For Writers:
In his book The Purpose-Driven Life, Rick Warren suggests that we all have a metaphor for life. It is this metaphor that shapes our perspectives and determines how we live. For example, people that believe “life is a game of cards” (chance) probably live much differently than people that think “life is a mission” (purpose).
Metaphors are a kind of shorthand; they connect one “thing” with another “thing.” In the case of life, our understanding of life theoretically should grow when we see it in the context of a race, a journey, etc.
As shorthand, however, metaphors also open themselves up to clichéd thinking. Who hasn’t heard that life is a rollercoaster, or a prison, or a mountain climb?
Is how you live your life no better than a cliché?
Consider your metaphor for life. Do you naturally migrate to one of the clichés noted above? Spend some time developing a fresh metaphor that better captures how you approach your life.
“The greatest thing in style is to have command of metaphor.” -- Aristotle
In his book The Purpose-Driven Life, Rick Warren suggests that we all have a metaphor for life. It is this metaphor that shapes our perspectives and determines how we live. For example, people that believe “life is a game of cards” (chance) probably live much differently than people that think “life is a mission” (purpose).
Metaphors are a kind of shorthand; they connect one “thing” with another “thing.” In the case of life, our understanding of life theoretically should grow when we see it in the context of a race, a journey, etc.
As shorthand, however, metaphors also open themselves up to clichéd thinking. Who hasn’t heard that life is a rollercoaster, or a prison, or a mountain climb?
Is how you live your life no better than a cliché?
Consider your metaphor for life. Do you naturally migrate to one of the clichés noted above? Spend some time developing a fresh metaphor that better captures how you approach your life.
“The greatest thing in style is to have command of metaphor.” -- Aristotle
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