The World Runs on Story
“To thine own self be true.”
These wise words were written around the year 1600 within my great-great-great-great uncle William Shakespeare’s* tragic masterpiece Hamlet. The line echoes many previous admonitions from masters around the world and is, I believe, one of the essential undertakings in a life well-lived.
The stories we tell shape our lives and our world. Consider two narratives: “war without end” and “colonizing Mars.” Both are entirely possible for man to succeed at—hopefully not the former. On a business and personal level, I’ve come to understand that a lot of what hangs us up is that we aren’t telling stories that align with our core talents, values, and instincts.
“To thine own self be true” is a pathway to evolution that helps us navigate towards our true North, unleashing a beautiful coordination between our intentions and the material world, which takes shape literally as an expression of matter and form. But who is this “self” and how is it expressed?
There are so many paths in life and so many narratives, which can make it hard to choose. CEO, custodian, writer, nurse, solopreneur, TikTok starlet, banker, teacher, Reiki practitioner...which one to choose?? But it is also said “all roads lead to Rome.” In my opinion the best story we craft is the one we can sustain through thick and thin. Because it’s through the ups and downs, good times and the bad, that we begin to reveal something essential about who we are and what we are capable of.
For me personally, one direction was going to Hollywood to master the art of storytelling. While I initially spent about 15 years trying to build a career as a writer and actor (and learned a tremendous amount about dramaturgy and human nature along the way), life eventually opened up an opportunity that put me behind the camera as a documentary and reality tv producer. It turned out to be a pretty good thing because for two decades I got paid to put myself to the test over & over again, travel the world in style, and help shape the narrative of extraordinary individuals in a way that allowed them them flourish.
What I have come the understand throughout is that the world actually runs on story, and how we tell that story dictates what is possible to create. Sometimes it takes a little tweaking to point our ship in the right direction. Sometimes it takes digging in and facing the fact that we’ve lost sight of our North Star altogether, and some hard work aligning our core intention with an undiscovered narrative.
My aim is to bring the experience and wisdom I’ve gained to help point your compass in a direction that aligns with your values, who you really are, and the slice of this world you wish to shape. I invite you to explore your story with me and discover the truth of who you really are.
*Yes! My heritage really does link me with the Bard, albeit something more like a 12th generation cousin. But yeah, it’s kind of cool--and a lot of pressure! ;)