THE ONE ABOUT THEMING

One of my father’s most endearing qualities was his ability to label experiences by picking on a distinctive detail. Whether it was a hotel, a dish, a movie, or a road trip, he would find a specific feature to skillfully brand the related experience, allowing it to be relived time and time again with fondness.

This habit is similar to the approach used by the TV series ‘Friends’ to name episodes. Each title is?linked to a central topic or scene—like ‘The One with the Monkey’ or ‘The One with the Sonogram at the End.’ The creators used this practice to anchor the episodes’ stories and make them easily recallable through a lasting association.

Could entitling earnings presentations help control narratives and convey messages more impactfully? Imagine: ‘The One with the New Product Launch’ or ‘The One with the Market Share Surge.’

Marking experiences or performances to make them memorable belongs to a broad set of tactics that includes a bridge, as in songs, or well-timed zingers. But the ultimate ‘marking’ technique in screenwriting, and, more generally, storytelling, is to theme a story.

The title of a story is not its theme. In fact, the theme is rarely explicitly stated. Instead, it transcends a story to only reveal itself after it is told. Once the audience absorbs and identifies it, it becomes unforgettable.

Thematic concepts are designed to appeal to the human psyche. The theme of ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ (1994) would be ‘No matter how bad your situation is, how you react to it is up to you.’ For ‘The Godfather’ (1972), the theme is ‘you need to choose between loyalty and personal ambition.’

Arthur Schopenhauer, the philosopher who essentially described life as a damage-limitation exercise, stated that, like life itself, ‘every epic and dramatic poem can only represent a struggle, an effort, a fight for happiness; never enduring and complete?happiness?itself.’

Themes rely on age-old ideas such as sacrifice, survival, perseverance, coming of age, and conflicts such as?reason vs. faith, humans vs. technology, or, more classically, good vs. evil – all of which are arguably immediately relevant to corporate equity stories.

Many might dismiss a theatrical approach to investor or public relations, arguing that it distracts from factual messages. In addition, there may be concerns about acknowledging obstacles and struggles. I challenge that viewpoint and ask: which investor (capital market) days are remembered more than a few days after they occur? Many such events have a strikingly short shelf life despite engulfing vast corporate resources.

Themes without performance are short-lived. Performances without themes are forgotten.

Themes are equally relevant to individuals as they shape their lives. That of my father revolved around the tension between his modest origins and brilliant intellect. His deep understanding of human nature, combined with his talent for marking moments, make him an unforgettable character who remains omnipresent to this day.

https://www.theunchainedbanker.com/post/the-one-about-theming

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