Your main Energy

The Storyteller

She says it out loud, writes it down, and people lean in.

This is you when you stand up to say a few words, and the whole room goes quiet to listen.

Who she is

She notices the small detail that makes a story true. She can make a room laugh and then go quiet. She finds the right words when other people are stuck. She thinks by talking or writing it out.

How you spot her

• She is asked to give the toast.
• Her emails get read to the end.
• She can explain what a group does in one sentence.

Her receipts

A speech people still bring up. A proposal that won. A letter that changed someone's mind.

Where she gets stuck

She tells everyone's story but her own. She thinks of writing as a nice extra, when it is how money gets raised and minds get changed.

In work words

Writer. Communications lead. Speaker. Grant writer. Brand or content manager.

Her back story: Nora, 34

If you are the one asked to give the toast and writing has never made your own résumé, this is you. Your words already move money and minds.

Your strengths

• Makes people feel something
• Writes and speaks with ease
• Turns everyday life into a story worth telling

When to ask for help

• You are writing every card, post and speech for everyone.
• You have not made anything just for yourself in a long time.
• You feel unseen in your own life.

Hand these off

• Being the family photographer and scrapbooker. Hand the camera over and get in the picture.
• Writing every card and thank-you note. Each adult signs and sends their own.
• Designing every invitation and flyer. Use a template, or let someone else make it.
• Planning every holiday tradition. Ask someone to own one tradition this year.
• Keeping the household running so you can create later. Book a weekly block of creative time and protect it.

What this looks like in real life

• At workThe proposal you wrote that won the contract.
• At workThe report that leadership actually read to the end.
• At homeThe toast at the wedding people asked you to send them.
• At homeThe newsletter for the community group or church that people forward to friends.

Your superpowers

• Speaking with heart. A room leans in when you start talking.
• Writing that moves. Your words get people to act.
• Owning your story. Your own life gets told with honesty and pride.

How to say it at work

Fill in the brackets with your real numbers.

• Wrote [number] proposals that won $[amount] in contracts or grants.
• Spoke to audiences of [number] at [event or meeting].
• Grew a newsletter to [number] readers with [percent] opens.

Roles and paths to look at

• Proposal writer or bid consultant for contractors and agencies
• Grant writer or development consultant for nonprofits
• Hyperlocal newsletter publisher selling sponsorships to neighborhood businesses
• Public speaker, workshop leader, podcast host or producer

Writing and speaking work is often freelance, per project and done from home.

Your blind spot, said kindly

Telling everyone else's story comes easy, while yours stays in the drafts folder.

Your next small step

Draft a short story, about one page, on one thing you are proud of, and read it out loud once this week.

Who to have coffee with

• a grant or proposal writer
• a communications manager
• a local speaker or podcast host

Pairs well with

A Rainmaker who needs the perfect pitch and an Advocate whose cause needs a voice.