Your personal story has power. It can be a tool to advocate for causes you care deeply about, to connect with others, and to inspire change. Remember, everyone around you has stories of their own. For your story to resonate, it needs to connect with other people’s stories. It needs to be felt in the heart.
Steps to Craft Your Story of Change
1. Identify an Issue
Think of a contemporary issue that matters to you. It could be social inequality, environmental justice, or another pressing cause. Reflect on why this issue bothers you—what is the personal conflict or values-based tension it raises for you?
2. Connect with Your Roots
Recall a moment from your childhood or upbringing that taught you a meaningful lesson or instilled a core value. Write about this memory in detail, capturing the emotions, sights, sense of place and sounds. This will help ground your story in something tangible and relatable.
3. Weave Your Story
Use the memory as a foundation for your story. Describe how the values from that early moment connect to the present issue you care about. Illustrate the conflict between your values and the current situation.
4. Create a Call to Action
Conclude your story with a call for action. Explain why this issue matters not only to you but to others, inviting them to feel connected and to take action. This is where your values can inspire others to care and to make a difference.
Remember, relevance isn’t something we can impose. It needs to be felt in the heart for it to be meaningful and impactful for others. People need to see and imagine the change for themselves, on their own terms. They too must feel a values-based connection to it.
Some years ago, I led a storytelling for a public Lights for Liberty vigil to raise awareness of the children and families in detention camps on the US-Mexico border. I was aware however, as I wrote and crafted this talk, that the people likely to attend were not the only people I was speaking too. I mostly aimed for this story to reach those tuning in via news cameras, or whom may read the news about the vigil. I intentionally shared the full transcript the next day, via social media, as a way to reach people regardless of political affiliation, whom I believed were also troubled by what was taking place on the US-Mexico border. I believed the issue was also in conflict with their values, too. This where I wanted to focus this storytelling.
The stories I shared that day, wasn’t about persuasion, they were personal stories about connecting values.
After the event a friend invited me to join her breakfast. She’s a conservative Christian. I’m a progressive Sikh. After we prayed together, she felt safe enough to ask me for my opinion. She too was troubled by what was going on the border. She felt comfortable to share and had the courage to ask questions. To this day, I hold that friendship close to my heart.
Read the full transcript of the Lights for Liberty Vigil
Steps to Craft Your Story of Change
1. Identify an Issue
Think of a contemporary issue that matters to you. It could be social inequality, environmental justice, or another pressing cause. Reflect on why this issue bothers you—what is the personal conflict or values-based tension it raises for you?
2. Connect with Your Roots
Recall a moment from your childhood or upbringing that taught you a meaningful lesson or instilled a core value. Write about this memory in detail, capturing the emotions, sights, sense of place and sounds. This will help ground your story in something tangible and relatable.
3. Weave Your Story
Use the memory as a foundation for your story. Describe how the values from that early moment connect to the present issue you care about. Illustrate the conflict between your values and the current situation.
4. Create a Call to Action
Conclude your story with a call for action. Explain why this issue matters not only to you but to others, inviting them to feel connected and to take action. This is where your values can inspire others to care and to make a difference.
Remember, relevance isn’t something we can impose. It needs to be felt in the heart for it to be meaningful and impactful for others. People need to see and imagine the change for themselves, on their own terms. They too must feel a values-based connection to it.
Some years ago, I led a storytelling for a public Lights for Liberty vigil to raise awareness of the children and families in detention camps on the US-Mexico border. I was aware however, as I wrote and crafted this talk, that the people likely to attend were not the only people I was speaking too. I mostly aimed for this story to reach those tuning in via news cameras, or whom may read the news about the vigil. I intentionally shared the full transcript the next day, via social media, as a way to reach people regardless of political affiliation, whom I believed were also troubled by what was taking place on the US-Mexico border. I believed the issue was also in conflict with their values, too. This where I wanted to focus this storytelling.
The stories I shared that day, wasn’t about persuasion, they were personal stories about connecting values.
After the event a friend invited me to join her breakfast. She’s a conservative Christian. I’m a progressive Sikh. After we prayed together, she felt safe enough to ask me for my opinion. She too was troubled by what was going on the border. She felt comfortable to share and had the courage to ask questions. To this day, I hold that friendship close to my heart.
Read the full transcript of the Lights for Liberty Vigil