Story+smart, Story+savvy, Story+wise- Which are you?

I used to believe in stories.

I used to say, “if you want to change the world, you have to change the story.” And I was a great champion of the story that changed- Israeli and Palestinians living in peace, Police treating every young black man with respect, Catholics and Protestants in Ireland living in harmony, the Catholic Church ordaining women, the USA spending most of its military budget on peace, and all the rest. Great stories of change.

Some of them, of course worked. And some like Israel and Palestine only changed the story-nothing else. Not that we intended it but we had to go on pretending that this new story had something to do with the reality. Reality mocked our aspirations.  Ten years of investing in the next generation of change leaders from the region, had to face down reality’s stubborn retreat from any such possibility. If it could change, it would change for the worst.

It taught us a few lessons, mainly the difference between story-smart, story savvy and story-wise.

Looking for more commentary like this that takes a narrative critical look at politics and the election? Here is the  StoryWise Manual for Presidential Elections. THE PRESIDENTIAL PLOT- get your copy here