We Become the Stories We Tell Ourselves

Millennials at Work

- Utkarsh Amitabh

Philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre once noted, "I can only answer the question 'What am I to do?' if I can answer the prior question 'Of what story or stories do I find myself a part?"

While we often think of stories as external—crafted by societies, cultures, and history—one of the most powerful narratives we live by is the one we tell ourselves. This internal dialogue, or chatter, as psychologist Ethan Kross calls it, is the foundation for how we interpret everything. Kross, who studies introspection at the Emotion and Self-Control Lab at the University of Michigan, explores this in his book Chatter: The Voice in Our Head and How to Harness It. He argues that our inner voice shapes not only our mood and mental health but also how we navigate challenges, large and small.