Day 34—What would make a better story?
One of my favorite books is A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller, probably because I read it in the weeks after deciding to go back to flying years ago (I used to be a flight attendant). The subtitle of the book is “What I Learned While Editing My Life,” and that’s exactly what I was doing at the time.
Just a few of my favorite quotes from the book (there are many):
If you watched a movie about a guy who wanted a Volvo and worked for years to get it, you wouldn’t cry at the end when he drove off the lot, testing the windshield wipers. You wouldn’t tell your friends you saw a beautiful movie or go home and put a record on to think about the story you’d seen. The truth is, you wouldn’t remember that movie a week later, except you’d feel robbed and want your money back. Nobody cries at the end of a movie about a guy who wants a Volvo. But we spend years actually living those stories, and expect our lives to feel meaningful. The truth is, if what we choose to do with our lives won’t make a story meaningful, it won’t make a life meaningful either.
The ambitions we have become the stories we live. If you want to know what a person’s story is about, just ask them what they want. If we don’t want anything, we are living boring stories, and if we want a Roomba vacuum cleaner, we are living stupid stories. If it won’t work in a story, it won’t work in life.
It’s a good calling to speak a better story.
Ever notice when people take the biggest interest in you?
It’s usually when you’re doing something:
a) Crazy,
b) Far-fetched,
c) Risky,
d) Bold,
e) Dangerous,
f) Uncommon.
The crazier and more far-fetched the idea, the more people want to know about it and the more they call you to see how it’s going.
Usually, telling them about the idea elicits concerned looks or wry smiles. (They’re either worried you’re going to blow yourself up or hoping they can watch you do it.)
But—ever notice when people don’t ask you about what you’re doing (specific questions, with genuine curiosity and interest)?
It’s when you’re doing what everyone else is doing. (The usual suspects? Watching Netflix, cleaning, hanging out on social media, sleeping, shopping. There are others.)
I was re-reading one of Austin Kleon’s books (Steal Like an Artist) when I came across this quote:
Whenever you’re at a loss for what move to make next, just ask yourself, “What would make a better story?”
Today’s quote
“When you're curious, you find lots of interesting things to do.”
— Walt Disney