How to Discover the Stories You Want to Tell
"The most important question to ask is: What myth am I living?" -- Carl Jung
No matter what your age, a lot has happened to you in this lifetime -- the good, the bad, and the ugly -- finding love, losing love, being hired, being fired, overcoming obstacles, falling on your face, births, deaths, victories, failures, and everything else in between. Choosing which of this stuff to tell as story presents an interesting challenge. The good news is there are many ways to make that choice.
1. ACKNOWLEDGE THE STORIES YOU ALREADY TELL: All of us have favorite stories we tell -- often, more than once. Even if you don't consider yourself a storyteller, there's a good chance you have recounted some of your life experiences to others -- people you trusted, loved, or wanted to communicate something meaningful to. Maybe it was your parents, sister, best friend, client, teammate, neighbor, doctor, spouse, or local bartender. Every time you tell one of them the story, he or she listens. What are those stories?
2. CHUNK OUT THE MAIN EVENTS IN YOUR LIFE: If you were about to die and your life was flashing before your eyes, what would be the key scenes you would see? Growing up in your parent's house? Your first day of school? Falling in love for the first time? A traumatic incident? The birth of a child? The death of a loved one? Seeing a UFO? Deciding to quit your job? Moving to a foreign country? What else?
3. IDENTIFY UNEXPECTED MOMENTS OF TRUTH: All of us have experiences that are unplanned -- surprise occurrences that challenge our sense of self, blow our minds, and teach us important lessons. Sometimes, all it takes is a trigger phrase to remember them. Take a few minutes now to review the following phrases and notice which stories they spark for you
-- Overcoming an obstacle
-- Trusting your gut
-- Adapting to change
-- Getting help from an unlikely source
-- An embarrassing moment
-- Rising to the occasion
-- Discovering a hidden talent
-- Extreme patience
-- A random act of kindness
-- Going beyond the call of duty
-- Being rescued
-- An unlikely synchronicity --
-- Emerging victorious against all odds
-- A powerful spiritual experience
-- Making a difficult choice
-- Letting go
4. CHOOSE A WORD AND IDENTIFY STORY IT TRIGGERS:
-- Faith
-- Courage
-- Intuition
-- Resourcefulness
-- Creativity
-- Collaboration
-- Flexibility
-- Perseverance
-- Paradox
-- Celebration
-- Immersion
-- Surprise
-- Love
-- Focus
-- Intention
-- Community
-- Paranormal
-- Magic
-- Truth
-- Dream
-- Playfulness
-- Fear
-- Compassion
-- Learning
-- Ritual
-- Sleep
-- Holiday
-- Overtime
-- Proposal
-- Follow-up
-- Listening
-- Music
-- Loss
-- Connection
Now, jot down the titles of at least three stories that have come to mind as a result of this little exercise. Then circle the one you most want to tell.
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