The unexpected reactions of others to my train journey
Sometimes there are those moments when you feel that you’ve made the right decision. That’s what happened to me recently when I had to travel by train from my workation in Cantal in France to Berlin for a funeral service. Over 1600 kilometers – many people would probably have immediately thought of taking the car, but I made a conscious decision to take the train.
It was amazing how many people pitied me for this decision. “Oh you poor thing!”, “That’s a long drive!”, “That would be too exhausting for me!” – comments like these poured in on me. It was as if I had taken on something particularly heavy and stressful, but the train journey was anything but an ordeal.
Quite the opposite: the journey went smoothly, despite three or four changes.
The train was on time, the changes were pleasant and I had the peace and quiet I needed to think about my thoughts. During the journey, I could look out of the window and watch the landscapes pass me by – a perfect metaphor for the process of letting go. I even worked a little on the way there, which showed how flexible and productive a trip like this can be.
If I had got in the car, the 1600 kilometers would have been torture. Especially in my emotionally troubled situation, it would have been irresponsible to take the risk and the strain. Instead, the train journey was a gentle transition that allowed me to come to terms with the loss and reach my destination safely at the same time.
How myths and prejudices are created – through storytelling
It seems that we still hear stories about the chaos at Deutsche Bahn (and yes, it is chaotic there!) much more often than about the hours we spend in traffic jams on the highway. Or about how exhausting long car journeys can be for the body. Flying also has its pitfalls: Exhaustion after long flights, the inconvenience of security checks and the risk of missing a connecting flight are just some of the challenges. Nevertheless, these negative experiences often remain untold, while the stories about train journeys persist and are told again and again.
Strengthen assumptions with storytelling
This shows the power of the stories we tell ourselves and others. These often negative stories about Deutsche Bahn contrast sharply with the real experience, which can often be much more positive than the general prejudices suggest. But how do such myths arise? They are created by constantly repeating and embellishing negative experiences, while positive experiences often remain untold.
To change this, we could talk more consciously about our positive experiences and share these stories just as enthusiastically. This is exactly what I want to convey in my speaker retreats: How we can use targeted storytelling to influence perception and bring about positive change in ourselves and others. Whether it’s about presenting yourself or a project, the way we tell our stories can make a big difference.
Exercise for you:
Think about an everyday situation that you have experienced as negative and tell it in a way that focuses on the positive. How could this alternative narrative change the image you and others have of this situation? Write down this new story and share it with someone. This way you can practice emphasizing positive aspects and improve your own storytelling.
And if you want to learn how to tell your stories even more effectively, then come to one of my speaker retreats or register for the Storytelling Symposium.
There you will learn how you can use storytelling to amplify your messages and bring about change.
