“When story and behavior are consistent, we relax; when story and behavior are inconsistent, we get tense. We have a deep psychological need for our stories and behaviors to be consistent. We need to be able to trust the story, because it's the lens through which we see reality. We will go to great lengths in the attempt to make a story that explains an action and supports or restores consistency. If we cannot make story and action fit, we either have to make a new story or change the action. ... [But] The drive for consistency and the ability to redefine abhorrent action so it fits the story are very complex issues. We have a huge ability to continue believing stories we are told are true in order to stay comfortable with actions we don't want to change, or don't feel capable of changing.” Christina Baldwin, Storycatcher: Making Sense of Our Lives through the Power and Practice of Story “My wish has always been to write my own story, to create a life that’s worth writing about. But is a story worth anything at all if I have no one to tell it to?”― Charlotte Eriksson Finding Your Life's Story (1) Decide you have one - this is a huge step that requires each of us to believe at our very core that our lives are not a series of random events, but unique one-of-a-kind story, written by the events, people and experiences that share our character and determine our choices. (2) Be Clear - know what you value, what you're passionate about, and what you want to be known for. It is the ambiguity that kills most stories, the rambling run-on sentences that kills the drama and makes most people want to put the book down. As Stephen Covey would say, "Begin with the End in Mind." Know where you're going, what you're about and what you believe life is about.  (3) Be Consistent - there are always pressures to live according to the pressures we face everyday. Every story is filled with side-tracks and rabbit trails that could take a story in a thousand different directions. But to live one story, day in and day out, requires you to rehearse the story in your mind over and over again. (4) Look Back - take time to consider how far you come and how wonderfully imaginative your story really is. Celebrate it, share it and look forward to each new chapter. Exercise: If you were to give the seasons of your life chapter titles, what would they be? A Change of Heart /  Midnight  /  Completely, Utterly, and Entirely Alone  /  An Unquenchable Thirst  /  A New Face  /  A Kights’s Tale  /  A Language More Lovely Than Speaking  /  Running Away From It All  /  Heart of Black  /  Magenta, Silver, and Violet  /  Paradise Lost  /  Paradise Found  /  Making it Home  /  Birthday Wishes  /  Waking Nightmare  /  The Others  /  Slipping  / Falling  /  Consumed in Flames  /  The Night Guard  /  Night and Day  /  Scream of a Witch