The stories that win at What's Your Story Slam? They start normal… and end wild.
As the founder of What’s Your Story Slam (WYSS), here's what hundreds of storytellers have taught me:
The winning stories aren’t the craziest ones.
They’re the ones that feel like your life — until suddenly they don’t.
Every month, eight people step onto the WYSS stage and tell a true five-minute story. The audience votes. And without fail, the stories that rise to the top follow the same pattern:
Ordinary → Escalating → Absurd-but-true
Relatable → Surprising → Utterly unforgettable
Let me show you.
1. The Setup: “Oh, that’s so me.”
WYSS stories always start in familiar territory — something you’ve done, felt, or Googled at 2am.
Examples:
Sitting in a parked car wondering if you should call off a wedding
Waking up late because your alarm betrayed you
Moving to a new city and regretting everything
Trying too hard to impress a crush
These are universal: doubt, stress, desire, panic.
Before an audience can follow you into the chaos,
they need a doorway into your world.
2. The Twist: “Wait… WHAT?”
Only then do WYSS storytellers drop the moment that makes the room lean in.
Examples:
Consulting a $30 Groupon psychic who turns out to be right… about the wrong man
One broken alarm clock triggering a two-year backpacking adventure
Getting rescued in a flood by someone literally named “the light”
A flirt attempt ending in a coughing fit that derails all diplomacy
WYSS stories live where the ordinary meets the absurd —
the moment you think, “You couldn’t make this up… but it actually happened.”
3. The Sweet Spot: Just Enough Normal, Just Enough Chaos
Too ordinary → boring.
Too extraordinary → unbelievable.
WYSS winners nail the middle:
Relatable opening + Personal absurdity = A story that sticks
Absurdity only works because the audience trusts you first.
Relatability is the entry ticket.
4. The Absurdity Audit (Try This)
Ask yourself:
What’s the universal human feeling here?
What’s the specific moment that made this story yours?
Where’s the turn?
(The line between “normal” and “no way.”)
This is how you build stories strangers remember.
5. Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction
You don’t need drama or trauma.
You don’t need to exaggerate.
You need:
Honest specificity
A clear emotional thread
The courage to name the ridiculousness already in your life
That’s what makes WYSS stories win — even for people hearing them for the first time.
Your Next Step: From Stage to Strategy
Here’s what I’ve seen after coaching leaders, founders, and executives:
The skills that make you unforgettable on stage
are the exact skills that make you influential at work.
Relatable opening?
That’s how you start a presentation people actually listen to.
Perfect timing for the twist?
That’s how you deliver a tough message without losing your team.
Reading the room?
That’s executive presence.
This wraps up our deep dive into storytelling structure —
but here’s what’s next:
Helping leaders use executive improv and applied storytelling
to shape the moments that shape their careers.
I’ll share more about this shift next week.
For now, your homework:
Notice one conversation this week that could benefit from better storytelling.
P.S.
What’s one absurd thing that’s happened to you that you still can’t explain?
That story might be your secret weapon in your next presentation.
