It’s impossible to communicate everything. The map is not the territory, it’s an abstraction, a summary and most of all, a conceptual framework.

When we share an idea, we can work to make sure it’s true, but when we share all the facts, we’re simply boring people. Stories are relevant, creating a narrative and tension and change.

A manipulator doesn’t care if the story is true. They’ve succeeded by taking advantage of our goodwill, our assumption that things asserted to be true usually are. A manipulator brings us a story that creates emotion–and causes action that the recipient ends up regretting. Manipulation isn’t resilient, because sooner or later, we discover that the world doesn’t work the way we were led to believe.

The stories we tell are a choice. Reciting facts lets us off the hook, but telling a true story that causes change is a powerful responsibility.