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- Mistakes in Startup Storytelling
Mistakes in Startup Storytelling
Read time 1.9 minutes.
Storytelling is a key part of pitching. Not only do you have to tell your corporate narrative, but you also need to use storytelling to capture attention and explain complicated concepts.
There are three mistakes that I’ve seen founders make consistently, and I want to spotlight them today:
Lack of Challenges
Lack of Pivot
Lack of Success
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Lack of Challenges
If your story doesn’t have someone dealing with challenges and struggling, the character won’t be relatable. Telling a story that is just about how someone succeeded is bragging, and it creates resentment between you and the listener. Make sure that any story you tell (including the corporate narrative) has challenges in it. It may be counterintuitive, but if your company has always been perfect, you are less likely to raise investment. There is a reason Elon Musk talks about sleeping in the factory and showering at the gym. Challenges make you likable.Lack of Pivot
Your story needs to have an “aha” moment. That moment when something changed. This is the moment where the listener should be most invested and where the morals, findings, or lessons are communicated. If you don’t have this moment, then your story is just for entertainment. There is nothing wrong with entertainment, but I’m here to teach you how to pitch; you need a purpose behind your story. This moment is when you communicate that purpose.
Lack of Success
At the end of the story, there needs to be some success. Many founders have the first two but then don’t show what happens after the “aha” moment; they assume everyone knows that all is good. You need to emotionally communicate how the world has improved by the end of the story.
Effective storytelling isn’t linear; it’s about someone going through challenges, and you have a pivotal moment leading to success.
Do you storytell in your pitch?Not random stories but purposeful ones that communicate a specific emotion or point to the investor. |
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