In 2018, I competed with one of my stories in the Toastmasters International Speech contest. Telling good stories is an essential part of giving speeches. While a speech concentrates on transmitting information and a message, the essence of story is to entertain with an often emotional journey. On the road to becoming the World Champion Public Speaker of Toastmasters, I won at the club level, the area level, the division level, and made it too the district level. With only one step away from the regional and finals, I competed with some great speeches. If you want to win, you have to enter the roller coaster of contests… get your hopes up… but I lost.
A few months prior, I had entered a contest at the Timpanogos Storytelling Festival with a different story. There were 5 other amazing stories, most of them friends. The competition was tough. I was nervous… I over-practiced. (Yes, it’s a thing.) I was hopeful, and the roller coaster dumped me off at the bottom. I lost.
My ego took a beating, but I was holding up ok. During the year, I was also telling stories regularly for fun (and for food) at a local tea house. But now it was Summer. In Southwest Florida, the “snowbird” tourist season was over and the hot summer means a time to rest. The tea house did not have events because the tourists were gone. I went back to my Toastmasters club, and I decided I’d work on some new material. In Toastmasters, we encourage each other to work on our stories… but a new evaluator did not know the protocol. “That story is not up to your usual… in fact, I don’t think you should tell that story again.” I smiled, took it in stride, but with an already deflated ego… it hit hard.
I wondered, “Should I just give up on telling stories?” Imposter syndrome set in.
It just wasn’t fun anymore.
It took me a couple days to remember that I love this art of spoken stories!
But I wasn’t feeling it. How can I fall in love with stories and storytelling again?
I decided to remove myself from contests and criticism for a little while, to return to the audiences that love stories, to call up a story buddy, to tell stories in my local storytelling guild. In these safe spaces, I found places where I could practice new stories; where they could take root in my heart and grow. In these circles, we discuss new ideas, get feedback, and help each other craft stories.
In short, I returned to an attitude of play. It was fun again!
- Are you feeling burned out, depleted, and uninspired?
- How will you ignite the attitude of play?
- How will you make it fun again?
Return to an attitude of play. Wear some fun socks. Do something new, just for fun. Change your routine. Turn off your inner critic and judge. Make it fun again!
And if you want a big shift, join me on a retreat…
