The document discusses the importance of having a clear story or pursuit in life with specific goals and deadlines. It argues that without a clear story, people's lives can become a series of compromises where they feel lost and powerless. Their talents go untapped and they risk wasting time going in the wrong direction. Having a story gives focus and empowerment to pursue passions and attract opportunities to reach goals.

1. The
Hero’s
Journey
in
Paris
(5)
By
Peter
de
Kuster
What’s
Your
Story?
The
Opera
Garnier
When
I
ask
most
people
what’s
their
story,
what
they
passionately
pursue,
they
stammer,
“Who,
me?”.
Yeah
you.
Do
you
have
any
passions?
You
do?
You
have
concrete
pursuits
attached
to
them?
Just
give
me
one
passion
you
have
with
a
pursuit
for
this
year.
What’s
your
story?
When
I
ask
successful
creative
heroes
to
tell
me
one
of
their
pursuits
they
will
say
something
like
“I
will
earn
Euro
100.000
from
my
witing
with
another
book
deal
by
the
end
of
the
year”.

2.
This
pursuit
is
stated
in
the
positive
(I
will),
is
very
specific
(Euro
100.000
from
my
writing)
and
includes
a
deadline
(by
the
end
of
the
year).
Bravo!
Having
a
specific
pursuit,
with
a
deadline
is
the
key
to
success.
You
can
make
excuses
or
discount
questing
as
being
too
rigid
and
linear
for
the
creative
person.
Having
specific,
meaningful
pursuits
of
passions
doesn’t
mean
having
a
rigid
story
that
leaves
no
room
to
roam.
It
simply
means
that,
right
now,
this
is
what
you
want.
Don’t
worry
about
limiting
yourself.
You
can
adjust
as
you
go.
It
does
mean
that
you’re
in
control
of
your
life,
have
thought
about
what
the
real
issues
are
for
you,
and
have
a
perspective
on
new
possibilities
that
develop.
Bottom
line:
Unless
you
know
exactly
what
you
want
from
your
life
and
you
can
articulate
it
(on
demand,
in
case
we
meet),
you
are
just
fooling
around.
You
aren’t
serious
about
success
and,
frankly,
you’ll
probably
never
achieve
it.

3.
Having
a
clear
story
about
your
pursuits
empowers
you.
Having
a
clear
picture
of
what
you
want
drowns
out
the
negatives
and
attracts
the
positive
things,
ideas,
and
people
to
help
you
reach
them.
A
clear
story
creates
focus
and
clarity,
so
you’re
not
wasting
your
energy
on
dead
–
end
jobs.
What
Happens
Without
a
Good
Story?
Many
creative
people
have
no
idea
who
they
are,
what
they
want
out
of
life,
where
they
are
going,
or
what
their
passion
is.
Afraid
to
limit
their
options,
Their
lives
become
a
series
of
compromises
and
unplanned
events.
They
are
spinning
out
of
control
and
feel
powerless
to
stop
it.
They
have
zigzagged
their
way
through
life,
trying
this
and
that.
As
a
phantom.
Lack
of
Directions
If
you
don’t
know
what
you
want,
you
can
waste
a
lot
of
time
and
energy
going
in
the
wrong
direction.
In
the
meantime,
your
career
and
personal
life
can
get
way
off
course.

4.
Forced
Compromise
You
wake
up
one
day
and
realize
your
life
has
been
a
series
of
compromises,
a
series
of
unplanned
events.
As
a
result,
you’re
in
a
job
you
really
don’t
like
or
aren’t
suited
for,
afraid
to
change.
Untapped
Talent
Without
story,
you
can
easily
get
caught
up
in
the
current
of
life,
swept
away
by
an
endless
stream
of
details.
You
always
seem
to
be
paddling

5. against
the
current
in
a
battle
between
finding
time
to
be
creative
and
getting
things
done.
Once
you
get
off
course,
it
can
be
very
hard
to
find
your
way
back.
Boredom
Not
having
a
powerful
story
in
life,
a
passion,
a
purpose
for
your
talents
and
creativity
is
the
one
thing
most
lacking
in
many
lives.
Without
it
life
can
become
dull,
empty,
and
uninspiring.
Powerless/
Cynicism
I
have
heard
people
describe
their
lives
as
if
they
were
passengers
in
a
car,
watching
life
fly
by
while
looking
out
of
the
window.
They
feel
powerless,
and
blame
everyone
and
everything
for
their
lack
of
success,
time,
happiness,
finances,
whatever.
They
blame
the
government,
the
economy,
reviewers,
traffic,
competition,
and
on
and
on.
Until
you
take
responsibility
for
your
own
success,
happiness
and
time,
you
remain
a
victim.

6.
Value
Conflict
When
your
values
and
your
achievements
don’t
align,
at
best
you
end
up
with
hollow
victories.
At
worst,
you
become
depressed,
angry
or
resentful.
If
you
value
integrity,
you
can’t
afford
to
lie
and
cheat
to
get
what
you
want.
If
you
say
you
want
to
start
a
business,
but
you
squander
your
start
–
up
capital,
it
might
be
time
to
look
at
your
values
again.
Maybe
you’re
just
giving
lip
service
to
a
value
you
thought
you
should
have.
Or
maybe
your
self
–
destructive
behavior
has
deeper
roots.

7.
Regret
Figaro
Do
you
go
zigzagging
through
life,
jumping
at
any
opportunity,
that
sounds
interesting
or
fun?
After
years
of
doing
this,
you’re
likely
to
realize
that
you
have
nothing
to
show
for
the
past
decade.
This
will
leave
you
unhappy,
unfulfilled,
unsuccessful
–
because
you
tried
to
live
without
goals.

8.
With
a
good
story…
With
a
good
story,
you
get
a
bird’s
–
eye
view
of
your
life.
An
overview.
Think
of
being
in
a
balloon
over
Paris,
soaring
over
the
scenery,
looking
down.
Everything
seems
so
small,
so
clear.
You
get
above
the
trivial
details,
about
the
self
doubt.
This
kind
of
perspective
allows
you
to
do
the
right
thing,
at
the
right
time,
for
the
right
reason
in
the
right
way.
Synchronicity
When
you
tell
yourself
a
powerful
story
and
pick
a
course
of
action,
unexpected
things
start
to
go
your
way.
Unseen
forces
in
the
universe
begin
to
say
‘Yes!!
People
and
resources
come
into
your
life
to
help.
Or
you
see
them
sharply
now.
It
all
starts
with
a
clear
story
about
what
you
want,
your
goals,
your
quest,
one
that
you
can
understand
and
that
you
can
communicate
to
others.
This
works
better
if
you
have
a
real
passion
for
your
story.
People
pick
up
on
your
passion,
your
commitment.
They
want
to
contribute,
to
be
part
of
your
story,
your
excitement,
so
they
offer
money,
time,
connections.

9.
Your
story
works
for
you
When
you
have
a
great
story,
your
mind
goes
about
searching
for
information
and
opportunities
that
can
help.
You
will
see
your
story
reflected
in
the
world
outside.
Why
haven’t
you
noticed
this
before
now?
Your
brain,
to
avoid
overload,
screens
out
information
which
is
essential
to
your
survival
and
success.
When
you
know
what
your
story
is,
your
mind
works
to
incorporate
that
into
what
it
lets
into
your
consciousness.
This
can
change
your
life
very
quickly.
You
may
get
lightning
ideas,
seemingly
out
of
the
blue.
In
reality,
the
brain
is
processing
all
kinds
of
input
from
the
outside,
mixing
it
with
your
goals
or
purpose
and
…
eureka!
You’re
more
happy
Your
stories
allow
you
to
really
live.
You
can
enjoy
the
now,
and
still
look
to
the
future.
People
who
are
living
their
dreams
wake
up
in
the
morning
excited,
full
of
anticipation.
Don’t
you
want
to
live
like
that?
You
can’t
wait
to
start
the
day,
you’re
constantly
stimulated,
curious,
eager
to
interact
with
others,
passionate
about
what
you
are
doing,
and
you’re
working
toward
real
fullfilment.

10.
Your
ability
to
have
fun
and
enjoy
life
is
tied
into
the
stories
you
tell
yourself
and
then
others.
When
you
know
what
you
want,
what
you
value,
what
makes
you
happy,
it’s
easier
to
make
decisions
which
reduce
stress.
The
directionless
life
is
not
the
happiest
to
look
back
on.
Motivation
We
all
need
a
great
story
that
moves
us,
that
we
enjoy
doing,
and
that
we
are
good
at.
We
need
to
feel
useful.
We
need
to
help
ohters
or
belong
to
a
cause
larger
than
ourselves.
We
know
we
could
help
make
this
a
better
world,
if
only
on
a
small
scale.
In
this
world
of
rapid
change,
people
have
a
deep
need
to
control
their
own
fate.
Great
stories
to
tell
yourself
about
yourself
are
how
to
do
it.