Walking and Talking

I went for a walk today with my friend and colleague Mark Molony. Mark is a crisis worker, therapist, educator, facilitator and business coach. He’s the inspiration behind my recent celebration of 300 straight days of meditation – this was the direct result of attending one of his mindfulness programs.

During our walk, we were talking about how change occurs. And, Mark in one of his wise moments said the simplest and most profound thing:

We change when we change our story.

Living in Stories

As human beings we live in language. Stories or narratives are how we make sense of what is happening in the world. And, ultimately, they define who we are. Part of this is that they frame what is possible for us and what is not.

For example, as I started to review my results for last year I realized that I was operating as ‘solo man’ trying to do everything on my own. This had me produce a certain level of results and not the level that I wanted. Once I recognized this, I was able to create a different story for 2015: Us – where I work more in partnership and in collaboration with others.

[Tweet “We #change when we change our story”]

Two Business Applications

In business the creation of stories has two powerful applications.

1. The story we tell ourselves about who we are and what we are capable of. When we change this we change our behavior and ultimately or results.
2. The story we tell our clients and customers. This is our brand or marketing story. When we change this we change our relationship with your customers and create a new promise of how we want the future to be.

[Tweet “The two essential #businessstories: Who we are, and who we are for our customers.”]

Your Business Breakthrough

If you want to create a breakthrough in your business then the simplest way is to create a new story.

The important thing here is that you firstly, need to identify your current story. What’s driving you right now? What’s the story that is the source of your current results?

Once you’ve identified and completed this story then you’re free to create a new one.

[Tweet “To create a #businessbreakthrough change your story”]

Manifesto as Story

The way I suggest you do this is through creating a manifesto. Essentially, it’s a new story about your future.

It might describe the future vision of how you want your world to look or it may describe attributes and value that you are going to aspire to upholding. Either way, it’s a powerful process because its aim is to create a single story that defines who you are AND what you are creating for your clients and customers.

Q: What are your current results? And, what story explains this?

Q: What results would you like to create? And, what story would support you to achieve this?