photo credit: Martin Kingsley
I was one of the first to join a wonderful gathering of narrative professionals at Worldwide Story Network.
I will be hosting a teleconference on December 10th at 3:00pm EST (U.S.) on “SEEING CLEARLY: HOW DO WE INFLUENCE OUR CLIENT’S STORIES.” For more information, have a peek here. The framework for narrative formulation that I am using as the basis for our conversation can be found here.
I will kick things off by telling a client story using a formulation framework I’ve developed. I will use this story as the catalyst for a conversation about how to increase our awareness of the ways we influence the stories clients tell us—often without recognizing that we are doing so! I see our ability to be mindful in this way as critical in our development as narrative professionals and in fostering more open dialogue with our clients.
Objectivity is subjective
It is easy to separate ourselves from clients by striving to be ‘objective’ and ‘neutral’ and, while a mature professional distance is essential, we influence the story formation process in more ways than we may realize. The professional frames and discourse that is part of the contracting process, the dance of transference, the pressures of commerce, the assumptions based on our values, the blind spots inherent in our own developmental edges, the differences in social status and constructs are but some of the sources of our impact on the stories our clients can and do tell.
In this time of great uncertainty, it seems more important than ever to be conscious of our participation in the co-narration processes we engage in with others throughout our day. We are all in this together.
I invite you to join in our global community and join us for the call on December 10th.
Tags: clients, discourse, narrative practice, stories
