I was going to tell you the story of my estranged brother. However, is this a story I really need to share? No, it’s not. It’s a story for my family, not a story for the public.
How many of us tell all of our stories in order to be truly transparent? Is transparency always called for? I’ll be the first one to tell you it’s easier to speak the truth than keep secrets. But not lying and being 100% transparent are two different things.
Some of us blur the line between personal and business. Telling our stories is a way to emphasize a point in business. In a small town your personal life often is mixed in with your business life. Your stories are pretty well known and they help shape opinion about you and your business. So living life as an open book is sometimes hard not to do.
Yet, there are stories that are only yours or your family’s. There are evolving stories in your business that should not be told. I don’t think people need to know your financial woes – unless its the end of the story of overcoming them. I don’t think we need to hear about an employee’s personal problems. Telling that story is often a reflection on you the story teller. If you’ll share other peoples problems, what will you say about me?
I like to hear the stories of people in times gone by. Because in that story there is a beginning, a middle and an end. There is a lesson, usually, to be learned. Time has gone by, feelings are no longer running wild in the story, and we can objectively look at the entire story.
Are you telling stories before the story is done?