Why Veterans Make Great Writers

Podcast Episode 7 - Dario DiBattista

High Impact Segment 16:32 - 19:40

When you think about a storyteller, what do you think of? My first mental image is of an old bearded man with his hood up, stooped over a fire with people gathered around listening intently. The wisdom and experiences of the man guides the listeners through a gripping tale that always ends in a valuable lesson. While the lessons from that hooded man are valuable, the most important lessons are the ones we can learn from our own story.

Last week I talked about the Hero’s Journey and our call to continue embarking on new journeys. One thing I can’t stress enough is how hard that process is - it sucks. After the return home, you’re required to reconcile with the fact that you were wrong or have acted in a way that should be changed in order to allow for continued growth. Nobody loves that feeling.

I see, and I think the writers we’ve hosted on the podcast would agree, that writing is a tool to help us through this process. Putting pen to paper (or whatever medium) and dumping your thoughts is a forcing function for actually processing and evaluating our experiences rather than skimming the surface - which we do, a lot.

There is a fallacy that occurs in our minds where we think we know things better than we actually do. In psychology, this is called the Dunning-Kruger Effect which is a cognitive bias that leads people to believe they’re smarter and more capable than they actually are.

An example that highlights this bias is teaching. Think of a topic you know a lot about. Now try and write a one page paper explaining what you know in a way that anybody could understand. It’s much more difficult than you think.

The triangle image below depicts that problem. Simply remembering something isn’t sufficient to generate original content on the subject.

While these concepts are typically applied to raw information, I believe there are parallels in how we view our past. Simple memory of an event in your past doesn’t necessarily equate to understanding.

Personal storytelling through writing is a tool that which drives you up the triangle. Dario points out that writing forces three things: a challenge to your world view, consideration of different perspectives, and a look at your impact on others. Each of these considerations requires work in between ‘Create’ and ‘Remember’.

In this context, I view the top of the triangle, Create, as publishing blog posts or a book. You don’t need to commit to that to write for yourself. Spending 15 minutes in a quiet part of your day is not only a huge stress relief, but also leads to more clear concise thinking.

The cool thing about storytelling and writing is you get to realize your role in the world, your place within it…you get to shape the meaning of it.

You are your own personal story teller. Your experience and thoughts are valid; put them to good to use and drill down into them through writing. I can confidently say from personal experience that you won’t regret it.

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This Week on the Podcast

This Wednesday, 2.9, we speak with Tom Schueman, our first active duty guest on the podcast. Tom is currently a Major in the Marine Corps and has some incredibly thoughtful comments about becoming a lifelong learner.

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I really strive to create a resource that is not only educational and entertaining but also what people want. If you have a particular question, know someone we should interview, or just want to chat - reply to this email or send us one @ scuttlebuttpod1@gmail.com.