Storytelling
is a time-honored way to invoke change. In the introduction to David Gordon's book,
Therapeutic Metaphors: Helping Others Through the Looking Glass,
he
writes:
..."stories in one form or another have been used by human beings
for countless ages as a means of transmitting important cultural, sociological, and moral
information from one generation tot he next... Although the content of these tales may
vary, there is no essential structural difference between the
Odyssey, Alice in
Wonderland, and Carlos Casteneda's experiences with Don Juan. All describe
individuals, real or imagined, who are confronted with problems, which demand (tapping)
their personal resources in order to overcome these problems...
Such stories, anecdotes,
and idioms all have as a constituent part the ability to convey a message or learning
about a particular problem. Someone is confronted with
some problem that
he/she overcomes (or succumbs to) in some way... If the conflict within the story
is similar to one you as a listener happen also to be dealing with, then the story
immediately becomes significant to you... When any of these story-sources are presented
with the intention of instructing or advising the listener... then the story becomes for
that person a METAPHOR... a way of speaking in which one thing is expressed in terms of
another, whereby this brining together throws new light on the character of what is being
described."
Here's a story about a story, from a client we'll call Al Hsu:
Al
was troubled about being passed over for a promotion. Indeed, instead of the
expected advancement, he now reported to a former teammate. He was told the
organization needed someone with "better organizational
skills" in the desired role. "Of all the people in the group, I have the most diverse skills,"
he said. He'd considered resigning but hadn't, in spite of the blow to his ego. Unable to identify what he could have done
differently, he'd lost respect for himself and no longer believed in his ability to
control his own destiny. "When I was younger," continued this 45-year-old man,
"I felt I could affect my own financial situation, satisfy my own ego. More than
that, I always felt there was some other power there, watching over my shoulder. Now I've
lost that. I have no watchful spirit."
When
clients seem stuck over how to initiate action or unable to respond to direct suggestions,
you can use change-oriented metaphors -- communications that use analogies and symbols to
create new meaning. You may create stories for them, but
their own stories are
often more
powerful, arising from their unconscious to help with their own healing.
Al
talked about his Chinese heritage and the devastating effects of losing "face." In fact, one of his uncles had committed ceremonial
suicide when his business failed. Searching for a
way to use Hsu's own metaphor to help him break free, I asked him to remember a
situation where "face" was regained.
He
then recalled a story he'd heard from his grandparents of a young, unwed mother.
"She was urged by her family to leave her village
in shame," he said, "but she refused to go."
"What happened to her?" I inquired.
"She
raised her child well and eventually earned an honorable reputation through her good works
in the community."
The
key to a useful metaphor is that it have a similar structure to the client's situation,
including the apparent crisis. Healing occurs when both change-precipitating action and a desirable outcome
are embedded in the story. These elements
were present in Hsu's story. The young woman
becoming pregnant and losing face were analogous to his being demoted and losing face.
We reviewed
these parallels and how the woman in his story
regained face - by refusing
external definitions of her value, choosing instead to rely on and demonstrate her
virtues.
The lessons in his own story helped Al explore his gifts
and set his sights on work that would express his values and talents more
fully.