A few months back, I had the pleasure of working alongside Dear World, a remarkable organization that uses photography and storytelling as a means of connecting people. I was fortunate enough to attend an atypical sales event and capture unique portraits of numerous outstanding individuals from Interface, a company that prides itself on being carbon-neutral.
What made this event stand out, you ask?
In an environment where attendees tend to be buttoned up, I had the privilege of observing people being vulnerable and genuine. Dear World took each of the hundreds of Interface employees on a personal journey, urging them to reflect on their most defining life story- a challenging exercise. They were then asked to participate in an activity that required them to use a Sharpie to create a Brain Tattoo, a few meaningful words summarizing their story, on a body part of their choice, before being sent my way for a portrait. My role was to take a photograph of everyone who stepped in front of my camera, highlighting their new tattoo, but most importantly: their unique story.
After taking each portrait, I engaged in conversation with each person, asking specific questions or simply prompting them to share more if they felt comfortable doing so. I was inspired and moved by the many interactions that took place in such a brief period. Within a short amount of time, I learned about their values, accomplishments, setbacks, aspirations, fears, motivations, initiatives, life mottos, and all the things that make us human. These experiences reminded me that we have more in common than we realize.
In corporate settings, it is easy to lose sight of the fact that every person we work or interact with is a human with a unique life story, different challenges, and wonderful attributes that we may not have access to unless we make an effort to create a connection, ask interesting questions, and dive a little deeper to find out who they genuinely are. The most important thing is to provide a safe space and an opportunity for others to share and for us to listen.
I thoroughly enjoyed my experience with the people of Interface, and I am delighted to share a few of the hundreds of portraits I captured that evening. Each photo takes me back to my interaction with each person and the details of their story. Photography is powerful that way, especially for visual people like me.
Dear World, thank you for reaching out to me to be a small part of your remarkable mission. Your work on creating communities and bringing people together through storytelling is outstanding.
To those of you who have made it this far, I encourage you to take a moment to reflect on life moments that have shaped you and select one word or phrase that would be your Brain Tattoo.
