Michelle Obama Knows The Power Of Stories

On Tuesday, Michelle Obama spoke at the Democratic National Convention.

The speech (which I hoped you’ve just watched, even if you saw it the first time) was passionate, positive, honest and humorous. It has been called one of the finest speeches from a national political convention ever, was praised across the board in the media, and generated an incredible 28,003 tweets-per-minute at its peak.

But what was so special about the speech, what made it so engaging, powerful and meaningful, was that Michelle Obama told stories.

Stories Connect People

She told stories of her own life, of her father who worked to put her through college despite being stricken with multiple sclerosis.

She told stories of Barack’s life, of working in struggling neighbourhoods to help rebuild those communities.

She told stories of them together – “so young, so in love, and so in debt,” – scraping together through college.

She stories of their family now, of them sat around the table for dinner, with Barack answering political questions from his daughters and strategising with them about middle school friendships.

And she told stories of the people of America, those struggling to pay bills, of young people struggling to find opportunities.

Tell A Story

Stories have unique power. They can bring people together, they can empower people, and they can serve a politician far better than any amount of stating the facts or bashing the opponent will ever do.

Whatever your message, whatever you hope to achieve with your writing, make sure you tell a story.

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Please share your thoughts on powerful stories and Michelle Obama’s speech in the comments below.

Image courtesy of USA Today.