How to Write Your Origin Story

The main reason I’m writing this is because I’m disappointed in a couple of facebook posts that talk about how they’re either going to be rich hustling, or be successful because they’re learning, yet don’t go into detail because they think the only thing that matters is just telling everyone they’re going to be successful.

Most people suck at talking about themselves because the only perspective they really have is how they view themselves. It’s never how the world views them. When you write about yourself, you really have to be under the notion that the world does not know who you really are, so how can describe yourself to the world?

Most of the time, when someone talks about themselves, there is either a hint of arrogance, elitism, and uniqueness that makes things kind of lame. Yet the opposite is true as well, it’s boring, and the person talking is holding back.

The basis of storytelling is well documented in My Food Job Rocks articles and many of the tips of persuasion apply to this. In most articles about me, I incorporate elements that I find important in the art of storytelling

Here are some tips and strategies for you to tell your story.

A Good Hook Matters Sometimes

An article with a  first sentence like “This is the best article I’ve ever written” is the worst way to hook someone in.

In fact, through a lot of testing, it’s much more authentic to write a short paragraph of your article. If I could post the whole article on every social media site with no limit, I would.

Polarized headlines work the best, as proven through the Facebook ads you browse through every day. However, most people who post polarizing headlines but then have terrible content are viewed as terrible people.

Headlines are hard because there is a lot more context going into a headline than you think. When a credible person posts a headline, a good chunk of the viewership is because the audience knows that she is credible. In fact, most people will read a compelling piece first then the story of you.

Overall, a hook is important, but it’s a balance. You can have a killer article that will get a thousand impressions, but it can fizzle out in an instant. Do you truly know who wrote the last viral article you saw?

In most situations, consistency of writing killer content is what builds brands and justifies origin stories. In fact, I would recommend writing at least 50 articles before you actually talk about yourself.

The Heroes’ Journey

Joseph Campbell’s the hero’s journey is the prime structure of how to tell a compelling story. Though reading the book is a long process, the takeaways are pretty good: all myths throughout history follow the same structure.

If you like Rick and Morty, then this is a good example of explaining the heroes journey (though a different method).

Or if you hate Rick and Morty, this article can help

The heroes journey is essentially the protagonist who gets out of the status quo through some unexpected force and has to overcome it. At the end, they survive, better than before.

Whether you think of Star Wars, Elon Musk, Thanos from Infinity War, or whomever, this is the formula that works for a story, movie, or anything.

Overall, a heroes’ journey incorporates suspense, an uneasy tension between the comfortable, and the crazy. The best use of a heroes’ journey invokes acts that you truly feel like you’ve been there before.

Another strategy I use when thinking about the hero’s journey is when I think of a large risk. Whether it was choosing food science, or joining the Better Meat Co, one of the thought processes was: would this make a good story? In most cases, any decision that involves risk will make a good story. Whether it’s a story of ruin or a story of success, can be considered another chapter.

Time Frame

It really doesn’t matter the time frame or the specific age, one day can do it.

A first kiss, a bad camping experience, starting a company, or an autobiography, these are all stories with various time frames.

In Seth Godin’s Akimbo, he did a story about Origin Stories. I read a lot about Seth, and know a bit about his background, but his origin story was about a wayward boat ride experience when he was a kid. I was a bit confused why he talked about that. If you know Seth, the you assume what he said had its layers.

In the next episode of Akimbo, Seth answers questions from his guests about the previous episode and one of them was about how to frame an origin story. Seth said it is really about the story you want to give about the viewer, and that you can control the perception of the story.

This is a very good point. At the end of the day, you can tell your story however you want. Heck, I’m sure some people even lie. Did Steve and Wozniak really work in their garage? Who knows. Your origin story can take place anywhere, any time, and can be told in either a positive light or a negative light, or both. When writing a story about you, your job is to share the world how you want to be perceived.

Keep on Practicing

Talking about yourself sucks, but that’s why you practice. We’ve been to about 50 meetings talking about the origin of Better Meat Company, and what we do and why. 90% of the time, we say the same thing. However, 10% of the time, we change things. We test how people respond to certain topics, and modify when we’re done. The evolution of the company has grown just from changing the 5-minute pitch.

If you are an obsessive listener and reader of My Food Job Rocks, you might have heard bits about my origin story. In several episodes, I’ve repeated the same things to my guests and have built upon this. When things get serious in trade shows and conferences, I can explain things about myself in confidence.

Overall, there will be a point in your life where you will write out your origin story. If not for you, it will be to the next generation. For me, writing about myself shows a path that someone could take to become a food scientist, or podcaster, or entrepreneur.

So when I write, I focus on the mindset, the hardships, and the intangible rewards that come with it.