Chapter 24: Storytelling
Test Bank
Multiple Choice
1. Which of the following is NOT true of effective stories?
a. They can pass on understandings and dreams.
b. They are often a bit dry.
c. They can help bridge barriers.
d. They can bring people psychologically closer.
2. All of the following are your speechmaking goals EXCEPT
a. to reframe your experiences.
b. to learn how to perform your experiences.
c. to articulate messages that surmount boredom.
d. to discourage audience participation.
3. Which of the following is NOT true of stories?
a. The more personal and authentic your stories, the better.
b. Stories are different than narratives.
c. There are different ways to tell stories.
d. Effective storytellers tell a full spectrum of stories.
4. Which of the following is NOT a question you should ask yourself in order to discover
your storytelling ability?
a. Do others respond favorably to the stories I tell?
b. Do I find it easy to speak in metaphorical language?
c. Do I reach others on an emotional level?
d. Are my words able to conceal who I really am?
5. Which of the following is NOT a question you could ask yourself to discover your
storytelling ability?
a. Do I speak like a leader?
b. Do I rarely tell a story to make my point?
c. Do I repeat what I think is important?
d. Do others remember my words?
6. Which of the following is NOT a story-teller’s tasks?
a. To persuade others of a vision
b. To instill a vision
c. To describe a vision
d. To communicate a vision
7. Stories can help us do all of the following EXCEPT
a. share knowledge.
b. inspire.
c. trick.
d. enhance brand recognition.
8. ______ is perhaps the most significant act anyone hoping to influence others can
perform.
a. Speechmaking
b. Storytelling
c. Singing
d. Reading
9. Being able to translate thoughts and ideas into words that others understand and
respond to is an essential speaking ______.
a. skill
b. flaw
c. need
d. problem
10. According to executive coaches Richard Maxell and Robert Dickman, a story is all of
the following EXCEPT
a. a fact.
b. wrapped in an emotion.
c. compelling us to take an action.
d. not transformative.
11. A(n) ______ describes what people are doing and why.
a. narrative
b. argument
c. plot
d. discussion
12. Which of the following is NOT one of the five key elements that give a story legs?
a. reflects your passion
b. creates an awakening in the audience
c. reveals a need for change
d. makes the audience emotional
13. When using a story as part of speechmaking, you should tell us who the hero and
______ are.
a. heroine
b. plot
c. villain
d. message
14. When telling a story, ______ matters.
a. timing
b. persuasion
c. appearance
d. humor
15. In a speech, you should choose words that achieve all of the following EXCEPT
a. add vividness to your ideas.
b. steer others toward your goal.
c. strengthen a positive image among audience members.
d. divide the audience.
16. To be effective and enhance your ability to inspire, heighten your sensitivity to
language by choosing words that achieve all of the following EXCEPT:
a. adding vividness and force to ideas
b. steering others toward your goal
c. convincing others of your points
d. strengthening a positive image among audience members
17. Language should function as a ______ enhancer.
a. credibility
b. persuasion
c. honesty
d. openness
18. Which of the following will not have likely negative outcomes?
a. Calling others derogatory names
b. Intimidating your audience
c. Inciting emotion in your audience
d. Using profanity
19. When insecure, speakers fall back on what kind of language?
a. Simple language
b. Complex language
c. Emotional language
d. Neutral language
20. Most people will respond to the ______ meaning, not the ______ meaning.
a. connotative; denotative
b. denotative; connotative
c. logical; emotional
d. emotional; logical
21. Avoid using words that confuse and alienate, or what some might call
a. technobabble.
b. gibberish.
c. persuasion.
d. jargon.
22. You can harness visionary language by using
a. evidence.
b. facts.
c. hyperbole.
d. metaphors.
23. ______ form the basis for narratives or stories.
a. Evidence
b. Facts
c. Hyperbole
d. Complex metaphors
24. Ideas rely on ______ and _______ to get across to the audience.
a. deception; restatement
b. restatement; repetition
c. persuasion; repetition
d. repetition; deception
25. “______” finds you taking responsibility for or ownership of your story. You
assume responsibility for your thoughts, feelings, and actions.
a. I language
b. We language
c. Us language
d. Me language
26. “______” indicates shared responsibility.
a. I language
b. We language
c. Us language
d. Me language
27. Which of the following is true regarding audience interest?
a. Our brains make it easy to listen to a boring speaker.
b. When you connect with audience members, they are more likely to become involved.
c. An emotionally neutral speech captures audience interest.
d. Engagement decreases when audience members are asked to become involved.
28. Which of the following is NOT true of stories?
a. They create less active exchanges between speaker and audience.
b. They set out who the protagonists and villains are.
c. They embolden those hearing them to understand why the goal sought is worth
pursuing.
d. They remind listeners what the mission is all about.
Short Answer
29. ______ are narratives.
30. ______stories capture and communicate a compelling and specific description of
what things will look and feel like when the future is achieved.
31. According to ______, when we compare two unlike things in a figure of speech, the
comparison influences us on an unconscious level.
32. Because ideas fight for attention, you need to ______ ideas.
33. The more you ______ an idea, the more receivers remember it.
34. Using ______ language helps build a collaborative climate,
35. A speaker who creates an ______ charged event captures our interest.
36. We are all storytellers.
37. The stories we tell help determine our success.
38. Narratives enable you to personalize your speech’s message, provide it with a
frame, and reveal an outcome that offers a lesson we can learn from.
39. Clear speakers use focused and jargon free language as well as short sentences.
40. Receivers often forget the message when “we language” is used.
41. When you ask audience members to do something during your presentation, their
engagement increases.
42. From a leader’s perspective, stories are essential.
Essay
43. Discuss and exemplify how a speaker can discover his or her “real” voice.
44. Discuss and exemplify what your goals are when becoming an effective storyteller.
Ans: Area to explain: Your goals are to reframe your experiences, learn how to embody
45. How can you be an effective storyteller?
Ans: Area to explain: You need to be an effective wordsmith—adept at using words to
46. Discuss and exemplify when stories work.
Ans: Area to explain: Reflect your passion, supply an antagonist or villain, offer up a
47. How can you tell a speech has a good story when you hear one?
Ans: Area to explain: It is delivered in simple language and is easy to understand. It