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| Edited By: Birender Ahluwalia |Source: DNA webdesk |Updated: Nov 23, 2015, 08:00 AM IST
In a study of undergraduates, women who expressed sincere joy in their college yearbook photos were relatively more likely to be married by age twenty-seven and more likely to have satisfying marriages at age fifty-two.
Studies show that people who tell more vivid and engaging narratives have higher well-being later in life.
Many on Facebook applied the filter of the French tricolour on their pictures to create a memory for themselves. I posit that perhaps it was more than a memory.
Photographs have a way of coming to describe generations. The photo of the moon landing is instantly recognised as one of the watershed moments in scientific endeavors. The victory parade to mark the end of the World War II was another picture, which will remain etched in our collective memories. The six sixes in an over will give Indian cricket fans goosebumps for generations and always a reminder of what is possible in sport. The pictures of the Afghan girl on the cover of the National Geographic, of the man who stepped in front of the tanks going past Tiananmen Square, and, of course, of the Syrian toddler Aylan Kurdi lying on the beach— pictures capable of inspiring global action.
Clockwise: Astronaut Buzz Aldrin stands on the moon; Syrian toddler Aylan Kurdi on a beach in Turkey; Sharbat Gula on the cover of the National Geographic; and Yuvraj Singh after six consecutive sixes from one over in a match against England in the 2007 Twenty20 Cricket World Cup.
Photographs can tell you a story. The research stated above is an indicator of how seemingly mundane and insignificant aspects of our lives captured in a photograph can become either a microscope or a telescope of our lives. Little did the ladies in the yearbook know that the photos were foretelling their distant lives.
Very often, when clients find themselves at crossroads, they are at a phase where a decision would impact their lives and livelihood. The lives of the people around them would face disruption. It could mean something as simple as turning vegan or giving up a job or chasing a passion or abandoning/pursuing a lifelong dream.
These are times when clients like to talk about their values, their purpose in life or their personal meaning in life. It is not a very easy subject.
That is where we bring in the power of the narrative and auto-photography.
Psychologists talk about two kinds of narratives— the micro-narrative and meta-narrative. A narrative is a symbolic structure that we use to make sense of our lives.
Micro-narratives are the stories of our daily struggles and stresses. It could be the first thing that we see when we wake up. It could be the commute. It could be getting the kids ready to go to school or getting ready to take care of someone who is unwell. It could be the gym bag or the yoga mat that you use first thing in the morning.
Meta-narratives are those that give you a broader story of your life. It is the zoomed out map that we have traversed. It could be the strengths that we have developed over a period of time. It involved the obstacles that were thrown in our path and how our life turned out for better or worse. It certainly involves the people in our lives. It could be about who introduced you to yoga, how it benefited you and now perhaps you are looking at starting a yoga school.
The narrative has a dual use.
A microscope: It can be a microscope to dive deep into your current situation to explore the depths of why you are feeling the way you do. What are the thought processes of your mind? What is the repertoire of responses that you will evaluate?
A telescope: Just like the women in the study, perhaps your narrative might take you to the destination that you wish to arrive at. Once you have understood the range of responses available to you, what is the criteria of that evaluation? What does the destination feel like? Is it worth it?
The reason clients want to find their greater meaning in life is because, as research suggests, people who discover their meaning are better equipped to deal with stress. It improves their overall health and well-being and life seems worth living. It is the reason they wake up in the morning.
The journey could be confusing. We so often get caught up in the day-to-day stresses of life. In the hustle and bustle, we lose sight of what truly matters to us. Our minds focus on the “problem at hand” rather than the destination or even the journey to our destination.
What is truly fascinating is that the meaning we seek is all around us, we just fail to grasp its importance in our lives. We accept its mundane presence. It could be the connection we have with nature or our spirituality. It could be the connection we have with people and the work that we do. It could be the value we bring to other people and the value other people bring to us.
In auto-photography, we ask clients to take photos and choose images that represent them. Together we capture and articulate the ways their own identity guides their actions and thought.
It helps us look at the world through their own eyes.
DIY Positivity: Here is where you can start building a narrative using photographs.
Take the camera out and direct the flash and energy towards what matters to you! Your cellphone camera is enough for the job.
Spend fifteen minutes every day of the week and take a photograph of the aspects of life that are meaningful to you.
Think about moments that give you immense joy. It could be the people in your life, work, home, in your community or your friends.
It could be pictures of symbols, maybe religious or spiritual, a particular plaque or display poster, a garden patch, a favourite place to sit, a coffee shop, the weighing scale or gym bag, a flag, a souvenir, a team banner, a prize or cherished medal.
It could be pictures of past experiences such as travel, the first car, maybe boarding cards of meaningful journeys or pilgrimages, family events and celebrations.
Try taking at least a dozen photographs. It does not matter if the subject of your photograph is big or small. Prioritise a few photographs and write about why is it so important to you.
Once you are done collecting them, upload them into a folder or, even better, save them in a PowerPoint file, one slide for one picture.
For each of the picture, ask yourself these questions.
First ask, why is the picture important to me? Sometimes, clients do the reverse, which I think works as well— what would happen if it is taken away from you?
Then ask how this picture is meaningful to you? Even better, write down a few sentences about what gives the picture a particular meaning in your life.
Michael F Steger, who is Director of the Laboratory for the Study of Meaning and Quality of Life at the Colorado State University, and his colleagues have studied the role of auto-photography and meaning in life.
"College students were instructed to take 9-12 photographs of things that they felt made their life meaningful; one week later, they viewed and wrote about each photograph. They completed a battery of questionnaires before and after this exercise. Afterward, they reported feeling like they had more meaning in their lives, greater life satisfaction, and more positive emotion than they had beforehand. " — Through the windows of the soul: A pilot study using photography to enhance meaning in life, Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science
When we take the time to just be mentally and emotionally present with the photographs, we begin to appreciate the value of the subjects in the picture. Photographs have a way of giving you something tangible to hold and feel what gives you meaning in life. Photographs can be a reminder of your strengths and resources that you have available at your disposal. It gives us resolve to pursue meaningful goals. It reminds you of your values.
Here is a reason I can offer you for why people used the filter of the French flag on their profile pictures on Facebook. It gave them meaning. It gave them a channel of expression of their values. It described to them what they cherished. It perhaps gave them the feeling that their energies could be used to make a difference.
Earlier, people in India did the same with the Indian tricolour. It signalled hope. It was a signal of endorsement.
With that, I wish you a positive Monday, imploring you to create some new photographs.
