The Art of Telling Stories with John Livesay, Episode #228

In this episode of The Power Producers Podcast, David Carothers and guest host Aaron Gordon interview John Livesay, a keynote speaker, and the author of books “Better Selling Through Storytelling” and “The Sale is in the Tale”. John discusses the significance of having empathy in business, the value of storytelling, and utilizing creativity to come up with ideas that fit. 

Episode Highlights:

• John shares that he has always been passionate about storytelling and has a history in advertising, and he finds it such an amazing realm of how a story impacts us emotionally. (3:03)
• Aaron believes that we must not just communicate the tale of what we are doing, but also be able to explain what insurance is to those who are not very interested in discussing insurance. (5:03)
• John explains that he encourages people to write multiple stories for the different avatars they interact with. (10:20)
• David discusses the importance of sharing a success story and how it may be helpful to to others. (15:12)
• John explains why the first thing he teaches people when telling a tale is to paint a picture, similar to journalists. (18:28)
• John advises those who want to become great storytellers to make sure the problem they’re describing in the story is one that people care about and to consider the resolution. (25:28)
• Aaron believes that the finest speakers he hears, even if they go 20 minutes over, leave listeners remembering more of what they said. (35:27)
• John explains some of the mistakes individuals make while trying to convince others to buy. (41:12)
• John believes that if individuals master the soft skills of listening, empathy, and storytelling, they will develop an emotional connection that will help them in their sales careers. (46:38)
• If you want to learn how to tell a tale, John recommends turning your elevator pitch into an elevator story. (48:35)

Tweetable Quotes:

• “The first thing I teach people when you tell the story is to paint the picture with exposition of who, what, where when, like you’re a journalist.” – John Livesay
• “If you’re going to embrace becoming a better storyteller, the two tips I have for you are, make sure that the problem you’re describing in the story is something we care about…And here’s the secret sauce, guys, the resolution. What is life like for your client after you’ve provided them a solution?” – John Livesay
• “I have a saying that people seem to remember and like, which is soft skills make you strong…our brains love new ways of looking at something. And the soft skills are listening, empathy, and now storytelling. And if you master all three of those things, you’ll have an emotional connection, which will make you strong in your sales career.” – John Livesay

Resources Mentioned:

• John Livesay LinkedIn
• Book: Better Selling Through Storytelling
• Book: The Sale is in the Tale
• Aaron Gordon LinkedIn
• David Carothers
• Kyle Houck
• Florida Risk Partners
• The Extra 2 Minutes