Story and Reflection: What Story are You Telling?

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED Talk The Danger of a Single Story is one of my all-time favorites. She warns how a narrow narrative can distort the way we see people, cultures, even whole countries.

But the danger of a single story doesn’t stop there. It shows up in how we see ourselves.

The Single Story on L&D

I once coached a faculty member who loved obstetrics. She came to me after a particularly distressing night of call.

Her patient had a situation she’d never seen before. A resident was by her side. She called the OB back-up, who reassured her it was nothing to worry about.

By the time she walked into coaching, the story in her head had solidified: “I shouldn’t be doing OB. The OBs hate it when I’m on because I ask too many questions. Residents need confident supervisors, not someone who doesn’t even know what’s significant.”

That was her single story: I don’t belong here. (BTW she had no proof of OBs disliking her - it too was a narrative).

Retelling Through Strengths

We slowed it down. I asked her to name her strengths. She identified strong patient advocacy, solid logical and clinical judgment, and humility in medicine. Then I invited her to retell the story through that lens.

Her posture lightened as she said: “I thought it through logically, but it didn’t add up. Because I’m a strong patient advocate, I couldn’t dismiss it. I had to seek expertise. And in doing so, I lived out my humility in medicine, and even modeled that for a resident.”

Same event. New story. What had felt like proof she didn’t belong became evidence of exactly why she did.

The Story Beneath the Story

We all have single stories that sneak in when we’re stressed or doubting. They’re simple, too narrow, and often harmful.

Reflection: The question isn’t whether you have them. The question is: What story are you telling? And how might it change if you told it through the lens of your strengths? How can you tell a fuller story?