Book excerpt:
The excerpt from Nancy Colier’s forthcoming book, “Narratives: Let Go of the Stories That Keep You Stuck,” explores how people can become confined by their own assumptions.
It opens with a story about Harry Houdini: after hours trying to escape a jail cell, he discovered its door had not been locked. The tale illustrates how belief can make a person feel trapped.
Colier then describes overhearing a diner customer interpret a delayed waiter’s service as disrespect. The excerpt cuts off before the encounter’s full outcome is given.
The author says people build personal accounts of events to make life seem coherent and to support a stable sense of self. Trouble follows when they treat those interpretations as objective truth and assume others share them.
The book is due Nov. 3 from New Harbinger Publications, in paperback and e-book editions. The excerpt presents its central idea: recognizing personal narratives may help people question how they interpret others and events.
Key points
- Colier says personal narratives help people make sense of life and maintain a consistent identity.
- Assuming one’s interpretation is objective reality can distort perceptions of other people’s intentions.
- The book is scheduled for release Nov. 3 in paperback and e-book formats.