Sometimes I can only tell a story the long way around. Here's a good example.

In 1895, a man by the name of Georges Polti embarked on an analysis of all great works of literature that could be found at the time, Greek classics, Contemporary French works, everything he could lay his hands on. He determined that in all literature or performance there are but 36 possible dramatic storylines. The volume he published was called, The Thirty-Six Dramatic Situations. I highly recommend checking it out on scribd. The range of conflicts and their descriptions are fascinating. 

So why is that relevant to you guys? 

Well, the first and not the most minor is that at some level, almost anything can be categorized or codified, even conflict. So in my discussions about making yourself replaceable, I urge you to remember that everything you do professionally, can be memorialized, then replicated, allowing you to replace yourself up to more imaginative, meta (no not that meta) pursuits.

This premise of categorization and codification is at the core of a lot of machine learning and artificial intelligence. But there are certain things that human beings just feel. It's our greatest strength.

It’s reminiscent of Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart’s infamous line about the difference between art and pornography, In the obscenity case of Jacobellis v. Ohio (1964). He opined, that "hard-core pornography" was hard to define, but that, “I know it when I see it.” 

While this intuition is a very human thing, it can also give us this false sense that we're the only ones that can do “it”. Let’s say we took these 36 categories and created a machine learning algorithm, using a universe of a thousand stories and told the AI, The Count of Monte Cristo falls under the category, "Crime Pursued by Vengeance,” it would learn that The Shawshank Redemption is the same.

Tell it that Julius Caesar is a story of “Revolt”, and it would deliver Animal Farm as a similar tale. Under the category of “Madness”, maybe you give the AI King Lear, it will probably return The Shining. Once given the parameters, it would be able to identify the theme for any story going forward, thus removing the need for a human being to engage in the act of trying to say something new, because nothing exists outside these thirty-six dramatic situations.

As content creators, we think we need to find the most novel way to express ourselves. But that’s actually not possible. Whatever you need to say, definitely fits in one of these 36 categories and has already been said by someone else.

Now that is not to say you shouldn’t keep creating, of course, you should, but try polishing how well you tell a story instead of replicating yet another “Hero’s Journey” construct where you’ve been sold some bizarre notion that your brand story reaches the dramatic heights of Bilbo Baggins or Luke Skywalker. It doesn’t, but that doesn’t mean your story does not have value.

It simply requires a truth well told. 

Productivity Riffs. Want more of this kind of real-world observation?

Just join The Less Doing Labs. It's a private group chat that gives you access to me for $12 a month or a hundred dollars for the year. If you're interested, watch this super-fast video for more info.

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Make it an effective day.

P.S. Whenever you are ready...here are 3 ways I can help you grow your business:

1. Join my FREE Facebook Group - The Replaceable Founder
2. Enroll in one of my courses, Overwhelmology or The Replaceable Founder
3. Work with me privately