Taylor Swift is rocking the world.

And every storyteller should take notice, because she’s telling a story—and she knows how. There’s a lesson here. (A few lessons actually, but we’ll stick with one.)

Whether you’re a Swiftie or not, she’s one heck of a storyteller. Taylor brings the audience to their feet at the first chord and keeps them there until the last…then they sing all the way back to their car. Her audience is invested in her story, and that’s not happenstance. Taylor, along with every other musician who can rock a stadium, knows the opener should always be a crowd-pleaser—a song that exploits the intimate connection between the audience and the music. Her songs from the “vault” are saved for the right moment, when everyone’s locked into the story and it’s time to reveal a secret.

Taylor Swift takes her audience on an emotive journey, and she starts big. You should do the same with your story—work to form an emotive connection with the audience up-front. People relate to the ups and downs of the human experience, so lead with that. If you don’t, you’ll lose them right out of the gate.

So how do you nail the opening? Hit an emotive chord and hit it hard. Let’s assume you want to showcase a machine learning tool that helps pathologists make more accurate diagnoses. The patient is a woman who lost her mother to breast cancer…and is now facing her own diagnosis. Here are some options for an opener:
- Losing a parent is devastating for a child.
- I never thought it would happen to me.
- Gardening always soothes my mind. It gives me a break from the worry.

On the other hand, leading with information is a pretty predictable yawn-inducer—one you may not recover from.
- Dr. Wilguns works at Eseley Hospital in Shiny Rock, Vermont.
- Eseley Hospital in Shiny Rock, Vermont, was looking for a way to reduce turnaround time for pathology readings while maintaining accuracy.
- Product X uses machine learning to improve outcomes for breast cancer patients.

See the difference? There’s no emotive connection to be found in any of those options. The audience may hang with you for a bit, but they’re probably not all-in. Worst case, they may leave before you ever get to the point.

Be like Taylor. Tell a story.