It's Your Life. Live It!

We were watching a movie last night and I found myself picking out little moments in the lives of the characters I could relate to. I do the same with great books I’m reading. I’d like to believe we all do that with good stories. After all, it’s human nature to make something personal.

That is not news. It’s a lesson I learned in the earliest days of journalism school: Make the story relatable, especially when it comes to money. The average American has no real concept of how much $7 Trillion is (the US’ annual budget). But when you break it down to a personal level, it’s $20,400 per person. That’s $81,600 for a family of four! Much more understandable, right?

Anyway, that movie got me thinking about all kinds of things. In conversations, how many times has someone interrupted your story to chime in with, “Oh yeah! Me, too?” We all do it because, let’s face it, it’s all about me. 

I’m particularly guilty of that … and I’m working on it. I have to remind myself that while my stories about me are amazing in my own mind, there’s a good chance I’ve either already told it or no one really cares — especially about the small details that drag the story out. 

I am absolutely certain I am not alone in this. In fact, the more I pay attention, the more I realize everyone I know does it. Most of the time, when someone shares a story, it’s a personal one. Not always — sometimes it’s something that happened to someone else that usually brings on uproarious laughter. But even those stories are told to make the storyteller look better by making someone else look bad. 

What does all this mean? Nothing, really. It’s just an observation that came to me in the wee morning hours. Yeah, I woke up in the middle of the night thinking about me … hahahaha. 

So the next time you catch yourself making a situation all about you, don’t feel bad. It means you’re normal. Tell your (carefully edited) stories! Share your (brief) memories. After all … it’s your life. It is all about you!

©Judy and Greg Romano – All rights reserved.