Narrative Design Frameworks

Weave your past, present, and vision into a story that compels you forward so you can live the dream.

Architecture of Narrative Design

Our minds organise experience as a story... complete with characters, conflict, turning points and resolution. Narrative design frameworks surface the plotlines running through your life, revealing how past events, present actions and future goals connect. By structuring your own story, you create a coherent journey that motivates and guides each day.

How Narrative Design Runs

A compelling self-narrative follows a simple arc:

  1. Origin (where you came from)
  2. Inciting incident (the challenge that set you on a new path)
  3. Rising action (the skills, trials and allies you gather)
  4. Climax (the moment you claim your future)
  5. Resolution (the new normal you live into)

Mapping your life to this arc shows where you feel stuck, where you need new resources, and where you can accelerate toward your envisioned ending.

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Diagnostic Lens: Story Arc Diagnostic

This lens evaluates your personal narrative’s structure. It helps you pinpoint which act of your story feels underwritten... perhaps your origin feels unclear, or the climax lacks agency. By diagnosing the shape of your story, you uncover where to add scenes, deepen character, or tighten the plot so that the story you live truly inspires you.

A Story of Narrative Reconstruction

After years feeling like “just another cog” at work, Marcus charted his life’s story arc. He realised his origin act... growing up leading small community projects... held the key to his sense of agency. He reframed his inciting incident from “company layoff” to “opportunity to build something meaningful.” In his rising action, he committed to one pro-bono project per quarter. That structured shift carried him through the climax: founding his own social enterprise, which now defines his resolution act.

A Mini-Workshop: Story Arc Sketch

Use this in your next planning session or journal time:

  1. Origin – Write two sentences about where you started and what shaped you.
  2. Inciting Incident – Name the event or realisation that launched your journey.
  3. Rising Action – List three skills you’ve developed or challenges you’ve overcome.
  4. Climax – Describe the moment you’ll know you’ve arrived at your goal.
  5. Resolution – Imagine and write your new normal, the life you’ll live after that moment.

Once sketched, read your arc aloud. Notice any gaps or weak transitions to refine next time.

Collaborative Reflection: Story Share Session

Partner with a peer and swap your story arcs. For each section, ask clarifying questions (“What exactly shifted for you at that incident?”) and suggest one element to deepen (a missing skill, unspoken value, or emotional beat). Then replay a shortened version, integrating the feedback to see how the story strengthens.

Next Steps

Further Reading

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