And stories can be changed.
Take Tesla for example.
You might think of them as an automotive company. One who designs and builds electric cars.
And yet, a number of years ago they changed their story. They moved away from being an automotive company and repositioned themselves as a technology and design company with a focus on energy innovation.
Their current mission statement (read: story), according to their website, is “to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.”
In doing so they have opened the door to other products, including battery packs and solar panels, to empower people to get off the electricity grid and embrace alternative energy sources.
So what if Tesla had decided to create a sustainable, electric commercial aircraft, instead?
They could have updated their story to “Improving the way humans move around the globe.”
They have the money, audacity and incentive to pull something like that off, and given their CEO, Elon Musk, is also the CEO of the rocket company SpaceX, you could argue it makes sense.
But they didn’t because they decided on a different story.
Now you might think this is ridiculous, that there’s no reason for Tesla to pivot to commercial aircraft. Especially you engineers out there (who, if you’re reading, I’m amazed have even made it this far). And you’re probably right.
But that’s not the point.
The point is Tesla chose the story they would tell the world using the very real assets they have available to them. A story that empowers and inspires them to change the world. Literally.
And so, what about us?
Are we even aware of the stories we tell ourselves and others? Are we conscious of our unique assets and how these feed our stories?
Do we recognise that passing blame and having unproductive default responses (here and here) are choices?
And faced with this choice, do we tell ourselves stories that change, empower and inspire?
What if we did?
Because everything is a story, and stories can be changed.
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PS. Yes, these are my initials, but I also have something else to add:
I’ve teamed up with three incredible changemakers to run a workshop that, you guessed it, will help you identify and reframe the stories you tell yourself.
Priority applications close August 31st. Would love for you join us in Melbourne on September 21st.