Stories We Tell: The Power of Narrative

£2 trillion was wiped from the world's stock markets last week.

Economist's estimate that the cost of Donald Trump's tariffs will be $1 trillion. If you ever believe you alone can't make a difference, consider the impact of Mr Trump. One man creating worldwide havoc financially and diplomatically.

Millions of Americans think he's just what America needs.

Billions around the world think he's nuts. And dangerous. But the point is, all the upheaval, uncertainty and anxiety is created by a narrative.

Every day in our workplaces and families we operate on narratives.

Whether it's to fight a war. To work from home or the office. Or to eat your veg and get up at 5am.

It's all a narrative.

Some are true and positive. Some are dangerous dogma. But we all work from a narrative.

Friction in our relationships and our workflows have a cost.

That cost is because the narrative we work on isn't true. When people protest at Tesla and in the streets, it's a reaction to not being told the truth. Humans have a built in BS radar for lies and they retaliate.

Sometimes with violence and sometimes by quietly disengaging.

Some lies are agreed. Some are manipulative. And some are borne from ignorance.

The money today doesn't go to the people who do the work.

It goes to the people who create the narrative for the people who do the work. Most of us today are knowledge workers. We play our part in creating that narrative.

Creating a better narrative is the most valuable activity of our time.

In this podcast episode Clark Ray, Tony Walmsley and I discussed the importance of narratives.