Learning the Art of Story
Several questions regarding narratives within a group of people and accessing organizational culture: What stories are told? Who tells those stories? Why are those stories told? What alternative or discenting stories are being told to counter the dominant stories? What stories are not being told? Why are these types of stories not being told? What alternative methods could be used to communicate the current stories? How would these methods change the story? (Questions adapted from pg. 147 of Michael Warren's Seeing through the Media). Such questions are helpful whether conversing with teenagers in a one-on-one meeting or leading a discussion with the entire leadership team of a large church,etc. Such questions help one to begin understanding what is going on in the organization and where it might be going in the future. As well, it helps the leader begin to develop a strategy for helping the organization evolve. As well, such questions can even be brought to Scripture. What story is being told in Genesis 2 and by whom? Why is this story in chapter 2 rather than 1 or 3? Why is it told in this way? Are there alternative stories? (yes, chapter 1 tells a slightly different story as well as the Psalms, John 1, etc.). Also such narratives can then be compared to narratives from other books, cultures, etc. Such a way of looking at Scripture or an organization allows one to see into it better.
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