1. Know the first and last line of your story—this will help you if you get off track in the middle.

2. Get into it—if you're enthusiastic, your audience is more likely to be as well. Yeah!

3. Have a point—don’t just string together unrelated anecdotes and call it a “story.”

4. Connect with your audience—relate to them. Get your audience to understand the purpose of your story.

5. Have a powerful ending—make sure your story builds up to something special that the audience can take away with them when it’s over.