​The Moth is a NY based organisation dedicated to the art and craft of telling true personal stories. A flagship event of theirs is the Moth StorySLAM, which is an open-mic storytelling competition.

​Matthew Dicks is a 36-time Moth StorySLAM winner and 5-time GrandSLAM winner – in other words, he’s a brilliant storyteller.

I’m reading his fabulous book, Storyworthy, and will review it in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, I wanted to share this video, where he narrates the story of the day when he nearly died in a car crash.

It’s not the drama of the crash or the emergency care that makes this story engaging. It is Matthew’s brilliant narrative style.

Notice how he:

– Controls the release of information: Matthew is a master at unspooling the thread of his thoughts in a way that induces surprise and curiosity at every turn
– Using self-deprecating humour: Almost all the laughs are from Matt making fun of himself
– Finding heart-warming insights: The final insight is a beautiful, heart-warming and thought-provoking one.

#SOTD 73