Carl Sanders Edwards
My Dad was a primary school teacher. Unlike most teachers in those days, he was popular with the kids. I remember as a 6-year-old that everyone in our town seemed to know Dad and want to stop and chat and engage. So I asked him why. “Oh, they were a student”, was always the reply. I learnt that Dad was a kind, likeable teacher who taught well. This has embedded itself as a story for me.
“Be kind, likeable and do your job well to have a good impact (and feel good)”.
We all have our ‘stories’. The stories are scripts that run so much of our lives, some for better, some for worse. They drive most of our behaviour. Some are from childhood, some from recent times. They are powerful. They are also malleable. They aren’t invisible forces resistant to change. You can reflect to discover them and then if you wish, edit them.
Huh? Here is a simple example.
I flunked the presentation.
My story could be “I’m not good enough, that’s why I flunked it”. What happens when I next prepare a presentation?
Take that story and edit it, “I flunked it because I didn’t prepare well enough“. Now, what happens when I prepare for the next presentation?
It can be like magic.
The developmental reflect-act-reflect cycles triggered through methodologies such as D-I-Y and Be conscious, Be curious, Be better are also a form of story editing.
Why is this idea important right now? Stories are formed during times of intense emotion and change. Do we have that at the moment! Whether referring to the pandemic, weather, wars, political or economic unrest, the word ‘unprecedented’ leads headlines constantly. Our challenge is to shape our reality consciously and positively through the stories we tell.
If this concept resonates, think of a situation that didn’t go as well as you’d hoped. If your story of that situation doesn’t aid your understanding of realistically why it didn’t go well, you might need to get editing!
Enjoy this free to access Adeption tool to get you started! What story are you telling yourself?
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