Are you ready for this?

The hardest thing to teach some really talented jocks is that the best content doesn’t require lots of words, especially when you have music, or as you’ll see in this film, pictures.

Often, more words lessen the impact, the exact opposite of the talent’s intent, but just as I could use an editor for much of what I write here, talent needs someone to remind them of this truth. Not in the general, “Hey, you’re talking too much” comment, or even “12 seconds. You’ve only got 12 seconds before they tune you out,” critique, but rather helping them edit a specific break, pointing out repetition, coaching technique for that specific content break.

Use the fewest words necessary to tell the story.

Remember: You are creating a mood, a feeling. You’re trying to connect emotionally. That’s the whole point.

Use music with the words, sometimes after the words, to add to the mood of the story.

Then, shut up, and let the listener feel what s/he is feeling based on what you’ve just offered, what they’ve just heard, and hopefully felt.

https://youtu.be/E1A33zpQKRE

This is so skillfully written that we aren’t certain whether it’s the father or the son that may have a terrible truth awaiting.

I’ve lived long enough to recognize this scene. I once had a doctor tell me he thought I had a brain tumor, this not that many months after I had lost a dear, dear friend to a glioblastoma. I watched tears rim Shannon’s eyes as I gave her the news that evening at home. And we lived with the anxiety until we got the MRI results the next day.

If you haven’t gone through something like this, many of those who listen to you certainly have.

Don’t be afraid to tell these stories. They are powerful. They are personal.

They are emotional.

And they are unforgettable.