Why Story is So Powerful

In July 2006, I wrote a post (on my other blog, Ordinary Life, Extraordinary Living) about what constitutes great work. I started off the post by contrasting great work with good work by using these definitions:

1. Work that goes beyond its functional intention and moves us in deep and mysterious ways, we call great work.

2. Work that is conceived and executed with elegance and rigor, we call good work.

In July 2006, I was in the middle of great work, working on the podcast interviews for Conscious Living, Conscious Leaving.

Tonight, I realize I am there again, in the middle of great work, working on the pilot for A Bigger Voice.

Yesterday was a big day for the pilot. The ABV team heard our clients' tell their stories--the Innovator's Story--to give context to their remarkable wisdom.   Throughout the stories, I had a mixture of emotions--excitement, inspiration, wonder, hope, gratefulness, compassion, and joy. There were also moments where I could feel anger, despair, indignation, and passion. "Aha" moments and OMG moments.

Story is at the heart of creating a bigger voice. It's part of the Full Expression piece. One of my collaborators in the ABV work, a screenwriter, wrote me about story:

"Story uniquely provides "truth" with a blend of both thought and feeling."

He goes on to reference the bible for screenwriters, a book by Robert McKee:

"The author argues that life rarely provides the opportunity to blend thought (intellect, reasoning, meaning) with feeling (high emotion); they're too often separate experiences.  It's in art & especially story that those powerful elements find harmony.  He discusses how the blending of those experiences is so rare that when encountered, it can feel like a religious experience or an epiphany."

I've added the italics as this is what I felt when the ABV clients told their stories. I heard truth with a blend of both thought and feeling.

Oddly enough, story raises us up to the heavens and brings us back down to feel our own humanity.  It graces us when we least expect it and can become seared in our memories for a lifetime.