Pipeline Pathfinders 2

This page is your Pathfinders 2 storytelling playground, built on the proven magic of The Moth framework and tuned for real humans who want to learn how to tell real stories, better. It distills what makes The Moth stories unforgettable - clear stakes, lived moments, emotional turns, and honest transformation - into a simple, usable resource you can come back to every month.

Think of it as your narrative compass: it helps you find the moment that matters, shape it into a story with momentum, and tell it in a way that feels natural, human, and alive, not rehearsed or pitchy.

We will use this as the shared language and structure for our monthly Pathfinders workshops so everyone is playing the same game, speaking the same storytelling dialect, and discovering just how powerful their everyday experiences can be when told with clarity and heart.

Rather than one shared monthly Theme, you are free to follow your curiosity. Pick any Theme from the list below. Each one includes questions scientifically calibrated to make you suddenly say, “Oh no… I do have a story.” Before the timer starts, simply tell us which one you chose so we can experience your story through that lens.

Happy accidents, chance encounters, and the moments where life clearly had better plans than you did.
Find a Story:
1. When did something unexpectedly go right even though you were heading in a completely different direction?
2. When did a chance meeting, casual comment, or small decision quietly change what came next for you?
3. What’s a moment you almost didn’t show up for… but you’re really glad you did?
4. When did a problem, delay, or disappointment turn out to be exactly what was needed to happen?
5. Who entered your life “by accident” and later became important in a way you never could’ve planned?
6. When did you say yes to something with no clear reason, and only later realize why it mattered?
7. What’s a time when you were looking for one thing… and found something far more valuable instead?
8. When did a wrong turn, missed opportunity, or Plan B open a door you didn’t even know existed?
9. What moment only makes sense looking backward and felt random or meaningless at the time?
10. If you zoom out on your life, where does serendipity show up as a quiet co-author in your story?
Why here:
Low barrier. Optimistic. Invites first-timers. Sets a tone of openness and curiosity.
Oops
A small mistake with significant consequences.
Find a Story:
1. When did you realize, too late, that a tiny decision had already set something much bigger in motion?
2. What’s the moment you wished you could rewind exactly 10 seconds?
3. When did you confidently do the wrong thing… in front of the exact wrong person?
4. What harmless assumption turned out to be completely, publicly, undeniably false?
5. When did you send, say, or reveal something that was never meant for that audience?
6. What mistake accidentally exposed a truth you weren’t ready to admit even to yourself?
7. When did trying to fix a small problem make it dramatically worse?
8. What rule did you break unintentionally… and only later learn why it existed?
9. When did a moment of distraction change the course of a relationship, job, or opportunity?
10. What’s a mistake that was painful at the time but quietly shaped who you became afterward?
Why here:
Funny, relatable, disarming. Laughter builds psychological safety early.
A short window with long consequences.
Find a Story:
1. When did a brief conversation alter a decision you’d already made?
2. What five-minute window still divides your life into “before” and “after”?
3. When did you almost walk away, but stayed just long enough for everything to change?
4. What message, call, or knock on the door arrived at exactly the wrong or right moment?
5. When did you have almost no time to choose, and the choice followed you for years?
6. What moment forced you to see someone differently in an instant?
7. When did a quick yes or no quietly redirect your future?
8. What ordinary day suddenly stopped being ordinary?
9. When did you understand something important about yourself faster than you could explain it?
10. What tiny slice of time keeps echoing long after it ended?
Why here:
Introduces stakes without going too dark. Sharpens storytelling craft.
A choice that felt dangerous, but necessary.
Find a Story:
1. When did playing it safe suddenly feel more dangerous than acting?
2. What did you do even though a part of you said, “Don’t do this”?
3. When did you speak up, knowing it might cost you something real?
4. What leap did you take before you felt ready?
5. When did you tell the truth without knowing what would happen next?
6. What opportunity required you to leave something secure behind?
7. When did you bet on yourself without evidence that it would work?
8. What moment forced you to choose between approval and authenticity?
9. When did fear stay, but you moved anyway?
10. What risk changed how you see your own courage?
Why here:
Encourages courage as trust in the room grows. Energy spikes.
In ways they may not even know.
Find a Story:
1. When did someone’s small action matter far more than they realized?
2. Who showed up at exactly the moment you needed without knowing why?
3. When did a casual comment quietly change the direction you were heading?
4. What friend believed something about you before you believed it yourself?
5. When did you only later understand what someone protected you from?
6. Who helped you just by listening rather than fixing?
7. When did a friendship begin with something ordinary but become essential?
8. What did someone do that you never properly thanked them for?
9. When did a friend stand beside you while everything else shifted?
10. Who helped you become a different person simply by being themselves?
Why here:
Connection, gratitude, and relational depth. Strengthens community bonds.
The thing you knew but weren’t ready to face.
Find a Story:
1. When did you realize you’d been pretending not to notice something obvious?
2. What conversation did you postpone long after you knew it had to happen?
3. When did your explanation stop convincing even you?
4. What did someone else see about you before you admitted it yourself?
5. When did silence start costing more than honesty?
6. What truth kept returning no matter how busy you stayed?
7. When did you recognize the pattern you swore wasn’t a pattern?
8. What were you protecting by not facing it?
9. When did saying it out loud change what was possible next?
10. What truth, once accepted, rearranged how you saw your life?
Why here:
Midyear vulnerability peak. The room is now safe enough for honesty.
The moment you began to become someone new.
Find a Story:
1. When did you notice you were reacting differently than the person you used to be?
2. What moment made you realize you couldn’t go back to who you were before?
3. When did someone treat you as the person you were still learning to become?
4. What decision quietly marked the end of an old identity?
5. When did you do something that would have surprised your past self?
6. What did you stop needing once you started changing?
7. When did growth feel unfamiliar but unmistakable?
8. What habit, belief, or role did you outgrow without noticing at first?
9. When did you recognize the new version of yourself in real time?
10. What small action began a change that kept unfolding afterward?
Why here:
Transformation after reckoning. Emotionally uplifting and reflective.
A detour that turned out to be the point.
Find a Story:
1. When did the plan fall apart in a way that led somewhere better?
2. What delay or setback later made perfect sense?
3. When did getting lost show you what you actually needed?
4. What did you only learn because things took longer than expected?
5. When did the backup plan quietly become the real plan?
6. What opportunity appeared only after the original one disappeared?
7. When did frustration slowly turn into gratitude?
8. What path did you resist that ended up fitting you best?
9. When did the journey matter more than the destination you were chasing?
10. What once felt like wasted time now feels essential?
Why here:
Wisdom, perspective, and humor. Summer energy, spacious stories.
A situation that went from manageable to unhinged in record time.
Find a Story:
1. When did a normal day take a sharp, irreversible turn?
2. What started as a small problem and spiraled beyond your control?
3. When did you realize, mid-moment, this was becoming a story?
4. What harmless plan produced consequences no one could contain?
5. When did one decision trigger a chain reaction you couldn’t stop?
6. What situation kept getting worse the more you tried to fix it?
7. When did everyone suddenly look at you to handle what you caused?
8. What began as a misunderstanding and turned into a full production?
9. When did you cross the point where backing out was no longer possible?
10. What moment forced you to laugh because panic wasn’t helping anymore?
Why here:
Re-injects levity after deeper months. Big laughs. Big crowds.
The sentence you still rehearse years later.
Find a Story:
1. When did the right words arrive long after the moment passed?
2. What conversation still continues in your head?
3. When did silence change the outcome more than any mistake?
4. What truth were you protecting yourself from saying out loud?
5. Who deserved an answer you never gave?
6. When did you leave a room knowing you hadn’t finished the story?
7. What apology or confession never quite made it across the distance?
8. When did fear edit your voice in real time?
9. What sentence would have changed what happened next?
10. If you could speak once more into that moment, what would you finally say?
Why here:
Emotionally rich, poignant, and reflective. Strong stories emerge here.
The moment you had to choose and knew you couldn’t choose both.
Find a Story:
1. When did two good options force you to give one up forever?
2. What decision defined you more than you expected?
3. When did waiting stop being a choice?
4. What path did you take knowing it would close another door?
5. When did someone ask you a question you couldn’t dodge anymore?
6. What choice changed how others saw you?
7. When did you realize there was no safe middle?
8. What did you have to let go of to move forward?
9. When did the decision feel clear but not easy?
10. Looking back, when did everything hinge on a single answer?
Why here:
Decision-making, identity, consequence. Powerful pre-finale theme.
After the dust settled.
Find a Story:
1. When the moment was over, what part of it kept returning to you?
2. What did you carry forward that you didn’t expect to keep?
3. When the noise was gone, what truth was left behind?
4. What loss revealed something you still had?
5. What memory changed meaning over time?
6. When did you understand an experience only long after it was over?
7. What part of you was different once life became quiet again?
8. What did you learn only in hindsight?
9. What did you finally appreciate after it was no longer yours?
10. What remains now that you couldn’t see then?
Why here:
A perfect year-end close. Resonant, reflective, meaning-making.
Stories linger. People leave changed.

Introduction

If stories were sparks, this page would be a bonfire. It’s your go-to guide to unlocking the kind of storytelling that doesn’t just inform, it captivates, connects, and transforms. Built around the world-class principles of The Moth, which turns ordinary storytelling experiences into unforgettable moments, this resource equips you to craft personal narratives that land with clarity, heart, and impact.

The Moth is a non‑profit storytelling organization founded in 1997. Over more than 25 years it has produced thousands of live events, podcasts, books and educational programs that encourage people to tell true personal stories. While the themes and storytellers vary widely, the organization’s directors and educators have distilled a set of frameworks and principles that will help your stories connect better with listeners on stage or off.

As we adopt The Moth storytelling event framework as our model for the Pathfinders 2 Monthly Workshops in 2026, we wanted to provide you with additional practical tips and techniques to become a better storyteller.

Below is a synthesis of these frameworks and best practices from official Moth resources: the Story Map, storytelling tips, the How to Tell a Story book, along with examples and teaching prompts to help you craft your own compelling stories.

1 The Moth Story Map

The Moth’s education program teaches a five‑part narrative framework called the Story Map. You do not need to use this to share your story in our workshops. This is only an example of a proven framework for many stories. It breaks a story into chapters that clarify the storyteller’s journey and the transformation experienced:

Story Map Chapter	Purpose & Questions
1. The World As It Was	Establish the context and status quo. What do we need to know about you and your world to understand the story?
2. And Then One Day…	Identify the inciting incident. What happens to set the story in motion?
3. Raising the Stakes	Highlight what is at stake for the storyteller. What do you stand to gain or lose, and why does it matter?
4. The Moment of Change	Show the turning point or climax where the storyteller’s perspective shifts.
5. The World As It Is Now	Conclude by showing how the storyteller has changed. How is the world different after the events of this story?

This structural map is used in The Moth’s education programs and is repeated in later blog posts to help students identify the five parts in real stories[5]. Storytellers can use the map as an editing tool to expand a small moment into a complete arc or to tighten a long narrative into its essential beats.

2 Storytelling Tips & Tricks

The Storytelling Tips & Tricks page on The Moth’s site offers concise guidelines for events like our Pathfinders 2 Program[6]. Key takeaways include:

2.1 What to do

Tell, don’t read: Moth stories are told, not read; the storyteller should know their story by heart but not memorize it word‑for‑word[7].
Have stakes: Good stories need stakes; what does the storyteller stand to gain or lose and why does it matter? Without stakes a story feels like an essay[8].
Start in the action and have a strong first line: Launch into the story with an engaging first line that sets the stakes and grabs the audience’s attention[9].
Know your story well enough to have fun: Rather than reciting a memorized script, prepare bullet points, rehearse, and then enjoy the performance[10].

2.2 What not to do

Avoid meandering endings: Know the last line before you begin; an unclear ending can deflate the story[11].
No stand‑up routines, rants or essays: The Moth welcomes humor but expects stories rather than stand‑up routines or rants; avoid monologues that lack stakes[12].
No fake accents or disrespect: Stories should be told in the teller’s authentic voice; imitating accents from other cultures or using hate speech is discouraged[13].

These tips reinforce the Story Map: focus on stakes, start strongly, build a clear arc, and finish decisively.

3 Insights from How to Tell a Story (The Moth Book)

The official Moth handbook, How to Tell a Story: The Essential Guide to Memorable Storytelling from The Moth, distills lessons from 25 years of coaching storytellers. The book description on themoth.org outlines its goals: it helps readers “mine your memories for your best stories,” “explore structures that will boost the impact of your story” and “tailor your stories for any occasion”[14]. A library listing reveals the book’s table of contents[15], which can be grouped into three major parts:

Everyone has a story (Part 1) - Introduces The Moth, explains why true stories matter, sets the rules (no notes, no net), and encourages readers to believe that everyone has a story[16]. It discusses working with Moth directors and the core rules (true, personal stories told without notes)[17].
Developing your story (Part 2) - Covers memory mining (digging for memories), deciding on the kickoff event (“the kickoff” and “Ch‑ch‑ch‑changes”), identifying stakes and defining your story’s arc[18]. It distinguishes anecdotes vs. stories, stresses finding scenes and details, introduces narrative stepping stones, and discusses humor, emotional magnification and structuring strategies such as chronological order, flashbacks, callbacks or using a small story to convey larger themes[19].
Telling your story (Part 3) - Addresses performance considerations: moving from page to stage, memorization vs. familiarization, delivery and audience engagement. It includes advice on nerves, understanding your audience, and the ripple effect of sharing personal narratives[20].

By mining memories, identifying a clear arc with stakes and transformation, and rehearsing for an authentic delivery, storytellers can craft stories that resonate in any setting.

4 Workshop & EDUCATIONAL Insights

4.1 Performance techniques from storytelling workshops

A storytelling coach summarized eight tips for preparing for a typical story slam:

Don’t practice in front of a mirror - practice with real people to engage with the audience[39].
Rehearse at least seven times - repetition builds familiarity and frees you to react to audience feedback[40].
Use humor and music to open creative channels[41].
Place the scene physically around you - imagine the physical environment to create vivid imagery[42].
Focus on T.E.M.P.O. - Theme, Entertainment value, Main point, Pace and Ownership[43].
Trim your introduction - draw the audience directly into the story[44].
Stick to the five‑minute limit - practice to hit the time target without rushing[45].
Do no harm - respect others and avoid embarrassing or hurting someone; end by bringing the audience safely back[46].

These tips, though shared by an external storyteller, align with The Moth’s emphasis on rehearsal, authenticity, stakes and audience engagement.

4.2 Curriculum and Teacher resources

The Moth’s education program develops curriculum resources for K‑12 teachers. The teachers’ page explains that the curriculum provides strategies, lesson plans and tools to bring true personal storytelling into classrooms; it’s not a scripted unit but a collection of best practices[33]. The program runs workshops such as the Moth Teacher Institute for professional development[34] and offers a teacher guide to accompany the story collection All These Wonders[35].

4.3 Storytelling School activities & prompts

During the pandemic, The Moth launched Storytelling School, a bi‑weekly set of activities for educators and parents. A blog post on “That Pizza” encourages readers to use the story map to identify the five parts of Dihan Hossain’s story[5] and provides discussion questions such as “Have you ever begged your parent for something?”[36]. The post also invites readers to perform acts of kindness and create their own pizza, demonstrating how storytelling can connect to family activities[37].

A humor website compiled 22 writing prompts from The Moth that illustrate the kinds of memory‑mining questions the program uses. The prompts include:

“Tell us about a time you helped a friend even when it wasn’t in your own best interest.”
“Have you ever done something people thought you were too old to do?”
“Tell us about a childhood hero” and “a time you were your own hero.”
“Have you ever been called something that you decided to take as a compliment?”
“Have you ever had friends or family push you to do something new?”

These prompts encourage storytellers to dig into specific moments and emotions[38].

5 Example & Application

5.1 Example: “The Prom” by Dante Jackson

The Moth provides transcripts for some stories. “The Prom” illustrates how the Story Map works in practice. Dante Jackson, a shy eighth‑grader, initially avoids having fun because he fears being judged[47]. After friends convince him to attend the prom, he describes the awkwardness of going with a friend’s family and feeling like an outsider[48]. At the prom, he stands in the corner, clutching chicken wings[49] until a DJ instructs everyone to drag non‑dancers to the floor. Twenty people pull Dante into a circle; he reluctantly begins a small two‑step, which grows into an exuberant dance that draws cheers[50]. The story ends with Dante reflecting that it was one of the best nights of his life and that he learned to step out of his “dark room” and embrace joy[51].

Applying the Story Map:

World as it was: Dante is cautious and avoids fun[47].
And then one day: Friends persuade him to go to prom and a friend’s mother offers a ride[48].
Raising the stakes: He worries about being judged and stands alone at the event[49].
Moment of change: The DJ’s invitation forces him onto the dance floor; he starts with a two‑step that escalates into uninhibited dancing[50].
World as it is now: Dante realizes that letting go of fear can lead to unexpected joy[51].

This story demonstrates how a small personal moment can become a universal tale when framed around stakes, change, and personal growth.

5.2 Additional story prompts and possible applications

While The Moth does not publish transcripts of every story, many podcast episodes illustrate similar arcs: listeners hear stories of people facing life‑changing choices, confronting cultural expectations, or learning from mistakes. For example, the In Famiglia radio hour features stories about family challenges and choices[52]. These stories often begin with an everyday setting and build towards a moment of transformation that reveals a deeper truth.

6 Cheat‑Sheet: Telling a Moth‑Style Story

The following checklist synthesizes the frameworks and principles above. Use it as a quick reference when crafting or coaching a story for any setting:

Choose a true personal story - it should be about you and reflect something at stake[8]. Avoid essays or rants[53].
Map your arc using the Story Map: define your world as it was, the inciting incident, rising stakes, the moment of change, and how your world is different now[1].
Identify the stakes early and craft a strong first line that sets them up[9]. Start in the action rather than with a long background.
Include conflict and resolution - even in a humorous story, something must change; end decisively[25].
Rehearse without notes until you can tell the story naturally and keep it within the time limit (around five minutes)[24].
Engage your audience - imagine the physical scene around you and react to their responses; use humor, vivid details, and emotional honesty[54].
Respect yourself and others - avoid imitating accents or including hate speech[13]; do no harm[46].
End with reflection - show what you learned or how you changed[51]; know your final line before you start[11].

Conclusion

The Moth’s storytelling approach combines structure, stakes, authenticity, and rehearsal. The five‑chapter Story Map provides a clear narrative arc, while the tips and book frameworks emphasize stakes, strong openings, concise endings, and true personal material. Live events require storytellers to tell stories without notes and within five minutes, encouraging them to hone their message. Educational programs and prompts help learners mine their memories for vivid scenes and practice telling stories that reveal personal transformation. When these elements are combined - a clear arc, emotional stakes, and an engaging, respectful delivery - storytellers can create Moth‑style stories that resonate with any audience.

N.B.: Google “themoth your-city, your state” to discover if The Moth is having a live event near you. It’s a unique experience ($20 per ticket) to sit in the audience or even put your name in the hat to go up on stage one day.