What all movements have in common
In a world which is increasingly fragmented, lonely and disparate, stories which foster belonging can help us feel more connected to each other
“We tell ourselves stories in order to live,”—Joan Didion
How was your morning? Did you hear a story? Did you tell someone else your story? I used to start my storytelling workshops asking attendees this question. Talk to the person next to you about your morning routine, and ask them the same. Then listen, really listen. Maybe in their story you’ll hear a central conflict. A moment where they share something deeper about themselves and what they want to do with their life.
Stories are what connect us to each other, to family and to strangers. It‘s part of our DNA to tell stories because we know this is a good way to build social capital. When you arrive in your office, a friend’s house or meeting, you often start with telling a story—perhaps about your commute, your weekend, or how you got there. You might miss or edit out some of the details which make the story boring. Maybe a narrative emerges, an emotional conflict, a climax, and even an ending, all in the space of a few minutes.
We tell stories all the time, emotive stories with nuances and contexts, strong characters and narratives. It's in our nature and it’s what brings us closer to each other. I’m not really here to write about our history as storytellers. There are plenty of great books which already do this.
But an aspect of it you maybe hadn’t considered: we've also been community building through the medium of stories since the start of time. You know the old reference: storytelling started with the invention of fire, or more specifically campfires. Once we learnt how to cook, storytelling around the fire became a great way to pass the long dark evenings. The stories told around campfires forged the very communities who told them. The stories surviving generations of campfires were ones about the people who shaped their community, who knitted them together, the heroes, the threats to the community, which communicated the key values of the community at its heart and kept it together.
This type of storytelling, which brings together communities, still happens today, albeit in a more globally diverse and fragmented manner.
Let’s go a bit deeper into how community building and storytelling are connected.