5-Day Storytelling Challenge
Whether you're looking to boost sales, enhance marketing, or captivate audiences in meetings, this challenge is for you.
To sign up, go HERE.
SHOW NOTES:
In this episode, Matt Zaun sits down with Joshua B. Lee, Founder and Chief Engagement Officer of Standout Authori...
Let’s break it down. 👇
If you’ve been following my work, you’ve likely heard me discuss the importance of a StoryBank: a systematic way to document and organize your stories for maximum impact.
But the big question is: How many stories do you actually need?
The answer depends entirely on your “why.”...
If you were actually a numbers person like you claim, you'd obsess over how to tell better stories, knowing that doing so would boost your numbers.
Powerful stories boost your numbers in:
Sales
Marketing
Employee Retention
I'm a “numbers person," too; that's exactly why I share stories!
P.S. If ...
I told him, “𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗮 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱.”
But this doesn’t just go for my son; this goes for all of us.
I’ve spent an exorbitant amount of time researching how MLK was able to connect with his audience the way he did.
𝗗𝗿. 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸; 𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘆𝗲...
...three strikes, and you're out! We’re constantly on the lookout for others’ mistakes.
This mindset is bogus!
Creating an environment that strives for perfection will crush your organization’s creativity.
Stop focusing on your team’s mistakes and how it's “hurting your business,” and teach the...
”Their own private life gets to be like a rat race.”
Since this writing, the ”rat race” has morphed into describing the sad pursuit of a ”good life” but only a step away.
Keep walking and walking and walking, but you'll never get there.
So many of us are trying to win the wrong race.
We’re so bo...
Storytelling doesn’t need to feel overwhelming. It’s not about being perfect or following a rigid "beginning, middle, and end" formula. Instead, it’s about tapping into emotion, identifying your "why," and crafting stories that truly connect.
Here’s a step-by-step framework to simplify your storytel...
...It’s a lesson in scale, innovation, and customer obsession.
This place isn’t a mall.
It’s a theme park with retail on the side. 🎢
Nickelodeon Universe. An aquarium. A wedding chapel. Hotels.
They built a destination, not just a store.
And that’s the business lesson that stuck with me:
Don’t just ...
5-Day Storytelling Challenge
Whether you're looking to boost sales, enhance marketing, or captivate audiences in meetings, this challenge is for you.
To sign up, go HERE.
SHOW NOTES:
In this episode, Matt Zaun sits down with Lisa Dy, a mindset coach and public speaking advocate, to explore how l...
Too many leaders STILL think “culture” is just HR fluff. Spoiler alert: It’s not.
Culture can make or break your business.
Months ago, I sat down with Sel Watts, founder of wattsnextpx and one of the boldest voices in people strategy, to unpack why culture needs to be treated like a business driver,...
On Aug 11th, 1973 (51 years ago tomorrow!), Cindy Campbell threw a party in the recreation room of her apartment building (1520 Sedgwick Ave, The Bronx, NY).
She had her brother, Clive Campbell (DJ Kool Herc), run the music.
Little did anyone know that Hip-Hop would be born that night.
What sta...
Here’s what I mean…
Let's use a writer like J.K. Rowling as an example...
Twelve different publishing houses rejected her manuscript before she finally found a publisher.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was first published on June 26, 1997.
Years before LinkedIn became popular.
So Rowling, e...
Several years ago, I had lunch with a gentleman who had a thriving business (or so he said).
After I told him my business idea, he tore me up. “That will never work. No one will ever pay to learn how to utilize storytelling to increase their sales.”
I went home and whined to my wife about what t...
I’ve never quite understood it. When a speaker cries in front of an audience, they’re connecting with people on one of the deepest levels.
Should they apologize for being real?
Should they apologize for being vulnerable?
Should they apologize for giving a glimpse into their reality?
No.
The audie...
SHOW NOTES:
In this episode, Matt Zaun sits down with Steve Schmidt, Chief Revenue Officer and Co-Owner of Magnetic, as well as Co-Owner and Creative Lead at Spotlight Sioux Falls, to explore how creative content and radical authenticity shape modern business success. From building a $5M company in...
...seeing cultural obsessions.
I love how passionate Skamania County is about Bigfoot.
Plus, it’s been a massive boon to the economy there.
They literally sell anything and everything with Bigfoot on it.
Have you embraced what your area is obsessed with?
This could be a specific food, sports team...
...in business for 121 years. What if Jeff Bezos had said,” People will never buy books online; these large bookstores have been around forever!”
Today, Barnes and Noble wishes they would have done what Bezos did.
Right now, you have ideas that the people you admire don't have.
One day, they ma...
I’ve seen it happen. Someone aspiring to a VP role shares a deeply personal story about being mistreated by a boss or about joining a job that wasn’t what they expected. While the intent might be authentic, what is the result? Crickets from recruiters, missed opportunities, or even backlash.
The sol...
I just reviewed the Amazon proof of my upcoming book, The StoryBank, and holding it in my hands felt surreal.
This book has been years in the making, and in just 50 days, it officially launches into the world.
The StoryBank is all about how leaders can use strategic storytelling to:
—-> Drive more sa...
SHOW NOTES:
In this episode, Matt Zaun sits down with Cody Hand, founder of Speakers Collaborative, to discuss what it really takes to become a dynamic speaker in the age of AI and short attention spans. Cody breaks down the myth that effective speaking is about memorization and instead reveals why...
Here’s something I see all too often: leaders delegating the tasks that make them uncomfortable. Social media? “I’ll let the team handle all of that.” Storytelling? “Not my thing; I’ll let someone else do it.”
But here’s the hard truth: Delegating discomfort is dangerous.
Imagine if Steve Jobs had d...
A small, ordinary structure…
…but the birthplace of one of the most extraordinary companies the world has ever seen.
Steve Jobs. Steve Wozniak. A vision. A few tools. And a ridiculous level of belief.
From this modest garage, they launched a company that would reinvent technology, design, communic...
Charisma is…well….charismatic! (And an exceptionally beneficial skill to have in public speaking.)
What is charisma, anyway? Webster says, "Charisma is a special magnetic charm or appeal." We feeeeeeel charisma. It's not easy to define, but we all recognize it when we see it. Its charm is so pow...
Everyone in our group sat down at the Blackjack table.
One of my friends, who was playing Blackjack for the first time, won a ton of money.
While getting up from the table, the gentleman next to me said, “that's the worst thing that could happen to a rookie gambler.”
“What do you mean,” I asked.
“No...
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