The Lens of Story

The Lens(lenz) of Story

By Steve Pavlina

A powerful lens you can use for making sense(sens) of life is the lens of story.

What’s especially powerful about story is that it beautifully integrates(ˈin(t)əˌɡrāt) the objective and subjective lenses. There’s the objective side of a story, such as the settings, characters, and events. And there’s the subjective side, meaning your thoughts, feelings, and inner journey(ˈjərnē).

How could you apply the lens of story to help you make sense of complicated(ˈkämpləˌkādəd) situations or decisions?

Here are some good questions to ask:

How does this fit my overall story?
Where does my story want to go next?
Which decision would make for interesting story? Boring story?

Imagine your life is one big story. Your story has a certain progression(prəˈgreSHən) to it. Some next steps make sense because they fit your story. Other steps don’t make much sense because they don’t fit your story.

If you view your life thus far through the lens of story, as if you’d been reading it in a novel(ˈnävəl), what observations could you make about the overall story arc(ärk) thus far?

When I look at my life through the lens of story, I can pick out certain progressions. There are patterns.

I see a pattern in my story where I’m often tempted to pursue a heartless path that might dangle(ˈdaNGgəl) some other carrots(ˈkarət) in front of me like success or fame(fām) or money. If I chase(CHās) after those carrots, my character suffers because it never turns out well. Each time my character must recognize the trap and find a path with a heart instead. Then when he follows a path that feels strongly heart aligned(əˈlīn), things work out very well both subjectively and objectively.

Another part of my story has involved learning to trust my own decisions even when they go against(əˈgenst,əˈgānst) the grain(grān) of society… and then watching society slowly alter(ˈôltər) course(kôrs) to validate(ˈvaləˌdāt) the decision.

And yet another part of my story has involved lightening up and learning to play. Tackle(ˈtakəl) serious challenges, but still make the journey fun.

I encourage you to look for similar patterns in your own story arc. What were some of your most memorable(ˈmem(ə)rəbəl) experiences? How did they shape your character? How do you believe your story has shaped you? What kind of character are you playing now?

…
https://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2020/01/the-lens-of-story/