What's your story?

“We’re not on our journey to save the world, but to save ourselves. And in doing that you save the world.” Joseph Campbell.

Finding Joe – Trailer V.7 from pat solomon on Vimeo.

Every month a group called Creative Mornings brings speakers in who are, well, creatives. This morning I heard a speaker from an ad agency in Phoenix and he talked about Joseph Campbell, someone I had never heard of (WHAAAA?), who created the 17 stages of monomyth. He believed that every story follows these steps, I should say every GOOD story follows these steps and it can be applied personally and professionally. I think the biggest thing I took from this seminar was the idea that we are all on a hero’s journey, we are all storytellers and we have been programmed to turn off the part of us that thinks this way. Our brains use 10% of its power. Our brains are our biggest enemies when it comes to taking risks and growing. For our brains, its biggest concern is survival and conservation of energy. It’s the laziest part of us, it takes the easiest way out and because of this we all fall into patterns whether it’s something we hate or love about ourselves. I’m terrified of speaking in public. For my brain, the idea of doing this puts me at risk, makes me uncomfortable, is equal to death. It’s this reason that makes it so hard for us to change. If the hero’s world doesn’t get turned upside down, forcing change, then our internal stasis would find no reason or want to do so. It’s an interesting idea. “The one things that keeps people small is their fears, their ‘dragons’” and it’s true. Fear in our minds is a red flag. We are constantly scanning the outside world like an overbearing parent to ensure our own safety. But safety isn’t just physical, it’s emotional as well. I know when I feel emotionally unsafe, I shut down. I become afraid and thus the cycle continues.
The speaker mentioned this trailer above. A documentary called “Finding Joe.” It’s hope it that we can all find and work for our journey. That’s not to say we only have one, in fact, we have many. They are never ending. Our lives don’t exactly close the way books and movies do – once one avenue ends, another one presents itself. We are all a hero somehow.