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The collected stories of people making things that matter and inspiring others to do the same.
Hello, friends, and welcome to this hot type edition of the story forge podcast, where we believe making things matters. I'm Lyle Smith, your host. And, I am a writer, a storyteller, a runner, a dad of a legacy runner, a golfer, a student of human moves, a sometime fan of ragtime music, and a passionate movie lover. I believe movies matter in a way you can't quite describe sometimes. They are not just entertainment.
Lyle Smith:They are a part of our humanity in a way we often can't quite describe. We argue about the best movies. We make lists of the best of the year and the worst. We watch award shows defining them and showing off their creators in tuxedos and sparkly gowns. But those shows are not about what makes them the best, and the movies we love are often not the ones that make those lists.
Lyle Smith:It's not about being the best. It's about the ones that connect to us, speak to us, teach us things. It's why so many biopics aren't completely accurate, and book adaptations make changes we love and hate. And in this hot type episode of the pod, I wanna talk to you about my favorite movie. I have many.
Lyle Smith:It's true. There are so many. It's hard to make a top five list or a top 10 or even for me a top 20. But there are those we love more than others. Those we watch more than once.
Lyle Smith:Sometimes much more than once. And you have to ask why? Movies matter. Movies really matter in America. Movies, in a lot of ways, made America, or at least made the perception of America and Americans that other people have around the world.
Lyle Smith:And we all have favorites for different reasons, but I have one that speaks to me more than all the others. One that I love and learn from even though I've seen it probably dozens of times. For me, it's the sting. And I used to believe it was because I first saw it at a very young age on TV sitting on our family room sofa with my dad. The Scott Joplin ragtime music, the costumes, the setting, the sound of the 2 tone spectator shoes tip tapping up the wooden stairs at the beginning of the movie, the undeniable cool of Redford and Newman.
Lyle Smith:I'd come to love Butch and Sundance later. The surprise ending. But Hooker and Gondorf, running a long con on Doyle Lonergan just to get justice for their murdered friend, Luther, When Gondorf tells the kid what's at stake, there ain't a fix in the world gonna cool him out if he blows on you. I'll take him anyway. Why?
Lyle Smith:Because I don't know enough about killing to kill him. But there's more to it than that. There's things to be learned. And honor among thieves in the fictional world of Chicago con men in the thirties is just one of them. They're pros.
Lyle Smith:They know what they're doing. And they don't drop the ball. Ever. They can't afford to. And it feels good when they know it worked.
Lyle Smith:And it's where I got the name for the Cornerstone Story product for my business. And I love it when I tell the story of the sheet, and somebody really gets it. The Sting is just about my favorite movie in the world. I learn things every time I watch it. Things I use every day.
Lyle Smith:If you if you've ever worked with me, you'll know the sheet. We do a 2 hour story session to dig down into the questions that matter most to the people who matter most to you. And then we use that to create your brand story in modular, memorable format, on one sheet, front and back. And what does that have to do with the sting, you ask? Well, there's a scene that I always remember.
Lyle Smith:In the section of the movie called The Hook, kid Twist ducks into Duke Boudreaux's bar to recruit the best long con men he can find in Chicago. And Duke has a way of finding them right then and there. Lacey, he calls out. Bring me the sheet. And Lacey goes out to get a clipboard with a page of names from behind the bar.
Lyle Smith:And it's the sheet listing all the best con men in town looking to get in on an operation. All the resources by name and reputation that Twist needs right there on one page. And that's what I created for Nimblesmith. To help businesses get all the language they use when they describe themselves in one place. Easy to use, simple to remember, so everyone in your organization can tell the same tale, the same way to everybody.
Lyle Smith:A simple, memorable message that your people can remember and repeat and use to teach others. Teach by repetition to carry your message forward. So while your sales guys are out there like Henry Gondorf on the Century Limited from New York to Chicago, setting the hook in for a fixed poker game, you can be back at Duke's telling the tale, ensuring that your customers are all in on the same story. The story that means most to them. The story that makes them loyal to your brand.
Lyle Smith:The story that makes them connect with you. The story that they tell other people when they ask, where'd you get that? And that's where the sheet gets its name and its power and why movies are important. Why we all should have one, a favorite. It may not be the best movie ever made, The Godfather.
Lyle Smith:Or the most important movie ever made, Citizen Kane, Casablanca. Or the best movie as told by my 14 year old son, Star Wars, though he agrees with me that Rogue 1 is pretty awesome too. There are great bad movies, Caddyshack. The fantastic artsy movies, The 7 Samurai and anything by Bergman. The cult movies you can't get out of your head.
Lyle Smith:The adventures of Buckaroo Banzai across the 8th dimension. Then, there are the favorite movies. The movies you wanna watch at least once a year. The movies that when you spot them running on whatever channel you're spinning through, you stick with them till the end. The movies that teach you things.
Lyle Smith:That's the sting for me. If you haven't ever seen it, drop what you're doing now and go fire up the ragtime. You're in for a treat. And a list of lessons you can use. I wanna tell you about something new.
Lyle Smith:My new book. Yes. I wrote a book. It's called Why Yellow Matters. It's about communicating, writing, deciding, understanding.
Lyle Smith:It's for people who write for business, or market, or sell things. Which, face it, is all of us at one time or another. It's for writers, or people who hire writers. It's for creators, or creative professionals, or people who need things created. Thinking things, deciding things, writing things.
Lyle Smith:It is about brevity and balance, cleverness and chaos and clarity, the hard things and the great things and opening yourself up to the zone to make things. But most simply, it's about taking the time to ask why? And 30 other thoughts to make your things matter more. Why Yellow Matters is on sale now, and readers are loving it. And I hope you will too.
Lyle Smith:Get it on Amazon or Barnes and Noble. Or if you order directly from the Nimblesmith website, we'll include a special little gift just for you. Pick up your copy of Why Yellow Matters today. If you find yourself enjoying the StoryForge podcast and embracing the idea that making things matters, give us a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever it is you listen to these things. It helps others find the show and hopefully enjoy it as much as you do.
Lyle Smith:The story forage is presented by Nimblesmith, the content marketing agency. That's nimblesmith, spelled with a y, dot com. All recording, editing, interviewing, scheduling, and executive producing tasks are handled by yours truly, your host. This podcast would not be possible without the sincerely excellent help of our friend and producer, Anthony Sergi of Dynamic Art and Motion, who makes a number of other fantastic podcasts that matter, including the a guest in the house about all things hip hop and the career chat room hosted by HR pro, Aaron Sergi. Music for the program is usually from the Jodi Nardo, Trio Lights Will Guide You Home album.
Lyle Smith:But today, we use a little bit of ragtime as well. If you like the work we're doing, please share the story forge link far and wide and tell all your friends about us. And if you can and you can always send us questions or suggestions through the tell us your story link on the website. Or support us on our new Patreon site. Not so new, really.
Lyle Smith:You can learn more at patreon.com/makingthingsmatters. Or just shop our store on the website, at the storyforge.com. That's, the hyphen story hyphen forge.com. And, click the shop link at the top of the page. Thank you for listening.