Let’s get one thing clear:

I’m not an expert.

You probably know WAY more about this than I do.

But learning about the one thing that drives people, especially inside of storytelling has captured my attention. (so here’s what I’ve learned so far)

He said something I'll never forget:

"your only job is to elicit emotion" - Zoro

I've heard it said another way:

"Be a merchant of emotion." - Shaan Puri

What people remember about you is how you made them feel. (in person, and online)

People will come back if they consistently feel an emotion from you that they can’t find anywhere else.

You're a Shopify store. You’re only skew is a feeling.

Or you're a Pez-dispenser and you only have one color.

The feeling I hope you receive is inspiration.

Inspiration is the the emotion I'm attempting to communicate in every newsletter.

Because without the seed of inspiration, Of hope, there is no action.

Here’s the Problem:

Dear friend, it's 6:55 on a Thursday. (I like early mornings what can I say)

Most people are afraid of being dramatic.

Especially now with all the click bait.

It's tough to be authentic.

Here's the thing:

If you can't package your ideas with emotion.

no one cares.

Emotions MOVE people.

So use them.

Use them for good.

I can hear you pushing back:

Daniel I don't want to be like all those people I watch and read online, it's SOOO cringe...

Did you hear yourself? (you pay attention to them)

I'm not saying this is true.

But what if...

What if you could become curious about yourself?

Why do certain headlines, YouTube thumbnails, and other media grab your Attention?

What drives you? What intrigues you?

If you can understand what drives you, you have a great chance at understanding other people. (and breaking down what happened)

If you can break down why you liked it, you can replicate it.

In every ad, in every newsletter, there is something to be gained if you're looking for it.

What emotion are you feeling? (Anger, Sadness, Joy, shock, humor)

This can be broken down into acronyms. When writing you want people to either say to themselves:

WTF, OMG, HAHA, (think about the reels your mom sends you)

Whenever I write I choose one emotion. I've rotated between enthusiasm and inspiration.

What I want most, is for you, Dear friend, is to take action. (For me, learning to write was the action, but what is it for you?)

Because action is the only thing that will change your life. If I can increase what you think is possible through storytelling. increasing your confidence in social settings. And your creativity, I believe you will have a completely different life in the next 6-12 months.

Why?

Because I'm doing it.

7 months (and 28 newsletters ago) I started writing.

Hint: look for how I'm eliciting emotion through this story:

I hated writing for most of my college career.

I lost a friendship in 8th grade because I wasn’t good at writing. (also texting while dead in call of duty is not the way to have deep conversations…)

But I knew I wanted to write a book at some point.

In order to become a good writer, one must practice. (shocking, I know)

So I started writing newsletters. (After taking Dan Koe's 2 hour writer)

I missed two weeks of newsletters in march, and started to feel like a failure. that I couldn't be consistent. (zooming into the emotion of this moment)

I wanted my newsletter on how to win friends and influence people to be really good. so I spent more time on all of it... (except the title) https://danielbaarns.beehiiv.com/p/age-social-savant-social-skills-unlock

it didn't do that well, because the title is pretty trash.

But the next week I put out another newsletter.

A few times I've put something subpar.

Shipping is a feature.

Daniel we get it, you like to write now.

Yes. but It was in the action of writing every day that I learned to love writing. That’s the catch. It’s the action that creates the emotion.

I didn’t have very many good ideas. (at first)

I didn’t think my story was that interesting. (until Dan Koe’s words drilled through my doubt)

I didn’t even know what to write about. (until I realized I was good with people)

Here's what I've found:

It's a process. And it isn’t over night. But here are a few of the benefits (so far)

I understand my thinking better.

My (public) speaking has improved.

Start with the first story. You don't have to do what I'm doing. But I bet there is something you've been thinking about. Saying: Someday and later to.

Side note: Someday and Later murdered more dreams than anything else.

anyway, Yesterday I wrote a thread. in less than 24 hours it has 9024 views. (I only had 94 followers on X)

That's wild to me.

That post has more views then anything else I've ever put out on the internet. (and if you read my article on creating a binge bank, I've put out a lot of stuff! What the heck is a binge bank?

How to Write Your First Story:

1. Choose a story you want to work on. (Ideally one you tell often)

2. Answer three questions: (here are mine for this newsletter)

   1. What's the one line you want them to remember (you're only job is to elicit emotion)

   2. What's the one emotion you want them to feel (inspired)

   3. What is the one action you want them to take (Write out one story)

3. Instead of sharing the logistics, zoom into the emotional moments that align with the emotion you want people to feel. (for me fear, despair, and impossible are the opposite of inspiration so I’m going to highlight those so that the before and after is a greater contrast)

4. Watch this masterclass on storytelling: (I’ve listened to it at least 20x’s now) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlTA4wXSACE