The Power of Story: What We Tell Ourselves Matters
How much does story matter in your career journey? Quite a bit, in fact.
Stories rule much of our decision-making.
How we operate is based on the stories we tell ourselves or the stories we think others hold about us.
We construct tales about how much we can do and how valued we are. We imagine narratives about what other people want or think about us. We hold ourselves back because we have a story about not being ‘enough’ in some way.
How often do you investigate the stories you carry around? Let’s take a look.
When was the last time you asked yourself these questions:
What goals matter to me [not just the company]?
What am I great at?
What am I interested in learning more about?
When am I at my best?
What would I be happy never doing again?
How do I define my success?
What kind of next-job am I capable of doing?
It’s rare. Especially in a corporate setting where other people make the rules and referee the game.
A Monumental Shift in Stories
Speaking of stories, back in my corporate days, I once had my team do a story exercise that was truly eye-opening.
The request was this: sit down with a piece of paper and write down three things:
What are your priorities this quarter (what impact are you intending to make)
What does success look like for you (how are we going to measure progress)
What are you going to learn (what’s your growth path)
Three questions that created a role charter. Now, I had a group of incredibly talented, forward-thinking professionals in front of me and they STILL struggled with these questions.
Writing the Story Was Challenging
Why?
Because I was asking them to write the chapter. I wasn’t going to tell them exactly what their job was and how I would decide whether they were successful or not. Instead, I invited them into the conversation.
This exercise required a whole new way of thinking.
It meant considering all the possibilities and narrowing them down.
And, it required some boldness. Making a declaration—without hedging—is rare in the corporate world.
The lesson I learned was that asking people to start with a blank sheet of paper is hard. This isn’t a muscle we use often. It helps to give people some structure and framework to get started.
Story Tools for Your Rewire
Your rewire is about writing a new story - similar to my team writing their role charters.
When you think about your next chapter, the same questions apply:
What are your priorities (what impact are you intending to make)
What does success look like for you (what are you going to celebrate)
What are you going to learn (what’s your growth path)
We know this is tough stuff. So, let’s make it a little fun.
Or playing with the concept of a letter from future you.
Or drafting your personal vision statement.
Try one (or all) as a way of reintroducing yourself with a new story - to the person who is going on this journey.