What is your visual journey story to show & tell?
What is the overarching story of the path that you have taken thus far in life? Create a visual story to “show and tell” that journey. Think of it like a storyboard for your life so far with some of the best scenes and plot points. It should be something visual that others could see to understand the path you’ve taken. You are making meaning of your key life experiences and communicating them to not only help yourself understand, but also others. Put the different blocks of your life experience together in an order that makes sense. Then create a visual slide, map, or video to make it ready-to-go for other people to see. You are the artist of how you communicate your own life…show your story in a creative way that works for you.
You are marking the key things you’ve done on your path. You could make your visual journey story follow your life chronologically. Or you could focus it by telling the story of an aspect of your life, such as the academic, professional, or personal. A thread may emerge that runs through your most meaningful experiences. For my journey stories, universities stood out to me. What are your key storylines for your path so far? You are the artist – create your own story.
You could focus on the academic. For me, it was the key elements of what I worked on in school. I mention the research I did in graduate school, and I include key moments along that path – graduation, accomplishments, my book, etc.
You could focus on the professional. Label your visual journey story with all the places you’ve worked. Mine would have the start-up I helped to grow at UW-Madison in 2004, the innovation trip program I helped develop, and where I am now with my entrepreneurial life.
You could focus on the personal. I would list the places I’ve traveled, how I got there, my personal goals, and more.
What is your visual journey story? Do you show it chronologically, focus on one aspect or theme, list your achievements, or take a completely different route? Create and tell the story that makes the most sense to you. You no doubt have many stories to tell and many ways to tell them. Pick one to start with.
This article is taken from the online video-based program which guides you step by step and activity by activity to “Create Your Path.” Sign up for a free sample workshop from the program here, see details on the full program at InnovateYourself.com, and see other programs, speeches, and more at DarinEich.com.