--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The idea that a story has to be…" description: "\"The idea that a story has to be 'exceptional' in order to be worth telling is curious to me. What if we looked at every single person's story as a site..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16a/leslie-jamison-8628_believe_the-idea-that-a-story-has-to-be-exceptio_2030693.jpg" --- # The idea that a story has to be 'exceptional' in order to… ![“The idea that a story has to be 'exceptional' in order to be worth telling is curious to me. What if we looked at every single person's story as a site of possibly infinite meaning? What if we came to believe that there isn't hubris or narcissism in thinking your story might be worth sharing…” quote by Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16a/leslie-jamison-8628_believe_the-idea-that-a-story-has-to-be-exceptio_2030693.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16a/leslie-jamison-8628_believe_the-idea-that-a-story-has-to-be-exceptio_2030693.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16a/leslie-jamison-8628_believe_the-idea-that-a-story-has-to-be-exceptio_2030693.jpg) > “The idea that a story has to be 'exceptional' in order to be worth telling is curious to me. What if we looked at every single person's story as a site of possibly infinite meaning? What if we came to believe that there isn't hubris or narcissism in thinking your story might be worth sharing - only a sense of curiosity and offering?” [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote challenges the belief that only extraordinary lives merit sharing, urging us to view every personal narrative as potentially rich and valuable. **In simple terms:** Every life can hold deep meaning, not just the exceptional ones. Key Takeaway Treat each story as a chance to explore and share. Themes storytelling humility curiosity self‑acceptance Mood reflective hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal memoirs - therapy sessions - community workshops - social media posts Key Concepts narrative value human experience psychology Questions to Reflect On - How can we honor ordinary experiences without exaggeration? - What does sharing everyday stories reveal about ourselves? A Different Perspective Some may feel vulnerable exposing ordinary details; not all stories resonate universally. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) [Curiosity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curiosity/) [Hubris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hubris/) [Story Site](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story-site-3727841/) [Story Worth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story-worth-819982/) [Telling Curious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/telling-curious-3727840/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Thinking Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking-story-1292963/) [Worth Telling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worth-telling/) ## Related quotes > [Make your life a story worth telling. You only get one shot at this existence, and one day when you’re gone the most important…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-braun/make-your-life-a-story-worth-telling-you-only-get-one-shot-at-this/) [Adam Braun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-braun/) > [Whether your characters journey daily to a distant moon or just down the street to the corner bar, what matters to the reader is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-selgin/whether-your-characters-journey-daily-to-a-distant-moon-or-just-down/) [Peter Selgin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-selgin/) > [Make your life a story worth telling,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/make-your-life-a-story-worth-telling/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes you get the cynical person saying, 'Do we really need another book set in Nazi Germany?' But I think you just have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/sometimes-you-get-the-cynical-person-saying-do-we-really-need-another/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [If you have a story that seems worth telling, and you think you can tell it worthily, then the thing for you to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dashiell-hammett/if-you-have-a-story-that-seems-worth-telling-and-you-think-you-can/) [Dashiell Hammett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dashiell-hammett/) > [Any story worth telling is worth embellishing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sputnik-monroe/any-story-worth-telling-is-worth-embellishing/) [Sputnik Monroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sputnik-monroe/) > [“everyone has a story. It might or might not be a love story. It could be a story of dreams, friendship, hope, survival or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/savi-sharma/everyone-has-a-story-it-might-or-might-not-be-a-love-story-it-could/) [Savi Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/savi-sharma/) > [“ANYTHING IN THIS UNIVERSE CAN BE A STORY WORTH TELLING, AS LONG AS YOU KNOW HOW TO BEST TELL IT.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/film-crit-hulk/anything-in-this-universe-can-be-a-story-worth-telling-as-long-as-you/) [FILM CRIT HULK](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/film-crit-hulk/) > [For me, being in front of a camera is a matter of practicing and refining your art. I think, if you're telling a story…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-pino/for-me-being-in-front-of-a-camera-is-a-matter-of-practicing-and/) [Danny Pino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-pino/) > [“No story is worth telling without the twists and turns. Make them count instead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-eriksson/no-story-is-worth-telling-without-the-twists-and-turns-make-them/) [Charlotte Eriksson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-eriksson/) > [Every day is a new opportunity to make your life a story worth telling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jairek-robbins/every-day-is-a-new-opportunity-to-make-your-life-a-story-worth-telling/) [Jairek Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jairek-robbins/) > [Any story worth telling is worth exaggerating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/any-story-worth-telling-is-worth-exaggerating/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [Anyone can have a once-upon-a-time or a happily-ever-after, but it's the journey between that makes the story worth telling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-colfer/anyone-can-have-a-once-upon-a-time-or-a-happily-ever-after-but-it-s/) [Chris Colfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-colfer/) > [People have asked me a lot, 'What comes first? The pictures or the story? The story or the picture?' It's hard to describe because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-van-allsburg/people-have-asked-me-a-lot-what-comes-first-the-pictures-or-the-story/) [Chris Van Allsburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-van-allsburg/) > [Joe and I have always been drawn to ensemble storytelling. We like the idea of telling stories from multiple characters' points of view and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-russo/joe-and-i-have-always-been-drawn-to-ensemble-storytelling-we-like-the/) [Anthony Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-russo/) ## More by Leslie Jamison > [When people ask what kind of nonfiction I write, I say 'all kinds,' but really I mean I don’t write any kind at all:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/when-people-ask-what-kind-of-nonfiction-i-write-i-say-all-kinds-but/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [It's one of the most liberating things I experience in writing - letting yourself get rid of a gesture or character or plot point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/it-s-one-of-the-most-liberating-things-i-experience-in-writing/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [The pain is what you make of it. You have to find something in it that yields. I understood my guiding imperative as: keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/the-pain-is-what-you-make-of-it-you-have-to-find-something-in-it-that/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [I needed people to deliver my feelings back to me in a form that was legible. Which is a superlative kind of empathy to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/i-needed-people-to-deliver-my-feelings-back-to-me-in-a-form-that-was/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [In my own life as a reader I experience real moments of alienation when a writer feels too perfect, or like even the flaws…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/in-my-own-life-as-a-reader-i-experience-real-moments-of-alienation/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [I'm happy not knowing. Most of the time (except when I'm a neurotic mess about uncertainty) I feel glad that the horizon is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/i-m-happy-not-knowing-most-of-the-time-except-when-i-m-a-neurotic/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [I do like arranging things. I like order. I basically like all these things that are the opposite of what people associate with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/i-do-like-arranging-things-i-like-order-i-basically-like-all-these/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [I used to believe that hurting would make you more alive to the hurting of others. I used to believe in feeling bad because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/i-used-to-believe-that-hurting-would-make-you-more-alive-to-the/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [Whatever we can’t hold, we hang on a hook that will hold it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/whatever-we-can-t-hold-we-hang-on-a-hook-that-will-hold-it/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [“I obsessed, and told myself this obsession was empathy. But it wasn't, quite. It was more like inpathy. I wasn't expatriating myself into another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/i-obsessed-and-told-myself-this-obsession-was-empathy-but-it-wasn-t/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [Post-wounded women know that postures of pain play into limited and outmoded conceptions of womanhood. Their hurt has a new native language spoken in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/post-wounded-women-know-that-postures-of-pain-play-into-limited-and/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [12-step recovery is very focused on abstinence, and that's bled into the broader understanding of treatment. It would be most useful to have multiple…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/12-step-recovery-is-very-focused-on-abstinence-and-that-s-bled-into/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [We don't want to be wounds ("No, you're the wound!") but we should be allowed to have them, to speak about having them, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/we-don-t-want-to-be-wounds-no-you-re-the-wound-but-we-should-be/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [“Empathy means realizing no trauma has discrete edges. Trauma bleeds.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/empathy-means-realizing-no-trauma-has-discrete-edges-trauma-bleeds/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) > [“Empathy isn't just listening, it's asking the questions whose answers need to be listened to.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-jamison/empathy-isn-t-just-listening-it-s-asking-the-questions-whose-answers/) [Leslie Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) [Explore all 79 Leslie Jamison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-jamison/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [There is no such word as item girl in the dictionary. People have created this word and I don't believe that I am an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-zariwala/there-is-no-such-word-as-item-girl-in-the-dictionary-people-have/) [Shefali Zariwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-zariwala/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I don't really like too much credit. I know nobody's going to believe this, but I'd rather be able to score goals and nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-wright-phillips/i-don-t-really-like-too-much-credit-i-know-nobody-s-going-to-believe/) [Bradley Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-wright-phillips/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. 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Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [We instantly believe everything we think. Isn't that insane? It's good for us to explore the depravity of our minds, so we know we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-das/we-instantly-believe-everything-we-think-isn-t-that-insane-it-s-good/) [Krishna Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krishna-das/) [Browse all 47,704 Believe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The idea that a story has to be 'exceptional' in order to be worth telling is curious to me. What if we looked at every single person's story as a site of possibly infinite meaning? 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