Storytelling 101 for Dads
Discover the transformative potential of storytelling and utilize it to create unforgettable stories that will resonate with your children’s children.
There aren’t many prerequisites to being a parent, but if there were one, being a great storyteller would be at the top of the list.
The curiosity of kids is unmatched. Can you blame them? Every day, they walk through the world and see something new. “What kind of tree is that? What kind of bug is that? How can that airplane stay in the sky like that?”
As adults, we tend to take life’s most mesmerizing moments and downplay them because we’ve seen them a million times, but our little ones are curious — constantly wanting to know the origin story of the world around them from trees to food to you.
As people, storytelling is the most powerful tool we have. That’s why companies like Apple, Nike, and Disney continue to be among the most well-known brands in the world. These companies aren’t simply selling a product. They’re selling a vision, a lifestyle, and an opportunity. Maybe you don’t subscribe to storytelling marketing, but I can look at valuations of these companies and tell you a lot of people do. It works.
When I wrote Is This Your Favorite Ice Cream? I set out to tell a story that was memorable and could far surpass my time on earth. No matter where my girls end up in life, I want them to know without a doubt that Dad has always adored them. It’s less about me and more about building a strong foundation they can take into their lives.
Maybe writing a book isn’t for you. To be an expert storyteller, you certainly don’t need to be an author. It doesn’t matter if your story is told around the globe or around a campfire, so long as your story is told to the audience that matters more than anything in the world.
People love a good story. Think of your favorite podcast, book, or show and ask yourself what makes that story so good. What makes a story worthy of being remembered is the passion behind it, its memorability, and its connection to your world. As a dad, you’ve got a built-in connection with your kids that’s much more powerful than anything you can find outside of your home.
The next time you’re telling a story to your kids, fiction or non-fiction, focus on these five areas to ensure your story stands the test of time.
Imagination
One area where dads fail in telling stories is the creativity department. I don’t know if we’re simply trying to stay cool during storytime but these kids don’t care if we’re cool. Nothing we do will ever be cool to them.
If your child asks you to tell a story, get creative! Describe the color of the sky and make it green. Tell a story that involves turning into a mermaid before helping Santa Claus save Christmas presents that fell in the ocean. When you’re telling a real-life story from your past, get detailed. What did the air smell like? What was on the dinner table? Describe how your friends laughed.
Get creative and use your imagination, bringing color to a story that has all the mechanics of an unforgettable one.
Moral Lessons and Values
Being a parent is cool because we get to tell stories and sprinkle in life lessons like a 90’s sitcom. My girls are still young, so thankfully it works. If the kids are older, maybe it doesn’t, but I’d say keep trying for as long as you can.
Every parent has a set of values. Among mine are being grateful for what’s in front of you. When I tell stories, I aim to incorporate this lesson of gratitude into every character, hoping to spark a fun conversation about being thankful for what we have in our life. We can’t force it. At times I’ve told what I thought were engaging stories that were subsequently met with crickets at the end.
Ideally, through repetition and consistency, my values and lessons can at least be a consideration going forward, to the point that way down the line, as they look around their dinner table at the people they love, a piece of me will always be with them.
Engaging Characters
I love to tell stories from my childhood, and when I do, my daughters are always curious about who the people were who were riding bikes or playing basketball with me. Sometimes I’ll make up silly names or embellish a few details, but ultimately my hope is to make the story engaging.
The same goes for fictional stories. Would you want to read a book about bland characters with lackluster backgrounds? No way! I love making up fictional characters because I get to make them silly, vibrant, and ideally create a world that my daughters can be invested in.
When our kids are more emotionally invested into our characters, they’re more likely to engage with the story and ultimately remember it down the line. This is why I’ll often include them into my stories so they have a rooted interest in the outcome (which sometimes backfires when they don’t agree with the direction of the story).
Interactive Elements
I saw a trailer for Bear Grylls's new show You vs. Wild. It looks intense, as pretty much any animal show that takes place in the wild does. But the cool thing about this show was the interactive element where the audience gets to decide which move Bear should make next. It’s a fun way to get the audience invested in the outcome.
When storytelling, specifically for fictional stories, get the kids involved. Ask them what they think should happen next. As much as I love telling stories, sometimes I just don’t have another story in me. Instead, I’ll start by telling a basic story about the girls playing in the backyard, and a few sentences later I’ll ask, “So, what do you think happens next?” Usually their ideas are far better than mine, and before you know it, I’ve got a beauty of a story on my hands.
It’s less about the ending and more about the time spent telling the story. Whether it’s in the kitchen, garden, or in their minds, kids want to build something of value with their parents. Build a story together and get crazy!
Emotional Connection
What do your kids care about? Mine care about something new every few months. I’ll often go weeks telling the same story about space, and then eventually I’ll move on to stories about princesses and villains. Right now, my daughter's favorite bedtime story involves her and I going to Costco to get samples of everything in the store. I don’t think I’d get any book deals off this story, but my daughter loves it, and that’s all that matters to me.
Storytelling is powerful because it speaks to our core belief as people that we are capable of great things. No matter how elaborate or simple your story is, our kids want to feel that emotional connection. Storytelling has connected mankind since the beginning of time. Whether it’s sitting around a campfire or reading publications like Humans of New York, we crave good stories that bring us in and capture our attention.
It’s not about how loud you are or how silly you can be. As a dad, great storytelling is about how much you care and how willing you are to get out of your comfort zone to tell a story that’s worth telling.