8 Classic storytelling techniques for engaging presentations

Speakers who can take their viewers on a journey make them feel driven and inspired. Even so, arranging your speech in a manner that reflects your thoughts while keeping your audience’s attention can be difficult.
Humans are engrained in stories. They are pulled to legends, excursions, elements, happy endings, or unexpected twists.
These traditional storytelling methods can assist you in delivering a speech that will captivate your audience. The most important aspect of a presentation is the story.

In medias res

“In medias res” storytelling occurs when your story starts in the middle of an activity and afterward returns to the starting to explain how it got there. Your viewers will be captivated right away because they will be brought onto the most amazing part of your story.
Take care not to disclose too much information. You may allude to something unusual, something that demands further explanation. While you create the setting and go back, provide your audience with just about enough details to maintain their interest.
Even so, it only works for brief discussions. Your viewers will grow bored and become agitated if you render it too lengthy.

The monomyth

The monomyth which is also known as the hero’s journey is a story structure discovered in several folk tales, fiction, as well as religious writings from all over the world.
In a monomyth, the protagonist is summoned from their home and embarks on a perilous journey. They move from a familiar location to a dangerous unknown.
They come back home with a prize or newly found wisdom after conquering a great trial, something that will benefit their society. From the Lion King to Star Wars, many modern tales still implement this structure.
using monomyth to form your speech can assist you in explaining how you arrived at the knowledge you would like to share. It can make your message come to life for your audience.

The Mountain

The mountain structure represents the drama and tension in a tale. It is equivalent to the monomyth in that it assists us in plotting whenever certain events take place in a story.
It’s unique in that it doesn’t always get a happy ending. The first portion of the story is dedicated to establishing the scene, then a series of minor challenges and a chain of events leading up to a climactic ending.
It’s similar to a television show in that each episode has its highs and lows, all leading up to a big final episode after the season.

The false start

A ‘false beginning’ story happens when you proceed to tell a straightforward story but then abruptly stop it and restart. Your audience is duped into thinking they are safe, only to be surprised when the tables are turned.
This layout is perfect for describing a time when you struggled with a task and had to re-evaluate from the beginning. This format is ideal for explaining the learnings you took away from your experience. Alternatively, how creatively you solved your issue.
It’s also a great attention hack because it will rapidly disrupt your audience’s expectations as well as amaze them into being more attentive to your message.

Nested loops

Nested loops are a storytelling methodology that lets you layer numerous stories on top of each other. The most important story, which is the center of your statement, must be positioned in the center of the page. The stories that encircle it will expand or describe this central principle. Always begin with the first story and end with the last.
A nested loop is a method for a fellow to tell you about a smart man they’ve met or a useful lesson they’ve learned. The first loops inform your friend’s story, whereas the other loops tell the wise person’s experience. The main point is at the center.

Sparklines

Sparklines are a visual representation of presentation frameworks. In her book Resonate, graphic designer Nancy Duarte utilizes sparklines to visually analyze famous speeches.
She contends that the most effective speeches thrive since they contrast our everyday world with an idealized, improved world. They contrast what’s really with what might be.

Converging ideas

Converging ideas is a speech framework that demonstrates to the audience how various lines of thought arrived together just to construct one product or idea.
It can depict the beginning of a movement. Or clarify how a single thought was the result of several brilliant minds working together toward a common goal.
Converging ideas is equivalent to the nested loops framework because it can show how so many equally significant stories came to a solitary particular conclusion instead of defining one story with matching stories.

The petal structure

The petal structure organizes multiple speakers as well as stories about a single central concept. It’s helpful if you have several unrelated stories or revelations to make that all lead to a common message.
You tell your narratives one at a time before coming back to the center point. The petals may intersect as one tale unveils the next, but each should stand alone as a finished narrative.
This allows you to create a rich tapestry of proof about your core theory or deep emotional reactions to your concept.
By demonstrating how all of these key stories are interconnected, you leave your viewers with a sense of the true significance as well as the weight of your speech.

Conclusion

These are eight classic storytelling methodologies that will enliven your presentation and keep your audience engaged. You could use a variety of other storytelling techniques. You can create your speech more interesting by putting the story at the center of it, no matter how dull it is.