The Untrue story
“Never let the facts get in the way of a good story!”
– Variously attributed to Hemingway and Mark Twain
In the beginning of my career, we used to tell a story about Walter Cronkite at the beginning of his career. The story had it that Cronkite, on being appointed to head the Evening News, was concerned about creating just the right on-screen chemistry with his audience. After some research, several target families were identified in various parts of the county. On the appointed day, Cronkite visited the Benjamin family in Iowa and had dinner while discussing world affairs and their individual lives with the father, Walter Benjamin, his wife and their children. As the story went, whenever Cronkite subsequently went on the air, he spoke (in his mind) directly with Walter Benjamin, which accounted for Cronkite’s fabled audience connection.
So went the story, which said tons about Cronkite’s assiduous work ethic, the importance of a personal touch in news reading, and the power of “eye contact” even through the medium of television. I, like the other members of my generation, learned and told the story with gusto, never wondering whether it was true.
A new guy joined us at the firm and on hearing the story, was just a little skeptical… So he summoned his courage and telephoned Cronkite at CBS. Reaching Cronkite’s secretary, New Guy enquired about the Walter Benjamin story. She stepped away from her desk momentarily to confer with the great man. When she returned, she said, “Walter says, ‘It’s absolutely not true, but it ought to be!’”
Embarrassed and chastened, we sadly excised the story from the compendium.
It should have been true! We wanted it to be true! But then, it wasn’t.
Fortunately, we were never questioned about it, and were able to quietly retire it from circulation without facing a challenge to our reputation. Whew.
Now, you might say, “What’s the problem? It was a good story, even if untrue. It made the point, in a dramatic way, and it was memorable!”
Well, you might consult Bernie Madoff, Dan Rather, Conrad Black or Brian Williams.
Passing along a good story is part of the stock in trade of the sales business, which doesn’t travel on its stomach, but on its storytelling.
Yet there is a fine distinction between passing along a story that you know to be true and one you know to be false, or one to which you have not devoted the requisite attention. And that distinction or lack of attention can end your career.
We suggest that this might be a time to look carefully at both the stories you’re telling, and those to which you’re listening. Because it’s way too easy to let a good story get out there, ahead of the facts!
Applications
1. Individually
In a time where everyone seems to be lying to everyone about everything, it might be worthwhile to consider what you have at risk. If you don’t know whether a story is true, consider it off limits. It may be a good story, but is it worth getting indicted? Let’s say nobody else will ever know — that still leaves you.
2. At Home
There’s a terrible price to be paid by people close to those who inflate, misrepresent, obfuscate or outright lie about their dealings: Collateral Damage. Sons, Daughters, Spouses, extended family members — all have to deal with being soiled by the spatter when someone gets publicly shamed. Certainly you wouldn’t want it yourself, so be doubly sure you don’t expose your loved ones! Tell the truth! You’ll all sleep better.
3. At Work
It could be an imperfectly fabricated part in an airplane engine, or an inadequate transformer on a circuit board. Maybe it’s a small but false story in a financial instrument. Each and any of these can force a turn in the fortunes of someone who relied on your representations and suffered damages. You can never tell when a small lie (another name for a story that’s just too good for the facts…) will end up costing someone their fortune, their reputation or their life — and that will impact you — whether you get a bill or not. Just take the simple way out: tell the truth.
So take your stories seriously! They are your assets.
They will make or break your career and your fortune.
You think they’re true.
You want them to be true!
Just make sure that they are actually True!
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