How sharing your personal story can transform your business and change your life

Looking back on your professional journey, you know how you started, you remember the ups and downs, and you know the people you met who made the most difference. Every detail and bump in the road creates your narrative and positions you as the perfect person to do what you do.

Keeping their founder's story private is a mistake many entrepreneurs make, but entrepreneur and author Mark Leruste is on a mission to turn the tide. As founder of Ministry of Purpose, award-winning host of The Unconventionalists podcast, keynote speaker and author of Glow in the Dark: How Sharing Your Personal Story Can Transform Your Business and Change Your Life, Leruste inspires people to have the confidence necessary to share their personal stories in an authentic and empowering way.

Most people don't share their story because they think it's boring. They think nobody cares and they can't see the benefits. Leruste knows they are wrong. "People are just too close to their history not to see the mountain of value they're standing on," he said.

Here are three reasons why sharing your personal story can transform your business and change your life.

Stories grab people's attention

“We are wired to pay attention, interact with and retain stories,” Leruste explained. "Since the first primitive language-like systems emerged over 2 million years ago, storytelling has been an essential part of sharing and retaining information to survive and thrive as a species." Your biology wants you to, and other people are programmed to want to hear what you have to say.

Leruste describes storytelling as "the ultimate hack" for grabbing attention and making sales. But why is it so powerful? Apparently it's due to neuroscience.

In his book, Leruste explains the research of Dr. Uri Hasson, a neuroscientist at Princeton University, who studies the way we tell and hear stories. A study explains how an effective story can bring two brains into sync. “According to Hasson, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) experiments show that initially the brainwave activities of a storyteller and a listener are different, as one would expect. as the storyteller shares their story, the MRI shows that the listener's brainwaves begin to match the storyteller's brainwaves."

Leruste's research, including Hasson's findings, led him to believe that storytelling is "the oldest and most powerful tool in your entrepreneurial toolbox" because telling your story creates a connection between you and the listener. It helps them understand your hopes and dreams and understand where you are coming from. They relate to you, they sympathize. They may feel inspired and convinced by your message.

Your story is your only real unique selling point

Almost everything in your business can be copied. Competitors can learn your secret recipe, duplicate your content, products and services, and mimic your sales strategy, but they can't copy your founder's story. It's all up to you, so it makes sense to take advantage of it.

"In today's noisy digital world, people buy from people they know, like, and trust," says Leruste. "And personal storytelling is the best way to emotionally connect and engage with your audience to build that sense of trust with you." Leruste knows that "people connect much better with another human than with a faceless brand or logo".

How many times have you read the "About" page of a website to learn about the husband and wife team that risked everything to create their products and grow their business? These stories are popular with savvy business owners because they work. Even as these brands grow and become acquired, the stories remain. Ben & Jerry's still tells the story of school friends Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield opening their first scoop store at a Vermont gas station in 1978 despite being taken over by Unilever in 2000. The same goes for Quaker Oats , Spanx, Cadbury and Starbucks. The story is remembered long after the company changed hands.

How to share your...