Shh, one storytelling secret all story superstars use!

Storytelling superstars know that the most powerful word in your story is the last word you leave your audience with.

This final word holds infinite power and I refer to it as a ‘zing word’ — a word bursting with potential and excitement. Imagine metaphorically touching a zing word and experiencing the fizz of champagne.🥂 Words like hope, earth, joy.

Comedians understand this concept well; they deliver their funniest punchlines on a zing word, guaranteeing laughs.  

To borrow from jazz composer Duke Ellington’s hit from the 1930s, ‘It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that ZING’. 

This is very important – the zing word cannot be any business jargon. I’m saying a hard no to business buzzwords. No matter how good the rest of your story is, ending on a business cliche destroys your story.

Using a zing word or placing it as the concluding word of your story amplifies its impact.⚡One of my clients ended with: ‘That day I got the gift of feedback‘. Two crucial words here: gift and feedback. Gift is the zing word. 

So, I suggested changing the ending to finish on the zing.
Compare these two ending:
That day I got the gift of feedback. 
Vs
That day feedback was my gift. Zing, Zing, Zing!

Not every story has a zing word that can be conveniently placed at the end. Be careful not to sound like Yoda from Star Wars in your pursuit of a zing finish! It can feel corny. 

But even in the darkest of stories, you can conclude with a word that instills hope in your audience.

With your next story, challenge yourself to end with a zing word. It will make your story fizz like a glass of perfectly chilled champagne.

What are some of your favourite zing words? Please comment I love hearing from you. One of mine is love. ❤️