What’s an outstanding detail? An outstanding detail is a vivid, sensory detail that symbolises a message or the essence of a story. I’ve done a lot of research and run a lot of workshops on customer service. One of the great books I’ve read several times is The Power of Moments by Chip and Dan […]
If a title puts a door ajar so learners become curious to take a look at your story, then an opening sentence throws the door open and suggests to learners: Please, step inside and join me. What is a good opening? A good opening achieves 3 objectives: Let’s see how this works in practice. We’ll […]
To inspire learners, consider what’s most likely to stop them and try to take away that objection or hesitation. Here are a few options: Perhaps you’ve shared so many tips that your reader feels overwhelmed. They don’t know where to start. In this case you need to get them to take the first step. You […]
What’s an opening story? An Opening Story first sketches a problem that your learners recognise. Next, the story promises a solution if the learner continues to listen to the following training. An Opening Story works great as an introduction for any tutorial or eLearning. Let me show you the Opening Story I wrote for a […]
When does a story need a title? A small story doesn’t always need a title. It depends on when and where the story is used: What’s a good title? The main purpose of a title is to entice learners to start reading your story. So good titles arouse curiosity. And you can arouse curiosity in […]
In storytelling, you need 3 different types of skills. The first type of skill is narrative and descriptive writing. In an earlier article we showed you how to slow down the action to add drama so your stories become fast paced and you can keep your learners captivated. This is the basis of storytelling. Next, […]
A transformational story comes in 3 acts: As eLearning writers, we don’t just write stories to entertain our learners. We want to show them that change is possible. By following our teaching, our learners can improve their performance and their lives. Transformation stories add credibility to this message of change by demonstrating how others have […]
We often think of learners as numbers, unembodied spirits who hope to learn new skills from our training. But learners aren’t automations who do training because they are programmed to. They do it to achieve a better life, be more confident in what they do, improve their performance. And that’s why Transformational Stories are so […]
These frameworks are flexible. You can expand and adapt them according to your needs. And of course, you can also colour your framework so they suit your personality and your voice. Your learners will be swept up in your stories without noticing the framework underneath. I’ll talk about two frameworks. With these two frameworks, you […]
Opening pages are like that road trip. But there’s one huge difference. While you were committed to arriving in Dunedin on time, your learners are likely to be less goal-driven. Unclear directions make them turn around and click away. And that’s when you might lose them forever. What can you do to create a smooth […]
