I was playing email catchup, getting to those hey-check-this-out links sent by people I follow, when I stumbled upon a video that stopped me in my tracks.
I found myself on the Acumen Fund website and it looks interesting. They fight poverty in an interesting, functional way. Good for them, I think, I’ll check this out later, as I mouse up to close that browser tab on my way outathere (I’m playing email catchup, remember? No time to waste!). When I see a link: The Blue Sweater.
I had to click. I see a big video on the page so I click on it. In 126 seconds Jacqueline made me want to be a part of the Acumen Fund. See what you think:
I stuck around and learned more. Not because of the wonderful things they do, and they do wonderful things. Not because their site is really well done and moves you through the information effortlessly and naturally. All of which it does.
I stuck around because of their story. That’s what story does; it motivates you to stick around and learn more. It attracts and engages.
On a very real level my entire career has been about story. From my undergraduate degree (Reasoning, Logic & Persuasion) to today’s blog post, I’ve been a student of story. The great thing about The Blue Sweater video is if you understand what they do in the first 126 seconds, that’s worth a Ph.D. in storytelling. Watch it 10 times. Take notes. Then do something like it.
Related posts:
Story
Human Communication Changes, Human Nature Doesn’t
10,000 Fireflies
Engage!
