1128: Your Point Of No Return

Business storytelling techniques: 1/30 THE POINT OF NO RETURN In the second season of Breaking Bad, Walter White crosses a line. It’s episode 12, and he’s standing over a young woman who’s choking to death. He could easily save her, but he does nothing. Because the woman is a threat. Bryan Cranston, the actor who plays White, describes the emotional aftermath of the scene in his memoir, A Life In Parts... "And then, somehow, as she was fading, she wasn’t herself anymore. I wasn’t looking at Jane, or Jesse’s girlfriend, or the actor Krysten Ritter. I was looking at Taylor, my daughter, my real daughter. I wasn’t Walter White anymore. I was Bryan Cranston. And I was seeing my daughter die… When the director, Colin Bucksey, said, “Cut,” I was weeping. Deep racking sobs." Great stories – whether fiction or business – pivot on moments like this. Peter Parker get’s bitten by the spider. Rachel confesses her feelings to Ross. Steve Jobs gets fired from Apple. In one sense, Breaking Bad is an extended series of these moments, the relentless, metronomic sacrifice of Walter White’s humanity. And they are a huge part of storytelling – often marking the ends of story acts. These are points of no return … moments that can’t be taken back. Moments that take us deeper. When I’m working with private clients to tell their story, these are the moments I look for first. Actions. Decisions. Consequences. When you are telling your story, start there. — This is Business Storytelling Techniques - 1/30. Follow me to get the daily series and ... Challenge: Add your own point of no return ... if you have one. ------------------- The Stories Mean Business podcast with Nick Warren. One Idea A Day, Every Day. Get deeper into business storytelling: https://storiesmeanbusiness.com/storybusiness/ https://storiesmeanbusiness.com/podcast