Dicks: Every compelling story centers on a five-second moment of transformation
Matthew Dicks · How to tell better stories | Matthew Dicks (Storyworthy) · Dec 15, 2023 · at 5:31
Matthew Dicks, author of 'Storyworthy' and storytelling coach, explains his foundational storytelling framework to Lenny Rachitsky.
0:00 / 1:25exact quote · 85.4s
▶ Watch the full episode on YouTube → 720p mp4 · rendered on demand · StarZero watermark
“Essentially every story is about a singular moment. I call it five seconds. It can be 1:02. Honestly, it's a moment of either transformation, meaning sort of, I'm telling you a story about how I once used to be one kind of person and now I'm a new kind of person or more common is realization, which is I used to think something and then some stuff happened and now I think a new thing and those changes, they take place sort of over time, or really what happens is it's an accumulation of events and feelings and thoughts that ultimately result in a singular moment where that flip actually happens, and I think that's true for almost everyone. It feels like it took a long time, but there really was 1:02 when you thought one thing, and then the next second when you thought the new thing, and the purpose of a story is essentially to bring that moment To the greatest clarity possible to the audience, so that the audience can sort of, in a way, experience that flip, that transformation or realization along with the storyteller. So, 98% of the story is the context to bring that singular moment into fruition, and that is true for stories that we tell out loud, stories we tell on the page, novels that I write, movies that I watch, television shows that I watch, all of the stories of the world that are worth hearing, and Truly, just about every story told that qualifies as a story has one of those moments.”
quote is from the automated transcript, cleaned for reading: filler sounds and stutters are removed, nothing is rephrased. names can be misheard (the analysis reads context, assessments check outside sources). how →
More from Matthew Dicks
Dicks: Married men in business should disclose marriage to project safety
“If you're married, you should always make it clear to people you're married, especially if you're a man, because if you're a man and you're married, you're safer in the world because men are inherently just dangerous human beings.”
Dicks: The original Star Wars is fundamentally a movie about religion
“You know, if you think about a movie like Star Wars, the first Star Wars that came out, right, that is a movie essentially about religion, which people sort of don't always see, but it is true.”
Matthew Dicks: Shortest version of every story is the best version
“The shortest version of every story is the best version of every story.”
Dicks: Biotech scientist telling pure story won more conference leads than peers
“He got more leads at the conference than the other scientists combined. All the other four scientists combined.”
Dicks: Being entertaining is the most important requirement in any communication
“Ultimately, no matter what you're doing, whether I am teaching a fifth grader how to behave better, or presenting a new product for a large company, or helping someone deliver in all hands, the first and most important thing you have to be is entertaining. You…”