It’s 11 pm and she is beyond exhausted. Her makeup is still on from the day. Mascara is running underneath her eyes. Her pink sweater has stains from making dinner.

This mother of three spent the last 12 hours running a company, bringing her children to and from activities, making dinner, answering emails, coordinating schedules, paying bills, giving baths and doing homework. 

The laundry is on the floor. The lunches are not made and her “to do” list continues to grow in her head.

On the verge of tears, because she is so overwhelmed, she doesn’t even have the energy to put on her pajamas.

As she sat on her bed, eyes barely able to stay open she takes the three notebooks from her nightstand. 

She opens the first one named Addison and she begins to write about their special moment that evening and what she loves about her.

Next up is McKenna’s notebook. The blue book with polka dots has her name scripted in gold. The mom writes about their funny conversation at dinner and how proud she is of her.

She then picks up the last blue notebook titled Hannah. She tells Hannah about the funny faces they made before bed and signs it xoxo, my love forever.

This mother writes to her daughters 365 days a year and will do it until they graduate high school.

This is a story is about a mother and her bond with her children. But this is also about something else...a notebook.

What I just did was share a story about how a notebook can change someone’s life.

Successful companies tell stories. They don’t mention their name or ask people to buy their product and they don’t say how great they are. They simply tell stories.

In the marketing and public relations world that story would be turned into a video and would appear on television and on social media.  The company would encourage people to share it and ask them to share their stories of love.

Consumers and the media don’t want you to sell to them. They want stories.  Businesses should be thinking like the media does. Why should the public care about it? What will resonate with them?

We see it with big brands like Nike, NorthFace, and Yeti. They paint a picture of a lifestyle and their target audience can relate to the story.  This is exactly what all businesses should be doing.

So, what are you waiting for? What’s your story?