TaleCatcher - Tracy Kenny's blog

Anti-viral

My google reader is out of control. Instead of bringing me the internet in small chunks, it completely overwhelms me with what all is going on out there. Still, I'm a possibility junkie, and a 'collector' in Strengths Finder terms (they call it 'input'), and I love having all those articles there just waiting for me to discover them.

Yet most of them continue to wait.

One I try to catch up with though is the blog from The Storytellers. It's this type of company that makes me wish - a very rare occurance - that London wasn't so far away from Norfolk.

Yesterday Jackie Tolland of the Storytellers blogged about Geert Hofstede’s research into cultural differences in the workplace. She captured that traditionally-designed global communications will always struggle to design the right response, because peoples' cultural differences will always drive distinctive corporate expectations and responses.

That all makes sense. Malcolm Gladwell covered some of the same ground in Blink, in his harrowing description of cultural differences in conversations between pilots and air traffic controllers.

What I liked about Jackie's observation was that the right single story of  a corporate communciation can be re-told in a multitude of ways, to fit the individual circumstances and audience.

For me this is about getting the individual to re-tell the story to suit the circumstances they share with their audience, but it's also about investing in a local storyteller who already has a relationship with them. To get someone who understands the listeners shows an understanding and respect from the top, right from the start, and it removes the 'Who's he?' barriers that might stand in the way for an audience. 

It also suggests that the global company understands the personal touch.

I think I've seen something like this before... it's rather like a big company structuring their communciations so that they go to the ranks via peoples' line manager.

The challenge with that is making sure that the line managers understand and buy into the story, enough that they can share their personal journey of coming round to it. And like any vehicle of mass communication, it requires investment - this time of the human kind, to make sure it will accurately and effectively deliver the right message.

In my observed experience it's usually easier just to send an email or film a DVD message. What a wasted opportunity to build  relationships and confidence in the message, for everyone.

Simple story

I've been helping someone with his CV today. He warned me that he didn't want any of that storytelling stuff in it, that he'd read up on it and it's all more theory than accepted practice.

We've worked through several versions, over email and over several hours. I think he's as pleased as I am with it. But I haven't pointed out to him that what we've done is build in a clear story.

I maintain my position: a story is when Somebody Does Something and it Means Something.

That's all.

We spent some time on the 'Somebody' - he was selling himself short. He wasn't showing off his achievements, and he wasn't really clear on what he's all about.

Of course a great deal of what  you're 'about' is made up of what you 'do'. So we looked at the actions and achievements, figured out that they made him a certain type of person, and tweaked it to sort that persona. The actions and the person are in line, reinforcing and valdiating each other.

That's typical CV stuff.  The transformation is in the meaning. 'So what?' I asked (politely). 'What's the impact? Why did it matter?'

Bang, now there's lots of meaingful stories about his accomplishments, and one big story about a very caring, very efficient operations manager who's technologically savvy but does it all for the people he's working with.

It sounds like the preise for a novel. Or screenplay.

He won't let me put in the stories like about the widowed customer who cried because my friend helped him when learn to cook and use a washing machine (he thought his oven was broken when he actually was trying to bake it on GM2),but his story comes through all the same.

He can save that stuff for the interview. That's when stories will get centre-stage. 

Ways of getting what I want

Years ago when I was doing my MA, my friend De'Lara was working for a quite brilliant professor - whose intelligence of course left her a bit out of the loop around new technology.

I was reminded of the story when I was walking around Norwich Cathedral with my brother last week, admiring the typesetting machine which the Jarrold company had donated to their education hall. It had only two sets of type, all the letters held in a huge wooden tray with a key for finding the right ones quickly. It wasn't based on QWERTY!

Anyway back to the future, in this case the late 1990's. De'Lara had done some word processing for Prof M in some font or other, but it wasn't what the esteemed woman had in mind. She was kind but firm, insisting that my friend re-type the entire thing in the preferred font. My friend tried to interrupt and say that it was no problem, she could change it in a few key strokes. Eventually, rather than let the situation develop into a full argument, she backed down and told the boss she'd see her in a few hours with the document in the new font.

What lessons do I take out of this for today?

• Shut up and listen, I might learn something
• There are usually easier ways of doing things
• Think more about what I really want, than getting stuck on how I want to get there

Bean counting

Have you seen this before? It's a bit old, but the point remains.

There is a human amongst the beans.When we think they all look alike, it's easy to miss out the individual.

 

 

 

 

Giving from ourselves

A few weeks back I was intrigued to find in Seth's triiibe (a closed community for those who read and try to demonstrate the principles in his books) a discussion of generosity, and how unselfish giving seems to always bring returns to the giver, but not in reciprocal or repayment ways. The poster, Christina Ciani, suggested that it's about a change in the individual. I posted this reply. The story as well as the learning have stuck in my mind, and I thought it worth repeating here:

I've been trying to pin down how it (generosity) works for months, hoping to write on the topic, and there just isn't a formula. I think you've pinned it down, that the giving is about changing a place in ourselves, which then helps us to achieve more. Sometimes the results of the giving come back to help us, but really the best benefit is becoming better as individuals.

My favourite story on the topic is last autumn I was grumpy one afternoon and had chosen to focus that energy into cleaning house. I was on the rampage, I was getting stuff done, and it felt... well it didn't feel good, it just felt like I was getting stuff done.

My two young daughters, 2 and 6 at the time, were in the garden, pestering me to come and play with them. I got fed up with the sound of my own 'no, no, no,' and I did.

I chased them. We ran in circles, we fell over and tickled in the grass, and we had a marvellous time. I wasn't grumpy anymore...

Not even when I did my last chase around the shed and broke my toe on the flower bed. The two little ones supported me back to the house, caring for me, but even in my pain I was laughing. The lesson to give especially when I don't want to had got through, because it's then that I need to be pushed back into a generous space, so I can see the beautiful day and benefit from the wonders of the connections there to be made.

Even

I've learned something today. I can't tell the stories to go with it, I'm afraid, but I feel I need to capture the learning.

It started several weeks ago. I was feeling a bit neglected. People were asking a lot of me, but not really noticing me. These are people who I know care about me, but they were very busy checking in and getting things done. Over a quiet coffee that afternoon I reflected on it, and realised that they assume I'm okay. If they thought I wasn't, they'd have stopped in their tracks and listened.

So that's one lesson: maybe it's not such a good idea to put on a brave face, because people might believe it. It deprives us of the opportunity to be honest together and grow together.

Today that lesson expanded for me. I learned that three people I have been critical of have serious problems of their own. I realised that I respond generously and with compassion when I know there is weakness, but if I think the person's okay, I have higher expectations... and then I criticise when they fall short.

Does this mean I am trying to knock them down?

The lesson for me: Assume everyone has a good reason for behaving the way they do. And if they seem completely okay, then care still, in case there is a problem they are hiding, just waiting for someone to give them time to bring it out.

There is another part to this: having problems doesn't relieve people of accountability for their behaviour. Being their friend means holding onto the friendship, yet expecting them to live up to responsibilities and face their problems, because I am their friend and I want to see them grow. This is much harder than just criticising, and much better for all of us.

I am okay, by the way: I am learning, and that always makes me happy. And things are happening, and going well, too.