Telling a story? Focus on the "why" and not the "how."Quick one this week, Friends.As we have talked here before, being an effective storyteller has become a critical skill (particularly in sales and marketing). With attention spans getting shorter, people just don't have the patience to listen to details as maybe they once did.That's why knowing how to tell a story can mean the difference between getting the sale and losing it. If you ramble on, present a wordy slide deck and get caught up in details too early, you will lose your audience. We've all been there: the big presentation where a key person stops paying attention and starts looking at their phone. Good storytellers focus their time speaking on the "why" and not the "how." They always present why something is important to the audience and quickly get them to become invested in the story and it's payoff.Ultimately, when being presented a new concept or idea, people just want to know "What's in it for me? Why should I care? Why is this valuable?"What tends to happen though: way too much time and energy is spent on delivering the "how" before the intended audience has bought the "why."The "how" are all of details that make the "why" possible. I have found that presenters (and sometimes this can be some of the smartest, brightest people you know) find comfort in getting in to the weeds and talking about the details of how something is done. They really want other people to appreciate the "how" as much as they do.Friends, this is why most presentations suck.When it comes down to it, people really don't care about how something works (at least not when they are first being presented with a story). They just want to quickly understand what the value will be to them. Once they understand that and believe the story, THEN they may want to know more about the details pertaining to the "how." And even then, it won't be in as much detail as you think.Another way to look at it: stories or presentations that focus on the "how" are really meant to serve the needs of the presenter and not the audience. They basically say "this is what I want to tell you because these details are important to ME" versus "let me spend our time on what matters to YOU."When someone asks you "how was your weekend?" do they really care about the details? No. It's just small talk. So, why did they ask you the question then? To break the ice and get a conversation started. Maybe they want to be entertained. Give them what they want. Don't spend time getting into the details until someone has bought the initial story. If you do your job well, they will be intrigued and want to understand the "how" themselves. And even then, the details you give them about the "how" shouldn't be ALL of the details -- only those that most pertain and are valuable to the audience. That might mean you need to ask some questions or understand the audience better in order to keep the focus on "why" the details are important to them.Help me on my crusade, Friends. Enough of the "show up and throw up" storytelling. We need to make presentations more about the "why" and less about the "how."Have a great weekend everyone!XOXODave