Expert-Secrets full book

years. He’s the guy that top screenwriters and directors call to make sure that
their movies are following correct story structure for maximum emotional
impact.
Shortly after I listened to the book, Daegan and I hired Michael to speak at
one of our events, showing us how to use stories to create belief in the minds of
our customers. What he taught was fascinating, and helped me become a better
storyteller. This journey has been a huge focus for me over the past five years.
I want to walk you through what I learned from The Hero’s 2 Journeys. It
will give you context for what a good story needs to be, and will help you craft
your Epiphany Bridge stories.
Good stories are really simple. There can be layers of complexity, but at
the core they are all very simple. Depending on the complexities I share, I can
tell the same story in 60 seconds or 60 minutes—all with the same desired effect.
Every good story is built on three foundational elements (Character, Desire
and Conflict), also known as “the plot.”
Once upon a time, there was a girl named Red Riding Hood. She wanted to
take a basket of cookies to her grandma, who lived in the woods. What she
didn’t know was that the big, bad wolf was waiting to gobble her up.
Character: Red Riding Hood
Desire: Take a basket of cookies to her grandma
Conflict: big, bad wolf
These are the basic elements of every movie, book, play, TV show, opera—
any type of story. After showing me this, Michael explained, “Every good story
is about a captivating character who is pursuing some compelling desire and who
faces seemingly insurmountable obstacles to achieving it. That’s it. If you’ve got
those three things, then you’ve got a good story.”