The Story I Never Expected to Tell
How I ended up on the Influence mainstage with a story I wrote 16 hours earlier.
For professional speakers, speaking on the Mainstage at NSA Influence is a big deal.
The audience is composed of 1000+ people who have dedicated their careers to the very skill you’re performing on stage in front of them. That includes plenty of newer speakers, but also the best-of-the-best, those with lifetime achievement awards, millions-of-dollars a year businesses, and in one case, the person who created the Evolution of Dance (hey Judson!)
It’s sorta like the Oscars, but instead of Adrien Brody just receiving the award for Best Actor for The Brutalist, he had to go on stage and re-enact it.
I found out just how intimidating at this year’s Influence in July, when I was invited to share a short story on stage as part of a program called Dear World.
Dear World Stories
Created by Robert ‘X’ Fogarty in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Dear World helps people craft and share deeply personal stories through immersive, visual formats. One of the things they’re known for is encouraging participants to express their message by writing a key word or phrase on their skin (what they call “Brain Tattoos”).
At Influence, this involved X and co-presenter Keshia facilitating a few writing exercises, giving live coaching, and then having attendees submit their stories and keywords to potentially be shared.
When I submitted my story, I had no idea that it would be picked. In fact, when I got the text from X asking if I wanted to share my story, I thought it was just a generic marketing message that was going to try to sell me something.
Nope. X was asking if I wanted to share a story I had just written, that I had never delivered before, on stage in front of 1000 of my peers, mentors, and idols with ~16 hours of prep time.
Speaking on mainstage has been a goal of mine ever since I went to my first Influence. And, while this isn’t quite what I’m shooting for (I want to deliver my own program on the stage), I knew I couldn’t pass up the chance to at least test out the bright lights and share something I felt was meaningful.
So I said yes. And then immediately started to freak out.
16 Hours of Prep
My strategy for battling any nerves I have related to speaking at a big event is to get as many reps of the content as I can.
When I did my Dry Bar Comedy Special, I scheduled 40+ stand-up shows to prep for it. I took 4 months continually delivering (and tweaking) the content for my TEDx talk on the skill of humor.
For this story, I had 16 hours. Plus I needed to sleep. Oh, and finish the group dinner I was attending when I received the text. I even stayed for dessert.
Fortunately, we did have a chance to workshop our stories with X and Keshia in the morning before we took the stage. That’s also when I got a chance to meet the other storytellers, Natalie Renee Parker and Denise Gabel, who were absolute rockstars.
After a couple of hours of some hands-on coaching, it was go time. Here’s what I shared.
It was the first time I ever told that story, so it’s definitely not perfect or polished. I also flubbed a couple of spots and there are so many more opportunities for more punchlines. But the heart of the story is there.
And it’s one that I want to start telling more, not just because I think the message is relevant, but because it gives me a chance to talk about my dad.
Sometimes stepping into a new spotlight can be nerve-wracking, but it’s also where some of the best stories (and laughs) come from. I’m grateful to Dear World and Influence for the chance to do just that… and to my dad, for giving me a story worth telling.
To your audience of one,
-Andrew
P.S. By the way, I also had a breakout session at Influence on a topic I have delivered countless times: how to add humor to your presentations. Feel free to check it out, and if you’re interested in my keynote consulting, you’ll find a little more info there too.