Reflections 10th September

Choices on the Path from Connection to Coherence.

“Those who do not have power over the story that dominates their lives, power to retell it, to rethink it, deconstruct it, joke about it, and change it as times change, truly are powerless.”

―Salman Rushdie

Whatever our views on recent events, from wars to elections to budgets, the lessons we must learn lie not in the specific events, but the stories we tell ourselves about their consequences.

I was reminded during the week that weaponising stories is easy and profitable, as I found myself with people I like and respect responding to stories that have little or no foundation in fact, but rather feed off the baleful energies of those who profit from them.

When promoting polarisation as a route to profit and power based on stories with little substance becomes an acceptable business and political model, finding the coherence that gives our lives a sense of direction becomes ever more difficult.

Coherent: 1580s, "suitable connection or dependence, consistency" (in narrative or argument), a…