Once upon a time, there was …. a Story

Once upon a time, there was …. a Story

Once upon a time, a long time ago, I did what young fathers do: tell my children a bedtime story. I had the habit of lying down on the floor, next to the bed and my children and I would search the bedroom for an object that would be the subject of that evening’s story.

And so it came to be that the lamp decided to pop next door to get some light, but got lost in the dark; the box of Lego bricks came out of the closet (literally) and became a new home for poor dwarf kids; the photo frame in the room ran away because it wanted to play with the other frames in the house; the curtain had opened itself up, because the window had complained that it was not allowed to let light through at night. Etcetera, etcetera.

Occasionally my story had the intended effect, but on the wrong person in the room. Then my son or daughter would indignantly tap me on the shoulder and we’d happily continue to improvise.

The Story is completely hot

The Story is of all times. It is a combination of reality and fiction and can be exaggerated at flavour. ‘The Story’ is completely hot during these times in which the world is connected via social media, and where personal stories are told in the form of blogs, vlogs, podcasts, TED talks, and mini-documentaries. A collection of stories is referred to as content, just like chapters in a book. Instagram has its ‘storyline’.

The personal story touches parts of the brain that remain closed to other signals and subsequently has a much deeper impact, as it is ‘being experienced’. ‘Experience’ is, therefore, a magic word that is eagerly being used in marketing campaigns by brands and trade, as part of the ‘customer journey’.

Alternative Reality

The Story has a flip side too, referred to as an ‘Alternative Reality’. These days the personalization is done via big data and algorithms; the subsequent exaggeration via trolls, conspiracy thinkers, and populists. ‘Things’ have taken over the internet and nowadays visitors are asked to confirm they are not a robot when completing a registration or ordering process.

In this world of stories tailored to your profile, you, as a person, can become unconsciously incompetent again. After all, what you experience as the truth may not be what your neighbour experiences as such. Referenda and elections in different countries over the past few years have clearly shown that The Story can drive a wedge within societies.

The key for breaking through this polarisation is The Dialogue, which, in addition to telling and sharing, mainly consists of the art of listening and wanting to hear.

Storytelling and Dialogue

Associations have traditionally always been the platform where people, their stories and ideas meet. They are the place where bothstorytelling and dialogue take place. It is this combination which enables the association to link stories to an authentic, authoritative and shared ‘storyline’, within which the joint interested parties can recognize themselves.

It is down to the association professional to link both these elements and subsequently design their association’s profile.

The Association’s Story is certainly one worthy of being told.

Jules Lejeune

Managing Director