|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
In our fast-moving lives, we hardly ever get enough time to reflect on the sophisticated choreography that makes up our everyday movements. Deep down, we know that the narrative of who we are is continuously shaped by life experiences – our successes, tryouts and failures. But are we prone to naturally give something we’ve failed at another try?
Bright & Pryor’s (2008) concept of “Shiftwork” refers to how career counsellors support clients to develop adaptability and resiliency to navigate change. One of the cornerstones of Shiftwork is that shifting perspectives “from risk as failure to risk as endeavour” can support clients’ progression. Bright & Pryor argue that “error is an essential ingredient in exploratory learning.”
However, humans are naturally inclined to feel reluctant when it comes to confronting uncertainty. This tendency can be heightened for people going through a major transition (such as moving to a new country), who are inevitably shaken out of their comfort zone and must learn how to overcome their fear of failure. We all experience the fear of failure in different ways and, when adding cultural diversity into the mix, the layers can multiply and become quite complex.
For those who are new to Canada, career exploration and planning can be surrounded by feelings of fear and anxiety. Choosing the right tools when supporting their development may not always be a straightforward process. Storytelling is one of the tools we use.
Telling stories develops us. We delve into the world of the story, visit with its characters, connect to our heritage. When we tell our stories, there are a lot of other things happening internally that can be helpful in a careers space. For example, when I share how my grandmother would bring me along when she’d hike the trails of the nearby forest in search of medicinal plants, about how she’d explain the use of each herb and point to its prime harvesting time, and about her knowledge on packing these herbs for later use – when I tell that story, I don’t only share facts or memories; I get energized, revisit skills and knowledge I’ve forgotten I have, feel more connected to my roots and, somehow, get carried closer to my purpose.
So, how can you integrate storytelling to help clients from diverse cultural backgrounds shift to a “risk as endeavour” mindset and advance in their careers?
Before using storytelling as a technique in working with clients coming from a different culture, practitioners must gather intercultural communication tools and acquire an understanding of how to work with people whose cultural identities differ from their own. I am referring here to face-to-face storytelling, the type of communication that requires an active audience. When clients have a hard time identifying with their audience because of cultural differences, they will not feel safe to tell their story.
“Coaches can help clients learn how to analyze their audience, understand the new cultural setting and convert this audience into active listeners.”
Many years ago, as a newcomer to Canada, I slowly walked away from telling my stories. The realization that my audience was politely nodding at me, but didn’t necessarily understand my stories, was painful. So, I stopped. Storytelling cannot happen without listeners. Sadly, at the time I didn’t come across a coach who could have guided me on how to consider my new audience and how to learn more about storytelling in a new cultural setting.
Coaches can help clients learn how to analyze their audience, understand the new cultural setting and convert this audience into active listeners. Once a trusting environment is created, practitioners can ask clarifying questions and facilitate clients’ remembering by sharing similar or personal stories. Genuine storytelling will not only lead to revealing some of the unique characteristics and abilities of the teller, but will support them to build self-confidence, trust in others, and create a connection between their roots and their new reality.
Coaches can encourage clients to share stories of “successful failures” and point out to how much insight is gained from trying. “Here’s what happened” can be the start of a story, which not only unveils the facts, but supports the teller to verbalize their thoughts and emotions.
Another tool I like to draw on is the book Hope-Filled Engagement, which reflects on the three pillars that support the work of a practitioner when using storytelling: self-discovery, values and hope (Poehnell & Amunsdon, 2011). Although the whole book is valuable, my favorite part is the “Circle of Strengths,” a storytelling activity that I highly recommend to career practitioners who want to explore this “spiral of curiosity and discovery” that’s reproduced through storytelling. This simple activity is a tool we can use, one-to-one or in a group setting, to visualize how clients’ stories may illustrate their principles, choices, skills, and life or work values.
Storytelling is an activity so innate to being human that when we aren’t able to share our stories, we experience it as a loss. By coaching our clients to connect to their new audience and feel safe to share their stories in a different cultural setting, we empower them to continuously learn and rediscover themselves. It won’t always work, clients will sometimes fail, but they will know that their endeavors are risks worth taking and “essential ingredients” in their career and personal development.
