Turning Lessons Into a Parable

JMS ep 368 Jeff West

“It’s not that a lesson is different. It’s that the story that makes it memorable.”

Years ago, I worked as a park ranger. Every day brought people with different needs. There were lost hikers, noisy campers, curious kids with more questions than I could answer. No matter how often I rattled off rules, no one remembered. But when I shared a story about the hiker who ignored the map and ended up walking in circles, suddenly the lesson carried weight. People remembered. They applied it.

That’s the power of parable. Instead of teaching through a lecture, you are showing through a story. The emotions such as tension, humor, and surprise are what makes us lean in. And when we lean in, we learn.

Writers like Jeff West are great at this. He is able to turn timeless lessons into unforgettable parables. For example, financial principles are pretty dry to most people. However, Jeff weaves them into a bank robbery. You wouldn’t expect money lessons to come from such a tense scene. But that’s the point. When we least expect it, we pay the most attention.

Jeff recommends starting with the lessons you want people to learn, then wrap them in a story that feels real. Make the characters human. Give them flaws. Let them struggle. When they live the lesson, the reader learns it too.

The stories we share don’t have to be dramatic. They just have to be true and relatable. Next time you want someone to remember a lesson, whether it’s your kids, your team, or even yourself, ask, “What story can I tell that will make this live on?”

That question might change how you lead, teach, and connect.