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Storytelling to Influence (Udemy.com)

How to use stories to influence decision makers in the audience!

4.3
36,518 reviews

Created by: Jeff Tan

Last updated June 2023

Our take

Based on the ratings of 36,518 students, a sample of their written reviews and the syllabus, as the course stood in June 2023. No course pays to be reviewed.

This is a short course on persuading people with stories instead of only facts and figures. It runs 42 minutes across 24 short lectures in three lessons: why stories influence, how to build a personal library of stories, and how to tell them. Jeff Tan, a former Singapore Air Force pilot turned trainer, teaches it with fun characters and small exercises, plus nine quizzes. It is pitched at anyone, but the syllabus shows a primer, not a deep program.

Reviewers who liked it say the ideas flow smoothly from one to the next, the tips are easy to apply, and a few even enjoyed the quizzes. About 80 percent of the 36,518 ratings are four or five stars. The complaints are blunt, though. Many describe the narration as a robotic or AI voice that makes the course feel cheap. Others mention loud background music, quizzes with repeating answers, a few crude jokes, and content they find basic or stretched. One reviewer calls it generic on linking stories to influence.

The course was last updated in June 2023, which matters little for this topic. With 83,792 students, it is clearly a popular, low-commitment starting point. It is worth an hour if you want a fast overview and can put up with the voice. If you need depth, research behind the claims or polished delivery, a longer storytelling or presentation course will serve better.

Best forBusy professionals who want a quick intro to story-based persuasion in under an hour.
Skip it ifYou want depth, sourced research or a human-sounding narrator; reviewers call it basic and the voice robotic.

Pros

  • Short at 42 minutes, so it fits into a lunch break or a single evening
  • Three clear lessons: find stories, build a personal library, then tell them
  • Quizzes and exercises keep ideas moving, and some reviewers say they enjoyed them
  • Simple methods that reviewers call easy to follow and easy to apply

Cons

  • Many reviewers call the narration a robotic, AI-sounding voice
  • Content is introductory, and some reviewers say it could be shorter or feels padded
  • Loud background music, repeating quiz answers and a few crude jokes annoy some
I just love it. The way how smoothly this course goes from one idea to another. I was even happy to do quiz, which I usually am skipping. Here I was eager to make it, too.
Katerina Kudlackova, a student

Listed for all levels with no prerequisites, but it is introductory enough that experienced speakers may find it thin.

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What you will learn

  • FIND new stories easily to add impact and emphasis to your message
  • PRESENT your message clearly
  • LEAD your audience step-by-step
  • INSPIRE your loved ones, friends, colleagues
  • CAPTURE your audience attention
  • POWER your presentation
  • INFLUENCE your fans' TRIBE
  • be CONFIDENT in delivering your message

Course content

3 sections · 24 lectures · 42 min of video 9 quizzes, 1 article

  1. 1Lesson 1: The What-Why-How of Storytelling to Influence 6 free previews6 lectures · 1 quiz · 12 min
  2. 2Lesson 2: How to Build Your Personal Library of Stories 9 free previews9 lectures · 5 quizzes · 16 min
  3. 3Lesson 3：Tell Your Story 1 free preview9 lectures · 3 quizzes · 13 min

Who it is for

The instructor says it suits

  • This Storytelling to Influence course is for anyone who must influence others. But hold on, don’t we ALL want to influence others at some time or another? And isn’t it true that we often don’t get our way, and this makes us just so frustrated, annoyed, and well,… upset? So this course is for anyone and everyone who must influence someone else! (this means 99% of the human race - the other 1% live

What you need before you start

  • DESIRE - that’s all you need to start the course. Desire to do what? Influence others of course, and to use storytelling to influence instead of only relying on facts, figures, and logic. Nothing to prepare, so jump straight in! Over 41,000 students have already taken this Storytelling course!

How it compares

Against the other 503 rated Udemy courses in Teaching & Academics on CourseDuck:

  • Rating4.3 out of 5higher than 16% of them
  • Reviews36,518#3 of 504 by number of reviews
  • Length0.7 hoursshorter than 97% of them
  • Last updatedJune 2023earlier than 51% of them

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Course Description

Storytelling to influence is a hot topic today!  Sadly, though, how to tell stories to influence is one of those “easier said than done” things in life, isn’t it?  I certainly felt that way years back when I started on my own path at becoming better at storytelling to influence, especially in my professional life where data and rational thought were the only influence tools used.

Oh, I’m sure you’ve noticed I keep saying storytelling to influence, and not just storytelling.  After all, any of us can tell a story for fun, but a story to influence is a little different, with a different intention and outcome, which is to influence.  And in my five years plus of studying and practicing storytelling to influence, I found most storytelling tools don’t really work in an influence situation, which frustrated me! 

I fully intend to prevent you from having that same frustration and that's why this course was born. And all it takes is to watch three main lessons spread over 23 short videos!

I’ve made this course as simple to learn as possible, and with fun characters and stories to help you remember the tools to influence with a story.  In this course, you’ll learn how to find stories, attach a few meanings to every story, how to safely practice storytelling to influence privately until you're ready to do it publicly, and when it’s time, to slip influence stories naturally and comfortably into your conversation. You’ll also find exercises and quizzes at selected parts of the course to really make the lessons stick. 

And, by the way, my learning company is called Sticky Steps because our tips and tools stick with you - forever!
Read More All Levels All Levels product length iconTime: 42 mins

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Instructor Details

Jeff Tan

Jeff enjoyed an amazing  26-year long, once-in-a-lifetime experience as  a helicopter pilot and flight instructor with the Singapore Air Force, rising to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel before starting a training & coaching company in Shanghai, China 2006.

He discovered an incredible amount of super useful tools and shortcuts that helped him become a practitioner of influence, motivation, accelerated learning, public speaking and presenting - all topics anyone and everyone needs in life!

Along the way, he picked up a few qualifications to help him even more, and has a Masters in Social Science (Counselling), and is a certified Neuro Linguistic Programming trainer, PhotoReading instructor, and Hypnotherapist. 

Read More

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Reviews

4.3

36,518 ratings on Udemy

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By Chanchal Botre on 7/31/2026

this quizes are very helpful . and also improve our knowledge

By Naina on 7/24/2026

there should be more examples, it can be more interesting

By Luis Patricio Melgarejo on 7/20/2026

Thank you very much, what I learned was excellent

By Katerina Kudlackova on 6/1/2026

I just love it. The way how smoothly this course goes from one idea to another. I was even happy to do quiz, which I usually am skipping. Here I was eager to make it, too.

By Jacqueline Stockli on 5/16/2026

Excellent course with excellent tips to learn and practice in the real life.

By John Sakers on 4/16/2026

The instructor demonstrates his point by telling a story about a time he told a story. It is more engaging that way. The class videos have too many breaks in the teaching flow - I would prefer fewer sections of longer duration. The phony quizzes are funny once or twice, but they do not demonstrate understanding of the material - they were an annoying interruption.

By Shuanghui Ma on 3/31/2026

Thank you for the course firstly. I found this course online and was really looking forward to it. The pace was a bit fast, so it felt a little intense at times. I did pick up a few key takeaways and some useful methods. The content itself is simple, easy to follow, and easy to apply. But the way it was delivered didn’t really stick with me or leave a strong impression.

By Karin T on 2/27/2026

Please update the robotic voice! I can get past the drawings, but the robotic voice was terrible. Also, the quiz questions. Where "both of the other answers are wrong", I don't understand where I'm supposed to read the explanation for the other answers, so they feel a bit like a waste of time. Might be worth reviewing these.

By Emmanuel Dinakin on 2/19/2026

This is a short and educative lecture. I learnt a lot from this course and i am looking forward to implementing it

By Amy Vandesteeg on 2/9/2026

Clearly read by AI and weirdly emphasized in some parts and completely ignored punctuation in others. I wasn't sure what the point was supposed to be for some of the example stories, other than just to tell a story, which really isn't helpful. Could have used more in depth practice or instructions in finding meaning in stories.

By Dorian Wilde on 11/8/2020

It's quick, concise, the visuals are fun to look at keeping me engaged and his diction is great. I also appreciate the bullet points so I can take notes to help me remember better.

By Van Ho My on 11/8/2020

Nice voice and a super influent story that the speaker shared.

Showing 12 of 322 reviews

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Quality Score

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Overall Score : 86 / 100

Storytelling to Influence
Visit course on Udemy Write a review
  • Video Duration: icon 42 mins
  • Price: $15.99
  • Provider: icon Udemy
  • Updated: icon June 2023
  • Level: All Levels All Levels
  • Language: icon English
  • Certificate: icon Yes
  • Lectures:24 in 3 sections
  • Practice:9 quizzes
  • Students:83,800
  • Subtitles:12 languages
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