Like it or not, people are making up stories all the time. You make up stories. I make up stories. Everyone makes up stories. This isn’t a bad thing. It isn’t a good thing. It’s simply what we do. What do I mean? Let’s take a quick look at the late pioneering psychologist Albert Ellis’ work on how and why we as human beings are all master storytellers.
According to Ellis, the way we experience the world can be broken up into 3 categories. First, there is the world of Facts, those undisputed accounts of what actually happened or is happening. Second, there is the world of Interpretation, which is the meaning or story we make up about those Facts. And finally, there is the Emotional world, which are simply the emotions we experience depending on how we interpret any given set of facts. Fact, Interpretation, and Emotion; and according to Ellis, 90% of the time we experience the world based upon our Interpretations, while 10% of our experience is Fact-based. So 90% of what we feel utterly depends on how we interpret any given set of facts. To help seal the storytelling deal, we are prone to interpret facts based upon our expectations, so if we expect something bad to happen we are more prone to interpret facts that way (same goes for good as well). Confused? Let’s look at what recently occurred at JFK airport and see how this played out.
On Sunday evening, Aug 14, someone believed they heard what sounded like gunfire in the terminal. 911 was called, police were dispatched, and passengers swarmed together and ran in panic thinking a terrorist event was taking place. People spilled out onto the tarmac. People sought cover under chairs and tables. The airport was shut down for over 3 hours as travelers frantically called relatives to let them know they were alive and to keep an eye on the news for updates. In the end, there was no gunshot, there was no terrorist event, and there was no threat. So, what happened?
Apparently, a raucous celebration of Usain Bolt’s 100m gold medal victory was mistaken for gunfire inside the terminal, and given recent events in Turkey and Belgium, the worst was assumed, people’s interpretations followed, and emotions such as panic and fear took over. A simple Fact, a loud noise, was Interpreted as terrorist event. It took only a split second, but the story was told and temporarily sealed in people’s minds, and the Emotions that followed led to chaos and desperation. Nobody did anything wrong. It was a human response to a set of circumstances. That’s the power of storytelling Ellis was talking about.
So, what are you doing to help positively shape the stories people tell? For example, air travelers are often paying good money for less comfort and then enter the airport with an expectation that it will be stressful and a less-than-positive experience with security lines. Therefore, according to Ellis’ work, they are prone to interpret facts negatively, and as a matter of fact, may be actively seeking information that allows them to interpret negatively. To counteract this, we could supply travelers with more facts, more behaviors, and more actions that allow more room for positive interpretations. A simple smile, checking in with them, and acknowledging their stress are but a few ways to do that. So, proactively help travelers tell good stories, not only to themselves, but also to others about the airport as well. Otherwise, you leave fate to chance, and given current traveler expectations, it’s best to avoid that.
And it’s not only with airports, but everywhere. What are your client, customer, and employee expectations? How might that taint how they interpret you and/or your organization? What can you do to counteract that? Answer these 3 questions, and you’re well on your way to helping others tell more positive stories than they may do otherwise…and that’s a fact.