The Stories We Tell

I’m 72 conversations into my goal of 150 by year’s end.  It might be tough to make it with the holidays but I’ll go down swinging.  My most favorite part of all of these conversations is the fascinating stories I’ve heard of perseverance, resilience, and outright ingenuity.  I sincerely appreciate so many fine people taking the time to share.  What a world we live in.  

I’ve listened to someone who overcame extreme grief in the most unimaginable of situations to reinvent themselves into a whole new and better person.  

I’ve heard the founding story of a non-profit that is fighting hard to provide better opportunties to young students so they don’t have to endure the same hardships she did.   

And I’ve come across numerous people simply doing amazing work with remarkable products and services.  It blows my mind, the level of creativity and brilliance that exists in the DFW community. 

I’ve also heard not so great stories.  Stories of leaders demeaning team members, committing egregious acts that cause people undo stress at best and their livelihood at worst.  Stories where the culture and greater good of those tied to the organization matter little to the appearance of action, control, and profit.  

Regardless of whether the story is good or bad, it’s the stories we tell that shape our perception of the world around us.  In a recent conversation with someone in the financial advisor space, I asked her why it was so hard to find opportunties to give her a referral.  I love her quote. 

“Money is a more sensitive topic than politics or sex.”  

I can’t say I disagree.  I’m certainly not talking about any of those 3 subjects in my conversations.  However, I believe that business challenges might be just as interchangeable as money in that quote, at least as sensitive subjects go. While some folks are upfront and forthcoming, many are telling themselves stories that might differ from reality.  These stories range from myths that limit potential opportunity to creating justifications that make light of real issues.   I’ve even found some examples of misleading stories for myself in terms of who is versus who should be my ideal client.  A question that I realize I have so much to work on. 

In the meantime, I look forward to hearing more stories.  I also look forward to finding ways to help people tell their stories the way they want to. Stories that maximize their potential, take issues head on, and be 100% unapologetic when their story doesn’t match the world’s ideal.  

Happy Thanksgiving folks.  Christmas is in 47 days!     

Russel
“The Backboard” 
performancefaction.com

PS.  Coach, add defining my ideal client to our next conversation.