Who is this guy?

 

I believe we are the stories we tell.

A wise man once told me that we become the people we hang around with and the books we read, and that’s true. But over time I’ve come to understand why that is–it’s because the people we hang with tell us stories about ourselves, and the books we read tell us stories about who we want to become. We can reject those stories…for a while…but we become what we hear just as metal is beaten into a shape by repeated blows of the hammer.

What is true for us is true for our families and our communities and our nations and our species. We are the sum of the stories we have told ourselves about ourselves. Some of those stories are terrible, bitter, degrading stories. Some are ennobling, empowering, strengthening stories. But here’s the thing–it’s not what’s in the story that makes it one or the other, but the order of how those things appear. Some of the most encouraging stories of all have terrible things in them; in fact, it is out of those terrible things that the greatness is born. So it is with us. It doesn’t matter how bad our story is right now. It only matters that good things are coming.

Then there’s one more thing. Stories that don’t engage us, that don’t ensnare the senses and ensorcel the mind do not enter into us and do not become fused with our souls. It’s said that those that don’t learn history are condemned to repeat it, and that’s true, too–but again, we’re missing a critical bit. It’s not those that are not taught history that are condemned to repeat it, but those that don’t learn history. Tony Robbins says, “Information without emotion is not retained.” Stories that don’t matter don’t teach. And stories–history–that don’t matter are not learned.

I tell stories. I tell the truth with power and with emotion and with enthusiasm. When I teach, when I write, I do it with Logos, yes–with the mind–but also with Pathos–with the emotions–and, most importantly, with Ethos–with the spirit.

I am a storyteller. But I am first a believer.

MrC

P.S. Here’s the conventional bio, if you care.

Christopher Jones (alias Mr. C, alias Brother C) has for several years taught classes on history, civics, speech and logic both on- and off-line as part of the growing private/homeschool movement. He is a professor of logic, rhetoric, and poetics at Mount Liberty College, a teacher of History at Liahona Preparatory Academy, and the founder of the Education Underground, about which the less said the better.

Mr. C graduated from Brigham Young University with a B.A. in Classics (Roman History) and minors in English and History. Prior to joining the productive sector of the economy, he was a campaign manager and public relations specialist for several congressional campaigns and National Field Director for the Alan Keyes presidential campaign in 2000. A prolific writer, Mr. C has a nonfiction career with dozens of articles in several newspapers and magazines, and several books, including From Poop to Gold, the business biography of the Harmon Brothers. His book Mastering the Six Channels of Marketing was an Amazon top 25 book in Advertising. His fiction career includes five ghostwritten books, two books each in three different series, and a vast collection of short stories.

Mr. C resides in Lehi, UT with his wife Jeanette, their eight children (and five in-laws), a growing charm of finches, and an increasingly murderous cat.

Contact:

Teacher: mrc@aliasmrc.com

Author: chris@iamchrisjones.com

Speaker: mentormrc@gmail.com