The Power of the Puppy Dog Story

If you are a small business owner looking for awards to apply for, look first at your local chamber of commerce. The Pinnacle Awards Celebration, for example, is one of the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce’s most prestigious events. It allows the Chamber to recognize both emerging companies as well as companies that have exhibited a substantial history as an established business.

Last night I attended the annual meeting of the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce, which is always a great event and a good opportunity to see everyone in town all at once. The speaker talked about the “age wave” and how the baby boomers will continue to influence our society, as we will not grow old or retire as any other previous generation. Plus, it sounds as if we are all going to live forever. I am not sure I am ready for that—and besides, my memory is going—so I will not even know it if I do.

But anyway, to return to the subject of awards, the Chamber gives Pinnacle Business Awards to five entrepreneurs whose companies have exhibited staying power, innovation, and community involvement. Another set of Pinnacle Business Awards go to companies who have exhibited steady profitability and growth over the past three years. One of the criteria for Steady profitability and growth is whether the company has maintained and/or increased profitability during challenging economic conditions.

This brings us back to the bio. Remember how your bio should describe what you have lived through to become a successful entrepreneur? Although it is written in a straightforward and unsentimental style, the bio is at its heart a story that affects the reader’s emotions. The readers (the judges for the award) will root for the “hero” (you) and want him to succeed.

Submissions that include what I like to call a “puppy-dog story” are the most successful. If the nominee works at the homeless shelter, play that up. Wrench people’s hearts. But remember that the puppy-dog story must be true.

Here’s an example of a puppy dog story in part of a nomination for the ATHENA Award ®, which honors both women and men for excellence in their profession or life's work, for devoting time and effort in their communities to improve the quality of life for others and for actively assisting women in realizing their full leadership potential:

On a personal level, I would like to tell you a little about how (nominee) has helped me achieve my highest personal potential. If my six-year-old daughter, Debbie, could thank (nominee) for making a difference in her life, she would. But Debbie cannot speak, because she suffers from cerebral palsy and lacks control over the muscles in her mouth. Debbie cannot even eat normally. When my daughter was a baby, (nominee) provided flexible hours for me, so I could provide the care Debbie needed and worry about my baby instead of my job. But (nominee) did not stop there.

When our family learned of a clinic that could help her perform daily functions that most people take for granted, we were overjoyed. Then we learned that the price tag for sending Debbie to the clinic was far from what our family could afford. That is when (nominee) stepped in and organized (name of benefit). The benefit raised over $25,000 dollars—enough to send both Debbie and me to the clinic.

At the clinic, Debbie underwent immersion therapy, a scientifically proven method for producing permanent neurological changes for patients challenged with cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis and other forms of paralysis. Since the clinic, Debbie has made a lot of progress.

(Nominee) is my hero. I have worked for her for more than 10 years, and she is absolutely the best manager I have ever known. She treats her other employees just as considerately as she treats me, and all of us enjoy generous benefits and salaries as well as an extremely positive workplace environment, with plenty of growth and challenge.

(The story above is a true one, although names have been changed to protect identities. )