What’s Your Story — Sustainable Ambition

Stories and storytelling have become known for their power in creating interest, understanding, and influence. Not only are our brains wired to relate to stories, stories also speak to our hearts. Perhaps not surprisingly then, our brains are masters at creating stories about ourselves, turning our experiences from fact into our own fiction. Since our stories craft our perceptions of who we are, a question we need to ask is why we often tell ourselves disempowering stories, ones that aren’t in our best interest.

A typical story framework has a set-up, the conflict, and a resolution. I wonder if most of our personal stories stop at the conflict and keep us as a victim rather than coming to resolution, providing us with the morale of the story. We don’t confront the problem to finish the story in a way that makes us the heroine that saves the day. What if we finished the story and instead created a positive vision of ourselves for ourselves? If we have a choice in the stories we create, why not tell our own enthralling and inspiring stories? We seem to like them in movies and books, so why not craft our own stories that are good for us, that empower us rather than diminish us? A more powerful story can help us feel capable, confident, and strong and put us in a better position to take the next charge.

The Insight: Be careful about the stories you craft about yourself. We do ourselves a disservice by not framing our stories in a way that makes us more powerful. Tell your story, framing the facts in a way that resolves the conflict and makes you the heroine. Our goal should be to be in a position to answer the question, “What’s your story?,” with confidence and clarity.

Here’s a “What’s Your Story” Example, borrowing from the story framework provided by Daniel Pink in “To Sell is Human,” which was inspired by Pixar:

Once upon a time, there was a woman named Grace who was fretted over what she was doing with her life.
Every day, she would tell herself stories that made her feel like a victim and like she was stuck, having no choices, and that kept her fearful of following her heart.
One day, Grace decided to confront the problem in her story to start to frame a resolution that would give her more power.
Because of that, she started to feel more confident about following what truly motivated her.
Because of that, she started to talk with people about her vision and did so confidently, such that more and more people were drawn to her ideas and gave her encouragement and help.
Until finally Grace successfully launched her idea to great fanfare, having embraced her confidence, power, and leadership to drive her true path, learning that telling herself more empowering stories was a way to help her reach her goals.

Story Example for the movie Finding Nemo:

Once upon a time there was a widowed fish named Marlin who was protective of his only son, Nemo.
Every day, Marlin warned Nemo of the ocean’s dangers and implored him not to swim far away.
One day, in an act of defiance, Nemo ignored his father’s warnings and swims into the open water.
Because of that, he is captured by a diver and ends up in a fish tank of a dentist in Sydney.
Because of that, Marlin embarks on a journey to save Nemo.
Until finally Marlin and Nemo find each other, reunite, and learn that love depends on trust.

Source: To Sell is Human, Daniel Pink (borrowing from Pixar)