Collaborative Storytelling: Every Face...

Tells a Story

 
Tim Geithner, Treasury Secretary. 
Image from Huffington Post

What does Yours Say?

Whenever I meet someone new, there are three questions that I try to find answers to:

• Who are you?
• What do you value?
• How do you tell me?

The first is, in some ways, the easiest.  You shake hands, you say you name, and maybe even what you do.  But is that truly who you are? 

Not entirely.

Sure we have business cards and pitches and the like.  They give a hint, a whiff, of what we value.  Just enough to draw someone in; and that's where the real conversation begins.

Now we tell stories.  About why and how.  Of course, some people take a little more coaxing than others.  So I ask questions.  Not about what you do now.  No, I prefer to ask why.  Because the response usually gives an indication of what you value.

Last night I attended Mediabistro's Freelancer Party in NYC, where I met a fellow named Lewis Stiefel, who worked for CBS.  After a couple minutes of conversation, I asked why he became an editor, producer, and videographer.  He looked taken aback for a minute, and then a smile crept onto his face.  He asked me how old I was and I said twenty-five, and then he said, "You know the TV show, Hawaii Five-O?  Well, when I was a kid, I saw the opening sequence and I just knew that's what I wanted to do."