When I was a child, my favorite bedtime story was Dr. Seuss'“Horton Hatches the Egg.” I remember my mother sitting on the edgeof my bed reading about this amazing elephant, whose personal creedwas a very important lesson for me. The memories and emotions thisevokes in me are so powerful that with any reference to that book,character or author and I'm immediately transported back more than50 years to that small bedroom in Brookline, Mass.

Storytelling is first and foremost about the story. Stories,whether told to impressionable 6-year-olds in their bedrooms orgruff 56-year-olds in their boardrooms, must be truthful,passionate and relatable.

Truthful to the moment doesn't mean you can't embellish oreliminate something that isn't relevant; it means you must behonest and believable. Show what the topic means to you withpassion and relate it to the listener by making a connection ofsome kind.

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