The experience that changed how I define winning

I’m at The Moth in Boston.

The theme is LIES.

At The Moth, anyone is welcome to tell a story as long as it:

• Has a beginning, middle, and end

• Is true

• Is 5-minutes in length

• And doesn’t have any hate in it (sexism, racism, etc)

So if you want to tell a story, you fill out a form …

Drop your name in a bag …

And then your nerves and confidence begin to spar.

It’s a painstaking battle while I wait for my name to be called.

The first 5 storytellers perform. My name is not called. I go practice my story one last time during intermission.

This more because of the nervous energy I have, rather than needing to practice.

At this point the story is in my DNA.

Intermission ends. The MC walks up to the mic. She tells a few jokes. Picks the next storyteller.

It’s me.

I’m so excited.

I stare into the crowd and leverage a tool called “Inner Authority” taught to me by Phil Stutz and Barry Michels.

Then, I launch into the story.

5 minutes pass in a blink of an eye.

The crowd is with me the entire time — laughing, gasping (audibly), a few people even shed a tear.

I finish my story and I feel great. Like really great.

I’ve never felt this way before.

I nailed it. I know it. The audience knows it. And I sit down.

Now it’s time to be judged.

3 groups score me.

• 9.0

• 9.0

• 9.5

I am in the lead.

If I win tonight, I can speak on a stage competing with other winners of a Story Slam.

All I have to do is survive four more storytellers.

The next three storytellers are average at best. I can taste victory.

Then Mark’s name is called. He is at least a decade older than me and a seasoned storyteller.

The devil on my shoulder tells me I should wish he forgets his lines and performs poorly.

The angel on my shoulder tells me to wish he performs great — it will will make me better and be a more enjoyable experience for the audience.

I listen to the Angel.

Mark tells a story featuring LARRY F—CKING BIRD to a crowd in Boston.

The audience loves it.

I wait patiently as I see the judges call out Mark’s score and his score is written on the board in front of everyone to see.

In reality, I wait about a minute. It felt like years.

Will I win and advance to the next stage.

Or will I come close …

Mark scores higher than I do. He won this Story Slam.

But looking at those scores I don’t feel bad at all.

In fact, I don’t even feel like I lost. I instead feel like a winner.

What’s going on there?

Well, I know I told the best version of that story I could have ever told. I literally wouldn’t change anything about the story.

I scored higher than the last time I performed at The Moth.

The crowd loved my story and I enjoyed telling it.

If all those things are true, how could I go home a loser?

Keep Making a Ruckus, Danny

PS … Do you know how to tell a compelling story? Imagine how your confidence would grow and the impact you could make on campus.

I’m launching a 6-week storytelling program on October 9th. Consider this your invite. If you’d like to learn more about the program, your next step is easy — write STORY in the body of this email and hit SEND.

I’ll follow up within 24 hours with the program details so you can make an informed decision.