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© 2026 The Story Lab
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The go-to podcast for business owners and marketers who want to harness the power of storytelling to stand out, connect, and grow their brands using the power of stories.
21 Episodes
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Send a text From Vague to Memorable: A Better Way to Tell Your Story with Russell Van Brocklen What makes a story stick? In this episode of The Story Lab, Jonathan sits down with Russell Van Brocklen to explore why many stories fall flat and how the right words can transform the way we communicate. Russell shares his remarkable journey from struggling with dyslexia and having a first-grade reading and writing level to developing a process that helps people think more clearly, communicate more...
Send a text Episode Title: Confusion Isn’t a Strategy: Create Success By Controlling Your Narrative Episode Summary: If people can’t explain what you do in five seconds, they’re not “still warming up”… they’re gone. In this episode, Jonathan breaks down a simple narrative control playbook to help you get clear, build trust faster, and stop competing on price. You’ll learn how to write a sharp “I help” statement, set narrative pillars so content gets easier, and create weekly narrative assets...
Send a text Content Creator Money Chaos: The 10-Minute System That Saves Your Sanity Money stress steals your creativity. In this episode of The Story Lab, Jonathan sits down with accountant and creator Ralph Estep Jr. to break down a simple money system you can run in about 10 minutes a week. We cover separating business and personal money, tracking income across platforms like Stripe and PayPal, building a tax savings habit so April doesn’t jump-scare you, and the “profit first” approach th...
Send a text How to Share Client Wins Without Sounding Like You’re Bragging If posting testimonials makes you feel like a walking infomercial… you’re not alone. Most “client win” posts fall flat because they skip the story and jump straight to the ending. You know the ones: “Highly recommend!” “So inspiring!” Cool. But nobody shares praise. They share recognition. In this episode of The Story Lab, I’m showing you how to turn a testimonial into a story your audience can actually see themselves ...
Send a text Why You Don’t Have a Choice Anymore: Adam Torres on Personal Brand | Ep. 16 In this special episode of The Story Lab, Jonathan sits down with Adam Torres, co-founder of Mission Matters Media, to talk about the truth people avoid: opting out of a personal brand is still a personal brand and it’s usually not helping you. Adam shares how he went from managing nearly $200M in finance to building a media company and completing 6,000+ interviews, and why he used to be totally anti-brand...
Send a text Winning Stories Rely On Details: Make Them See It, So They Trust It Most business owners don’t have a storytelling problem. They have a detail problem. “I used to be shy” is information, but “I hid under a pile of coats at family gatherings so nobody would talk to me” is a scene. And scenes are what make people listen, trust, and remember you. In this episode of The Story Lab, I break down why details create instant credibility, how to turn summaries into scenes, and a simpl...
Send a text AI Made Content Effortless, But Effortless Content Doesn't Get You Seen with Special Guest Wes Towers AI made content effortless. But effortless content doesn’t get you seen. Because when everything is easy to publish, it’s also easy to ignore. And the real casualty in the AI age is trust. In this episode, Jonathan sits down with Wes Towers (Uplift 360) to talk about what actually cuts through the digital haze: a clear point of view, human texture, and storytelling that fee...
Send a text We break down the transformation story as a simple, powerful arc from sad to happy and explain how to guide clients from point A to point B without leaving them in the dark. We share concrete steps, a social media example, and why you must be the guide, not the hero. • framing the problem as the audience’s “sad” and the goal as their “happy” • showing the darkness with empathy, then leading to the light • mapping a clear, stepwise path from point A to point B • painting an attain...
Send a text What makes a story unforgettable isn’t a mountain of facts—it’s the feeling those facts ride in on. We break down Kamala Harris’s Diary of a CEO conversation as a living case study for how to craft narrative that people actually remember and repeat. This isn’t political punditry; it’s a toolkit for founders, creators, and leaders who want their message to stick in a noisy world. We start by tracing how an origin story anchors everything else. Harris ties present-day choices to a ...
Send a text We show how a founder story becomes a trust and referral engine when it centers on one pivotal moment, a clear villain, real stakes, and a hard choice. We share the framework and prompts to help you write a story others can retell and that naturally leads to your offer. • what a founder story is and is not • why stories beat resumes for trust and recall • common mistakes like vague claims and trauma dumping • naming the villain your audience cares about • raising stakes that show...
Send a text When the internet looks flawless, it feels empty. We open the studio door, let the dog bark, and make a case for why your most memorable work will always be the piece where something real sneaks through. Not chaos, not carelessness, but competence with edges. We break down how a voice crack, a pause, or an awkward laugh becomes a signal of safety that audiences instinctively trust, and why that emotional signal outperforms any perfectly scripted caption or AI-polished reel. ...
Send a text We break down seven essentials of business storytelling—from purpose and tension to transformation and a clear call to action—so you can craft stories people remember and act on. We keep it tight, practical, and focused on moving listeners from problem to decision. • defining the purpose of your story and desired action • making it personal while staying relevant to your offer • opening with tension and clear stakes • using specific details to spark emotion • showing the client t...
Send a text The stories where we fall down or fail are the most important ones to share. These "lessons learned" moments humanize us, make us relatable, and provide valuable insights that can help others avoid similar pitfalls. • Failure stories are powerful connection points with your audience • When starting in social media consulting, I made a major presentation mistake • I prepared advanced strategies for an audience who didn't know what Facebook was • Had to throw away my presentation a...
Send a text Every coach on social media has heard the advice "just share your story" - but which stories should you actually tell? Not all stories generate engagement, and even fewer convert followers into paying clients. This episode cuts through the confusion to deliver a clear framework for strategic storytelling that actually grows your coaching business. Discover why you need both your anchor "founder story" and smaller everyday narratives to build a memorable brand. I explain why repet...
Send a text Ever wonder how Taylor Swift maintains such a powerful connection with millions of fans? The answer lies in her masterful storytelling abilities—a skill we can all learn from regardless of our field. This week, I watched a storytelling masterclass unfold when Taylor Swift appeared on Travis and Jason Kelce's New Heights podcast. What made her appearance so compelling wasn't celebrity status, but her ability to bring listeners along on emotional journeys. When Taylor described reg...
Send a text Your brain isn't just processing a story—it's dancing with it. That's the fascinating revelation at the heart of this mind-bending exploration into why stories stick with us when facts fade away. Dive into the neuroscience of storytelling as we uncover how narratives activate your entire brain—not just language centers, but sensory regions, motor cortex, and emotional pathways. When someone mentions touching a microphone's foam cover, your sensory cortex lights up. When they desc...
Send a text Grab the Free Resource: https://successon.social/sevenstories Ever find yourself struggling to know which stories to share with your audience? The right story at the right time can transform how people connect with your business, but many entrepreneurs freeze when trying to figure out what narrative to use. Drawing from years of storytelling expertise, this episode delivers five powerful story frameworks you can immediately implement in your business communication. These aren't j...
Send a text Stories have immense power to shape beliefs, inspire action, and create empathy in ways that facts alone cannot accomplish. Your personal narrative has the potential to create meaningful change, preserve cultural identity, and disrupt the status quo when shared authentically. • Stories shape our beliefs and help us make sense of the world through narrative • Research shows stories increase oxytocin in our brains, creating powerful connections • Personal stories inspire others to ...
Send a text Struggling with how much of your personal story to share in your business? You're not alone. This candid episode of The Story Lab tackles the challenging question that many entrepreneurs face: which parts of your founder story should you share, and which should remain private? I walk you through my three-color framework that transforms the way you approach storytelling in business. You'll discover how to map your complete journey using green highlighting for must-share elements, ...
Send a text How does a traumatic experience transform into a catalyst for national change? That's the powerful journey I share in this inaugural episode of The Story Lab. After surviving a brutal hate crime in Boston where an attacker stomped on my head shouting "die, faggot, die," I faced a second blow when the perpetrator received only anger management as punishment. Walking out of that courthouse devastated, a reporter called me - and something unexpected happened. A fire ignited within m...
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