Joseph Campbell's Hero Journey Model:

Opening (The Call):  A desire to adventure; e.g., "My boss called me into his office and said, "You're being laid off." What to do? My best friend said, "'Start your own business." 

Middle (Answer the Call): The adventure; e.g., "I did and for the next fifteen years I developed and delivered seminars on communications networks, mainly the Internet."

Closing (The Adventure Ends): "I retired, as did my wife, into our next adventure, volunteering."

Bill Gove's Story Model:

 Four Parts: This is who I was. This is what happened. This is what I did. This is who I am now.

Bob Murphey's Personal Story Construct

 Three Elements (in every good story): "Things that happened exactly that way. Things that happened almost that way. Things that could have happened that way."

Suggestion:

When creating personal stories consider telling them in ways others may recognize as paralleling theirs, especially when relating personal experiences and people who have been influential.