells, so make people feel something. Don't believe me? The cold, hard data doesn’t lie: System1 found that emotional advertising is twice as effective as rational. It’s exactly why every LinkedIn strategy I create includes: • Real, raw storytelling • Intentional positioning • Deep emotional resonance • Value-led content that shows, not tells Client example of the halo effect in action: A founder of a high-growth agency spoke on stage at Cannes. It completely elevated their personal brand. Their ICP were: - Tagging them in posts - Engaging with older content - Visiting their LinkedIn profile - Connecting with & DM'ing them - Sending them PR & business opportunities Their offline presence fuelled their online credibility. And their online content pre-sold their value IRL. = true amplification and authority So if you're building a personal brand... Don’t just aim to “perform” online. Aim to connect online offline. Because perception comes first. With it comes trust, opportunities and growth! P.s. book recommendation: ‘Key Person of Influence’ by Daniel Priestly

Tales From The Shelf. Most packaging starts spinning a yarn before a single word is read. Shape, colour and illustration frame the product long before anyone checks the label. People read those signals instinctively to decide what something is, where it comes from and whether it belongs in their basket. Storytelling sits inside packaging more than we notice. It shapes how products are recognised and remembered, often through design alone. Illustration, typography and layout carry that load. When they're handled with care, a product gains clarity and presence. The pack speaks through what it shows and how it holds together. Haterk Honey is a good example. The black and white illustrations move through forests, meadows and mountains, echoing where the honey comes from and how it's made. The drawings are restrained and sit naturally against the deep golden colour in the jar. Line a few jars up and the illustrations connect across the shelf. Separate labels start reading as one continuous landscape. You recognise the system before you read the name. That consistency gives the product a stable visual anchor, something a shopper can recognise and return to without thinking. The black and white honey with the drawn hills is easier to retrieve than a blur of similar yellow labels. Well‑constructed narratives on pack also narrow the gap between marketing claims and real attributes. When illustration is anchored in origin, process or values, it gives context to mandatory details like variety, region and certification instead of floating beside them. A front panel that signals mountain honey from mixed wildflower sources through image and composition carries more weight than three extra lines of copy fighting for space on the back. Most people remember the landscape, not the label. 📷Backbone Branding

The age of the big brand story is quietly fading. In its place, something more intimate is taking root: the micro-narrative. Startups today are moving away from sweeping origin myths and instead embracing highly specific, often personal moments that speak volumes. Notion faced significant challenges in its early years, including technical issues and financial constraints. To overcome these hurdles, co-founders Ivan Zhao and Simon Last relocated to Kyoto, Japan, to rebuild the product from scratch. This pivotal period, supported by a $150,000 loan from Zhao's mother, was instrumental in developing Notion 1.0, which later gained traction on platforms like Product Hunt. Airbnb didn't tell the story of becoming a unicorn. It cleverly told the story of two broke guys renting out an air mattress during a design conference. Slack leaned into this when they shared the story of how their internal tool for a gaming company became the thing that saved the company - an unglamorous pivot, told with honesty and restraint. These aren’t just anecdotes. They’re emotional touchpoints. They’re how modern brands build trust. Micro-narratives don’t aim to say everything. They focus on a moment, a shift, a spark. And in doing so, they make you feel something. In a crowded, skeptical world, that feeling is what opens the door to belief. In the battle for attention, startups are discovering that going smaller often takes you further. #marketing #brand #storytelling #business

Most brilliant ideas die not because they’re bad, but because they’re pitched wrong. And that collapse usually happens in the first 90 seconds. A 2023 McKinsey study found that senior leaders make decisions up to 5x faster when information is presented with clarity and relevance rather than sequence and storytelling. And neuroscience backs this up. Our prefrontal cortex, the part involved in complex decision-making, has limited working-memory capacity (about 3–4 chunks of information at a time). If your pitch starts with a long background story, you overwhelm the very system you’re trying to engage. You feel you have no influence? Let’s fix that. 𝟭. 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 Executives process outcomes first, explanations second. Open with: “The decision I’m asking you to make today is…” This immediately reduces cognitive load and boosts listener retention by up to 30%, according to research. 𝟮. 𝗔𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗿 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗜𝗱𝗲𝗮 𝗶𝗻 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗔𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 Executives listen for impact drivers (P&L, risk, timing, strategic alignment, reputation…) If your idea doesn’t connect to their priorities, it becomes noise. 𝟯. 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗮 𝟯-𝗟𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿 𝗡𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 Layer 1 The One Sentence Your idea in 12 words. If you can’t explain it simply, it’s not clear, and the brain can’t store it. Layer 2 The Value State the pain and the outcome. One slide. One paragraph. Keep it simple and straightforward. Layer 3 The Proof Pilot data, customer insight, small wins… you need facts that make the idea tangible. And remember... people trust a message more when it includes a concrete marker of progress. 𝟰. 𝗘𝗻𝗱 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗣𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 Senior leaders don’t buy ideas. They buy safe momentum. Close with: “The smallest low-risk step we can take is…” Micro-commitments trigger the brain’s preference for loss avoidance. We’re more willing to start small because the perceived threat is low. And it goes without saying that you always need to prepare for objections. Executives consistently push on cost, risk, and timing. When you proactively address these, you signal confidence and reduce perceived uncertainty. Common mistakes that people make (that kill a pitch)? - Starting with a long narrative instead of the decision - Explaining the problem in painful detail - Using vague verbs such as “improve,” “optimize,” “enhance” - Not making an explicit ask - Pitching to be liked instead of aligned - Having no clue of the company’s priorities And a small trick before you enter the room to enhance your influence… Ask yourself: “What do I want them to feel?” Your intention shapes your tone and tone shapes the room. Ready? GO!