Random Bits from Walter's Life

Don’t get trapped in some else’s story…

Attributed to American film producer Samuel Goldwyn, one of my favorite quotes is “When I want your opinion I will give it to you.” Yesterday, it struck me that in this famous malapropism, Goldwyn inadvertently touched the idea of controlling the narrative. What prompted this thought was an outstanding TED talk by Chimamanda Adichie, “The danger of a single story” that came my way via a Torben Bernhard (@torbenb) tweet.
 
Her talk is a brilliant discussion of how stories can narrow our view of the world. More importantly, she captures the reality that the stories that get told are a reflection of power – especially the power to tell the story of another person and make it the definitive story of that person.

Ultimately, I think it’s dangerous to accept stories at face value. And while this clearly applies to events in the world at large, I think there is a more “up close and personal” application of the ideas in her talk. Specifically, the need to question the stories about ourselves. While a little bit of feedback from others can be a good thing, it’s important to read it in the context of what we know about ourselves.
 
Knowing ourselves, of course, can take some tough introspective work. Yet, the risk of not doing it is to accept the single story view that others have of us. And that, means we can get trapped in a story that is not truly ours. So, own your life; find and tell your story!

Girl Talk: Sometimes It's Labeled “Parental Advisory”

Be Warned. This post has a Parental Advisory. Yes. It does.

 

So, there I was for my CrossFit workout, this morning, and the Trainer says he’s gonna put on a Girl Talk mix. Something inside me revolted, in that moment. I was thinking if I was going to do a hard-core work out, at least I wanted hard-core music – and not a musical journey to “mamby pamby land.”

 

Yet, sweetness and light is not what came out of the sound system. No. Instead we were treated to this provocative mash up. Yup. Great workout.

 

 


 

 

Some Rules Were Made to Be Followed

People who know me, know I’m pretty much an own-your-life kind of guy. So much so, that I sometimes advocate going beyond rules and changing the game entirely. In fact, just this week, I did a blog post on how this applies to careers.

So, during a subsequent conversation, with my friend and former fitness instructor, Sam, I gained a new perspective on following rules. After mentioning how unfit I felt, these days, she said simply, “Rule 1: Cardio.” It was a totally unexpected response; yet, I some how managed to come back with “bathrooms, seatbelts, and double-tap.” And we both had a good laugh.

She went on to tell me how much she loved quoting rules from the 2009 comedy, Zombieland, then hastened to add that most people are clueless about one of the film’s funniest elements. Described by the Wikipedia entry as “A running gag, and a central theme throughout the film, …the list of rules [are ones the character] Columbus comes up with for surviving in the zombie-infested world.” Not all are mentioned but you can find a list of 32 of them here.

Having had time to reflect on rule following, I suppose if you need to survive a zombie apocalypse, you should follow the rules. Otherwise think for yourself!

Instgram: Because every life has pictures to be shared!

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Frankly, I would have been taking and sharing photos, anyway. Yet, I have to admit that I love cool effects this app allows, and I'm thrilled about  the social context for sharing photos that this Instagram provides.

Telling Your Story. Not Whether But How

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Seems to me that today we are encouraged to tell our stories, as never before. Actually, career coaches have long stressed the importance of being able to respond well to “tell me about yourself.” Yet, today personal branding and social media are driving story as a key to becoming known, liked, and trusted. Clearly, there is little question that we need to tell our stories.

The real question is: How?

You don’t need to know that “storytelling” produces over 11 million results on Google to realize that storytelling is a creative pursuit open to a wide range of interpretations and approaches. So, how do you proceed when crafting your story for online consumption?

In the spirit of full transparency, my partner Carol Ross and I have addressed that in our Remarkable Online Profile kit. Still, we can begin to give you some guides for what constitutes a solid story:

  • Commands the listener’s attention from the start, so they want to keep reading.
  • Has a clear theme that defines who you are and what you offer.  
  • Validates what you offer by giving the reader a sense of your career journey without getting bogged down in details of your employment history.
  • Shows the attributes and competencies that make you stand out.
  • Has particular words and phrases that “ring true,” and are especially clear and emotionally powerful.  
  • Clearly communicates how you make an impact.
  • Makes an emotional connection that sets the foundation for creating trust and likability.

Of course, telling your story does take a substantial investment of time. Yet, when you have it, you have a tool that can best establish your brand and attract interest, online and off.  Ready to tell your story?