Author: Kelly Swanson
Me to My Husband, Bill: Bill – look! My phone is blowing UP with all these stories about people getting this flesh-eating bacteria from getting into the ocean! Bill: You’re kidding. (Not even breaking stride in his email checking) Me: It’s true! It’s right here. A man who’s about to lose his arm. A 12-year old who is about […]
Me to My Husband, Bill: Bill – look! My phone is blowing UP with all these stories about people getting this flesh-eating bacteria from getting into the ocean!
Bill: You’re kidding. (Not even breaking stride in his email checking)
Me: It’s true! It’s right here. A man who’s about to lose his arm. A 12-year old who is about to die. And here’s a woman whose face is disappearing as we speak! This is crazy. It’s like an epidemic. Maybe we should cancel our trip to the beach. I can’t be a speaker with only half a face!
Bill: Hhhhmmmm. (Translated: I’m not even listening. This is the sound I make when I’m answering an email and you are saying something to me. This is a good time to tell me about that $200 dress you just bought.)
Me: Are you kidding me? You’re not the least bit concerned that our son could lose his leg? Oh my heavens, here are two more! This is unbelievable. Somebody needs to DO something about this. I’m going to share this RIGHT NOW on Facebook. To raise awareness. Somebody should plan a parade. What color would the arm bands be? Flesh-colored?
Bill: Honey. The odds of us catching a flesh-eating bacteria are very slim. Better chance you’ll be hit by a car. (It’s his favorite go-to phrase.)
Me: Tell that to @HoneyDue in Memphis whose feet look like she put them in a blender. Do you want ME to have feet like that when I wear sandals? I can’t BELIEVE Congress isn’t talking about this. They didn’t even bring it up on Grey’s Anatomy! This is a travesty (Note to self: Look up “travesty” to make sure I’m using it right.)
And you don’t even seem to care. Sitting over there in your ivory tower. (Note to self: Look up “ivory tower.”)
Bill: (Extremely audible sigh). Let me see your phone.
Kelly: Seriously? You don’t even believe it when I’m reading it directly from the flipping news itself? Well, let me just call the Associated Press. “I’m sorry, please delete your news reports. Bill in North Carolina doesn’t believe you.”
Bill: (No comment. Just that look he gives me when he’s sure he’s about to be right. He motions for me to hand him my phone.)
Me: Well, see for yourself, big shot. Maybe THIS will wake you up to the state our world is in.
Bill: (After two seconds of scrolling he stops and looks at me over the top of his glasses with his “I’m trying to be patient” look, which I hate.).
Yes, honey, these articles do seem to be legitimate. (Stand down Associated Press, Bill Swanson believes you. You can proceed.)
But there’s one heading here that I think you overlooked.
Me: Oh, that’s just an ad for Viagra.
Bill: No. THIS heading. (He calls me over and points to my phone where there in huge betraying letters are these words.)
MORE ARTICLES LIKE THIS ONE
Me: (Silence)
Bill: This one happened in 1927. And this one, in 1935. And this one in 1952. In fact, there hasn’t been a case of this reported in this country in over a year – among millions of people. I think we’re safe.
Me: Well, I’m still not getting in the water.
++++++++
Yep. He was right again. Apparently, when I clicked on one story of a man who got a flesh-eating bacteria, my phone arbitrarily decided to pull up every other flesh-eating story ever written since Adam. And in minutes, one story became an epidemic.
That is the power of the world’s storytellers – choosing what stories we see, when see them, and in what order. And, in essence, helping to dictate what we care about.
That is the power of how one strategically placed story and a buried heading can create the impression of an epidemic.
That is the power of our own mind to take the story we see and create a bigger one we don’t.
What’s the point? I’m not sure. Maybe it’s just a warning to be careful of flesh-eating bacteria.
I do think there’s a deeper lesson here, but I don’t have time to figure it out. I just saw an article about an 800-pound shark off the coast of New Jersey. We are definitely cancelling our trip to the beach.
Contact Us at WeSpeak Global and follow us on Twitter
The articles, video and images embedded on these pages are from various speakers and talent.
These remain the property of its owner and are not affiliated with or endorsed by WeSpeak Global.
An interesting story of the emergence of Ferrero and Lessons Leading to Success, the famous world company with a turnover of more than 10 billion dollars, producing popular sweets and famous chocolate eggs with funny toys inside. It all started shortly after the end of World War II in a small provincial Italian town. Michele Ferrero […]
Worrying is psychologically debilitating and The Opposite of Worrying Planning Recently, I helped a client eliminate the worrying component in his narrative which was causing serious procrastination. This is not unusual, and here are some thoughts for those who find themselves trapped in this wheel of hell. I understand worry intimately. I know those who […]
When I am working from home, one of my favorite places to go when I need a break is my daughter’s apiary (bee yard). I am absolutely fascinated by these amazing creatures and WHAT YOU CAN LEARN. Between their work ethic and how they function together as a colony, I think I could sit and […]
If we are going to do new things to survive in the Industrial Age, we are going to meet uncertainty. If we are going to meet uncertainty, we are going to discover risk. A show of hands… How many people, when you were 12, 13, 14 years of age, had a mother or a father […]
Like so many around the world, we are also taking this time to venture near – to Discovering our doorsteps what beautiful destinations we have close to us, some that we had overlooked for the more exotic. Every week we’ll be sharing a new destination in Turkey, trying to unravel the mysteries – one road […]
Three small steps to help you use New Research Authentic Leadership as your strategy to improve engagement and retain your talent. It seems just about every day your news feed has a new article talking about the (admittedly catchy) “Great Resignation. And geez, so sorry about adding yet another. I’m guessing just about every leader […]
Leadership Hack: How Sticky Notes Can Help Your Career Sticky notes have been my savior. And I don’t mean in a “don’t forget the milk” kind of way. True, sticky notes are great for grocery lists, but what I’m talking about here is how a few small squares helped me become a better leader, and […]
Don’t you just love when prospects ask you that question? – What Makes You Different? If you recognize the question as the true trap that it is, and you know how to deal with it, then you love it. If you don’t treat that question as the trap that it is, you’re toast. For […]
Our Mission
© All rights reserved 2025. Created using VOXEL THEME
