I Can't Find One Anywhere!

Workshop participants tell me they want to tell stories.

Workshop participants tell me they know they have stories to tell.

Workshop participants shrug their shoulders and say, "I just don't know where to find them!"

In quite a few of my recent postings, I've explored these "truths":

1. Organizational culture contributes to success.
2. Leaders (managers included) build cultures by their actions and communications.
3. Stories are pivotal elements of that culture-building communication.

So, WHERE do you go for stories. Three places that add up to...everywhere and anywhere.

• Long Ago and (Not So) Far Away. The longer one's life, the shorter his memory. Situations you experienced a long time ago are hard(er) to recollect. All you need is the method to recall them.

• Just Beneath Your Surface. You have stories just beneath the surface of your memory. How often does a song, a scent, a sight, a taste flicker across your memory. You wonder, "What made me think of that?!" Something surrounds that subconscious memory, something that just may be story-worthy.

• Waiting to Happen. Stories are happening all the time. Stories are waiting to happen. All that's missing are a trained eye to notice the occurrence and a skilled consciousness to see the story-potential.

And so, here's your HOW. As in how do you milk that long-ago memory? How do you tickle the subconscious for what is waiting to be storified? How do you become consciously aware of the possible stories surrounding you?

• Carry a notebook with you all the time. That's all the time. Carry a pen, too.

• Don't wait for the story to appear. Anytime you see or hear or any-other-sense something that catches your attention, make a note of it. Anytime anything crosses your memory and catches even an instant of your attention, make a note of it. No matter how fleeting the sense or the memory, don't wait, write it down.

• Do wait for the story to appear. Be patient with that notebook. Be friendly with that notebook. Don't try to force stories from the notes you've taken, but do keep your eye (and mind) on those notes. Review your notebook every week or so.

So much more will be included in Make Magic with Stories - a 90-minute audio conference, Thursday, 5/22/2008.