chrisbrogan.com - Latest Comments in The Beauty in Simple Stories

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Obaging — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 18:23:17 -0000

Genesis sounds really good. I'll be checking this one out.

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Beijing tour — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 21:01:01 -0000

Great post, what you said is really helpful to me. I can't agree with you anymore. I have been talking with my friend about, he though it is really interesting as well. Keep up with your good work, I would come back to you.

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Josh Hurlock http://twitter.co — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 01:50:10 -0000

Chris,

I think simple stories are better because they get right to the point. Complex stories make me feel like people do not know what they are talking about and are just rambling.

Garry,

Thanks for the picture and story, a funny story that gets a point across.

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Bridget Cavanaugh — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 14:41:20 -0000

Chris, I agree. About 10 days, 1/2 a city block exploded on Main St. We lost a life, artists lost their life's work, merchants lost everything. A week after, I wrote a simple, heart-felt post with a simple, heart-felt photo. I wrote it for me, but it's simplicity has touched many lives, including the shop owner. People close to her (I don't know her personally) tell me I helped inspire her desire to rebuild. You can read at: http://bridgetcavanaugh.com...

Thanks as always for grounding us all!
www.twitter.com/bcavanaugh

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

ccseed — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 14:16:16 -0000

@Dave Kawalec
Disagree about your point abt Hemingway story. All things remain open to multiple interpretations. Hence Nike "Just Do It" allows for the reader/slash buyer to fill in the blank with running, sex, etc...while all the while encouraging them to just buy the damn sneakers. The "attentive eye" I reference as able to create story which plays to those varieties...

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

lorrie — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 12:47:07 -0000

great picture, i love the expression and posture of this man.

even greater point. Simply Inspiring.

i haven't read the story yet, but my first thought is that he looks more satisfied than her. that hes probably happily married and she might still be on the "prowl". people watching is so much fun.

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Susan Murphy — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 07:44:45 -0000

140 characters, a blog post, a television show, a book, a podcast, a keynote presentation, a business meeting.

We're all just telling stories, aren't we?

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Joy-Mari — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 03:05:24 -0000

Why do you assume the story is about the man?

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Garry Wilmore — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 22:59:14 -0000

Hey, folks -- If you liked the photo and story Chris posted here, you might also enjoy the one linked below, which likewise involved a humorous situation and a picture taken by someone else, using my camera. This one is titled "Dancing like Khrushchev:"

http://www.flickr.com/photo...

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Sheila Atwood — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 13:40:32 -0000

I like being taken from point A to point B as fast as possible.

Life is simple all the rest is just confusion whether intentional to distract and blind or put out by the confused.

Sheila

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Charles Lau — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 12:31:22 -0000

I don't know if I have caught your meaning or not.
But just be reading this simple post, I felt inspired and recalled that many people (myself included) tend to complicate their posts with many distractions. Now, I've just started to blog in a simpler way. It's so much more easier for readers to understand, and easier to write for bloggers too. Thanks Chris.

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Garry Wilmore — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 11:25:07 -0000

Oh, I didn't figure there was any question about that; in fact, I like to joke that anyone who has any question about my orientation need only make a quick perusal of my Flickr page, including my favorites, which should suffice to remove all doubt!

You may want to check my blog. My most recent post is a link to yet another Flickr picture, captioned as "An Open Letter to President Obama." That got a lot of attention, too; and man, did I have fun writing it! (The blog is linked to my name here.)

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Misty Belardo — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 11:10:17 -0000

I was always afraid to start blogging before because i thought it had to be very complex.. Yes, I agree with you.. simple works = )

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Phillip Gibb — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 11:04:24 -0000

I agree with Derrich
;-)

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Charlie Quirk — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 11:02:04 -0000

I agree with Michael Calienes above. "Complexity Breeds Invisibility." In the same thread, I think Da Vinci's famous quote rings true "simplicity is the ultimate sophistication."

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

chrisbrogan — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 10:58:10 -0000

@Garry - I'm so glad you came by. I think your storytelling was what drew me to the piece in the first place. The picture alone was nice, but the story mattered.

I'm glad you came by. I had no doubt that you weren't gay. I'm often distracted in such ways.

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Garry Wilmore — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 10:47:16 -0000

I assure you that the man in question is most definitely not gay; in fact, it takes a lot to distract my attention from a pretty woman, and this book managed to do exactly that! So I do encourage you to read it when you can. Robert Caro is one heckuva good writer!

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Jennifer Jarratt — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 10:40:56 -0000

I would also be interested in this picture if the woman were reading the book and the man was standing there smiling at the camera. How would you interpret it then? So much of our world is interpreted through men's eyes. What if either the man or the woman were gay? That reminds me, I want to read that book he's reading!

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

John Tebeau — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 10:33:03 -0000

Simple or not, stories are a powerful way to communicate anything, from complex ideas to motivating the listener to join a cause. We're hard-wired for stories. This goes way back to the fire in the cave.

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Garry Wilmore — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 10:32:18 -0000

I can't claim full credit for the image, although it was taken with my camera and under my direction, and the story accompanying it is all mine. But I am quite flattered to find it here, and you folks have brightened my day considerably. Thanks, everyone!

You might want to check out my blog while you're at it. The link is provided here, and I hope you enjoy it, although it isn't as good as this one. :-)

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Derrich — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 10:13:42 -0000

I simply agree.

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Barb Hartsook — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 09:27:08 -0000

Oh yes -- simple stories (photos, paintings, writing, music) allow me to think, to imagine what comes next. Or to embrace something too big to capture in words or pigments. (Hemingway's 6 words, for example, noted from comment above.)

I paint for story, often from much-loved photos, as exemplified here: http://paintedgenerations.c...

Thanks for making this point, Chris. I thinks it's a critical one -- people come back for stories -- especially as they can relate to them, and possibly benefit in some way from having read them.

Barb

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Dave Kawalec — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 09:19:33 -0000

@Richard Reeve: Both the beauty and the problem with the Hemingway short story is that is doesn't suggest one meaning. There are thousands of stories that it tells at the same time. "An entrepreneurial shoe store employee buys his former boss' outdated stock and tries to build a new life one pair of shoes at a time." is as valid an interpretation as "Parents grieving the loss of their baby make the courageous decision to move on."

How is that helpful in conveying specific meaning?

There is a time and a place for brevity. However, boiling something down really means boiling something away. The world is a complex and subtle place. This incessant need to compress all of it into easily-digestible chunks leads to the headline journalism that is shaking our democracy, and the black-or-white thinking that continues to fuel conflicts like Israel/Palestine.

If we stopped filling our lives with nonsense, then maybe we'd have room to consider the important things in the proper depth and context.

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

Karl Foxley — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 09:13:57 -0000

I find on those days when writer's block kicks in, looking at pictures can set the creative juices flowing towards a decent blog post that may have otherwise laid dormant within the grey matter. :)

Thanks for sharing.

Karl

Re: The Beauty in Simple Stories

InspectorClouseau — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 09:04:28 -0000

I'm 57. As one gets older, you begin to appreciate that simplicity (aka purity) has incredible power.

You'll find that applicable to music, food, communications, and many other things.