Mr. Daisey’s stage piece, the powerful response to it, his manipulation of the truth, and what is ultimately his unwillingness to be accountable for deceiving his listeners has me considering the astonishing power of a well told story, the boundaries between truth and fiction, and why storytellers - be they performers, CEOs, textbook writers or parents - need to be mindful of how they say what they say.
I love this post by colleague Laura Parker about the latest dust-up with Ira Glass, This American Life, and monologist Mike Daisy.
The role of the storyteller is critical to understand for anyone sharing their business stories consciously and deliberately. Storytelling is very powerful. It can harm and it can heal. Take your biz storytelling seriously and pay attention to the ethics involved.
If you are looking for an ethics guide for storytelling, you can find one here (#5) http://www.juststoryit.com/howto
Thank you Laura for helping us understand what went wrong in this situation without scolding, and how to avoid similar situations in the future so we can continue to feel great about sharing our stories!