Lectio Divina for Storytelling

There's a storytelling technique I use often and I'm sharing it today on my Amazon Flash Briefing, What's Your Story.

This is really helpful when you feel uninspired, have writers block, or just simply have no idea what to say on your social media channels.

There’s a Christian study practice called Lectio Divina — and this storytelling technique is borrowed from it. Now don’t worry — this has nothing to do with religion — we are just taking a cue from the Lectio Divina principles and applying them to storytelling.



You start by taking a PHOTO and letting it spark a story lurking within you.

 Similar to Lectio Divinia — you do this in 4 parts. 



The first is to simple Observe — study the photo and allow thoughts, feelings, emotions, ideas, creative sparks come to you. 



The second is to Ask — what does is this picture saying to you? What stories are you hearing in your head?



The third step is to Think — how does is this really relevant? Is this something worth sharing with others? How does it relate to your own story, or business, or message?  Can you make a connection here for your audience? 



The last step is to Write — to grab your journal and write out these thoughts and make sense of them all. Then, decide how you can use this story to share it with others.

This technique might help you with a presentation, or it could be a great email to send to your email followers… or it becomes a blog post or social media post worth sharing.

This is an exercise I use OFTEN to extricate stories worth sharing with my audience, my clients, my readers, and my email followers.


Consider how you might share with your own tribe!


This is not something you over-think -- It's simply a means to get your creative juices flowing, and to dig inside to find the story you need to share today....

My best advice is to allow the picture to ignite a piece of YOUR STORY you are ready to tell.....

..... a time in your life you recall, a lesson you've learned from an experience, a triumphant moment you are proud of, a turning point in your life -- something that sparks a piece of your own story!


Your story holds power. Give it words today.



Every Monday, inside the LIGHTbeamers Community on Facebook, I post a picture for the members to practice this storytelling skill. 

We call this #StorytellingMonday — and you have an open invite to jump in our community and try your hand at this technique.



Remember to use the photo as a creative spark — and then follow the 4 steps: Observe, Ask, Think, Write


RESOURCE: One of my favorite sources for stock photos is a website called Unsplash — it’s a great spot for finding high-quality photos in all sorts of genres: nature, animals, current events, Architechture, travel, fashion, and so on. 



Join us in the LIGHTbeamers Community and let us know how this technique works for you!