As an early teen, I was a big reader.

Metaphorically and literally.

To put it mildly, I was fat.

Because of reading.

That’s a bit dramatic, but true.

See, I would read a TON.

And when I read, I would eat. Doritos, cereal, etc. You name it, I was reading it and eating it. It caught up to me too. When I was 15, I was a foot shorter than I am now and 60 lbs heavier.

I hated every minute of it.

I was the kid that wore a shirt to the pool. Other kids made fun of me, as they do.

Heck, forget the ridicule, there were real, physical downsides.

Acne, lethargy, etc.

I even remember going to Washington, DC on a trip with my family, walking around the National Mall and having my hands swell up from circulation issues.

It sucked.

Then, something happened that changed everything…

I took my first biology class in high school.

I remember the page vividly in the textbook: a dissected view of a throat and the process of everything you eat getting passed to the bloodstream.

Now, I am a visual person. And that made a HUGE impact on me.

I immediately thought of all the garbage food I was putting down my throat…

And in 5 seconds resolved to do better.

That very day, I:

• Stopped drinking pop (Coke, Pepsi, RC), and started drinking water

• Stopped eating 2 helpings at every sitting, and stopped at 1

• started walking 2 miles every night with my Dad

The change wasn’t immediate.

But in a couple weeks, my family started noticing: “Are you losing weight?” “You’re looking better.”, etc.

All in all between the ages of 15-16, I had:

• Lost 60 lbs

• Cleared up all acne from my skin

• Had WAY more energy across the board

It wasn’t easy, but I stuck with it.

Here is a picture of me at 15:

And, here I am at 16 (with my sweet, babe-magnet VW van):

Yeah, I was still a huge nerd. But I was a more in-shape nerd.

Now, you may be asking…

What’s the point???

And how is this going to help you on your online, writing journey?

Fair question.

The answer is storytelling.

What I just did was share with you one of the transformative stories from my life.

Pretty intimate, ngl.

Haven’t really talked about this all that much.

But, the point is, I want to create a deeper connection. I want you to feel like you know me just a bit better.

Because, even though you may not relate 100% to this particular story, I know you can relate to the pain and the struggle.

Anybody can google or ChatGPT, but sharing your stories creates a better connection.

Being authentic and expressing beliefs are key to standing out and building a unique personal brand online.

Because it establishes that you are standing for something.

You are drawing a line in the sand and talking about your values with a story.

This is the real way to build connection:

Learn to tell stories.

How do you do this?

The character in the story (you) starts in one state, and ends in the opposite.

It’s all about the 5 second transformation in the middle.

Fill in the rest of the story with your character’s intention when starting out (future intended state) and the obstacles along the way to that place.

With this knowledge, you just have to know which transformations to talk about.

Through each of these that you talk about, you have to iterate on: pain you felt, the turning point, the struggle, how you changed, and what you learned.

Basically the Hero's journey each time you post.

But the real trick is that these stories aren’t really about you.

No, you want the reader to see themselves in your story.

ou want them to see: the pain THEY felt, the turning point, the struggle, how THEY changed, and what THEY learned.

There is literally no better way to connect with people.

Sharing personal stories, struggles, and transformations establishes a relatable connection with someone even if you’ve never met face-to-face.

In addition to the transformation, it's also important to discuss common emotions and experiences.

Don't just focus on talking about how great you are doing (showing off the Rolex and Lambo) or having a pity party (never plays well, and just makes people resent you).

If you are doing well, share it but talk about the struggles to get there.

If you aren’t doing well, talk about what you’re doing to get out of the hole.

And always talk about the main lessons you learned/are learning along the way:

• Starting point

• Struggles from being there

• The pain you felt

• The turning point

• Struggle to change

• End result

• What you learned

What’s coming

For the rest of this week, I’m going to be diving into 4-5 other transformation stories from my life.

Excited to share the stories, and the lessons from each.

Hopefully it helps.

Talk soon.

Cheers,

Swanagan

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