Crafting Your Entrepreneurial Story
In an earlier blog we said, Don’t Pitch, Tell a Story, and many of you asked for additional information.
In our experience, while pitching in front of a venture capitalist or angel investor, telling a story is much more powerful than a flat-out pitch.
There are a couple of things you can do to increase your chances of people wanting to hear your presentation/story. Here are a few:
- Focus on WHY you are doing what you are doing. In our experience, many entrepreneurs have started their business as the result of something that has happened to them, a family member or a friend — something that affected them personally. Dig deep to find that reason, that motivating factor, and tell the story.
- Don’t focus on presentation slides, keep your focus on you and your story.
- Be mindful of your body language and movement. Whether you are sitting or standing, make sure you understand the impact of your movement and gestures on the people in your audience.
There are many other insights, and we would love to hear from you. Please feel free to comment or reach out to us via email.
BEFORE YOU GO:
We see our blogs as opportunities for dialogue. Please share your thoughts as comments.
What can you do to make your story more powerful?
What can you do to ignore the slides and focus on you and your story?
What can you do to engage the audience so they want to hear more?
_____
Faris Alami is Founder and CEO of International Strategic Management, Inc. (ISM). He works internationally, presenting Exploring Entrepreneurship Workshops and other entrepreneurial ecosystem — related ventures.
