Finding The Right Path
In this episode, I explain that the image of the Red Thread comes from a familiar story in Greek mythology that you may have heard of: the Minotaur and the Labyrinth.
From the myth of the Minotaur and the Labyrinth, we learn that fighting your battles isn’t necessarily the hard part, it’s really about finding the right path. The primary character in this story, Theseus, is sent into the maze to slay the Minotaur. Theseus snuck in two items to help him, a sword and a ball of red yarn. But, as I explain, it’s not his sword that ends up saving the day.
This story illustrates why the name Find the Red Thread describes exactly what the Red Thread does. The goal of the Red Thread is to help us figure out how to navigate the world around us, what monsters we slay, what swords we carry, and how we can follow the path we took to understand better ways to master change.
Resources
Transcript
The Red Thread comes from a little-known detail of a well-known Greek myth, The Minotaur and The Labyrinth. The Minotaur was a monster, half-man, half-bull. And it lived in the center of a maze, The Labyrinth. Every nine years the people of Athens would have to send their seven best boys and their seven best girls, as a sacrifice to the Minotaur. Otherwise, an evil king would come and destroy the city.
One year, one of the boys was named Theseus, and he was determined that he was going to kill the Minotaur. So he snuck a sword with him into the maze. But he realized that the Minotaur wasn’t the only monster he had to slay, the maze itself was a trial. And, by some accounts, that maze was pitch black. So, even if he could find his way to the Minotaur, and kill it with his sword, he would have to find his way back out again, in order to save his friends.
So he brought something else into the maze with him. He brought a ball of red thread. He unwound it on his way in so he could retrace it, follow his steps back out, after killing the Minotaur, which he did, and save his friends, which he did. Now I love the name the Red Thread because it describes in so many ways exactly what the Red Thread does. It helps us figure out how is it that we navigate the world around us? What are the monsters that we slay? What are the swords that we carry? And importantly, how can we follow that path right back out again so that we can understand better how not just to manage the change that’s around every corner, but how to master it.
So that’s where the Red Thread comes from. What’s yours?
Claire McManus says
My red thread is “the breath”–that tool I always carry with me but sometimes in the thick of the moment forget to reach for. But when I do it’s a pretty great savior. Mindful Breathing.
Tamsen Webster says
That’s such a powerful tool, too, Claire. You have so many tools you bring to bear in your work — it’s fascinating to think about what and how your early focus on animals and healing brought you to where you are now.
Steve Olenski says
Very thought provoking post, Tamsen. It definitely got me thinking about my own personal Red Threads – plural for a reason for I believe we all have AND need more than one Red Thread.
Now that may be just me who thinks this way but in my life and experience, one Red Thread does not fit all. Contexts change all the time. And with those contextual changes comes differing challenges and monsters to slay and as such, the need for a new Red Thread each time.
Of course on the flip side I am quite sure I have gone into a Labyrinth sans Red Thread which is a whole other topic unto itself 🙂
Tamsen Webster says
Thanks, Steve! And I totally agree with you — we have multiple Red Threads (which is why I don’t like the focus on “finding your [singular] passion/purpose” out there).
I was thinking of having that be a topic for a future show — now I’ll make sure of it!
Steve Olenski says
My pleasure… will be looking for the future show for sure
Kassie says
As a practicing author, I have always followed an instinctive logic it felt natural to center on the subject -> develop with
ideas/answers -put it on paper. Yet, nothing can save me
when I was writing concerning thermodynamics, for instance, which,
as you can guess, is not my principal area of experience.
Anyway, I took some Excellent tips from your writing style,
thanks to that:slightly_smiling_face:
Tamsen Webster says
Excellent! So glad it was useful.