A myth is not a lie. A myth is a universal way to transcend history through symbolism and story telling. Mythology is the immutable "truth", that every civilization, religion and political scientist uses as the lowest common denominator to provide the most impact to its audience. Mythology is also a great business sales tool.

One of the most widely accepted mythology is birth, adolescence, enlightenment and death. As in all of the great mythologies - from the Egyptian to the Greek to the Roman to the present day - birth is a symbol of promised future change, adolescence is a symbol of promised matured change, enlightenment is a symbol of promised change that is codified and death provides the soil for new change.

Business changes through the same mythology. Businesses are started to change established order. Businesses reach a level of maturity where the change becomes adopted. Businesses reach a level of enlightenment where the change is codified. And they finally end so that new change can begin.

In business, you can have all of the Powerpoints-By-Death you want, but only the recognition of the "true" mythology and the use of story telling makes a significant impact. Bullet points and words don't work as well as symbols and visualization.

A better way is for business to sell "birth", through a "day in the life" of something new vs. something that has effectively died. IBM, becomes yesterday's Microsoft which becomes today's Apple with a promised death for all in the future.

It is this cycle of life, that has been passed down through ancient cultures to today, that speaks to us as consumers. It is only people that understand this "true mythology" that can take ideas and turn them into meaningful change. Ghandi and MLK understood this. Microsoft, Apple and Google have understood this.

Your business must understand this to make meaningful change. And unless you are prepared to accept the death of status quo, and have not locked your business into the great harness of time's arrow, there can be no chance for birth or re-birth.

- John Jazwiec