Being the Change
How one writer rejected the system and built something new
“Be the change that you wish to see in the world,” preached Mahatma Gandhi. Powerful words indeed, but apart from stitching such a sentiment on a pillow or posting it on Facebook against a backdrop of a sunlit sky, how does one attack such a feat? In a world of seemingly endless pressure where the stakes seem so high, how can one person effectively model the change they seek? I broached the subject with Ela Crain recently as we talked about how to enact effective leadership, and she shared a personal story that I found to be a prime example of how one person, with a little courage and conviction, can change the world for the better.
Ela is a coach, entrepreneur, author and visionary. Years ago, just as her writing career was beginning to take off, Ela’s publisher suggested that she begin to work on some short stories, which could serve as an effective marketing tool for a subsequent book. But when she started searching for short story competitions, she was shocked at what she found: “Each competition had so many rules, down to the tiniest details: use Times New Roman, font-size must be 12, the theme is ‘joy,’ the story must be 5,000, use double-spacing. I felt lost; why did it have to be so complicated?’ Not only that, almost every competition charged a submission fee, which meant, I would write a story that conformed to their standards, and pay on top. It was like getting a taxi to the airport and expecting the driver to pay you.”
Throughout her career, Ela, emboldened by the conviction that true leaders are visionaries and changemakers, has been a trailblazer in fields as disparate as sociology, media, and literature. She’s not one to conform for the sake of conforming, and his, unsurprisingly, was no exception.
“Why is it that as an artist or a writer, we are expected to do the work and pay on top?” Ela kept asking herself. “If I’m doing the work, I want to get paid. And I refused to fight the current system. Creating a new and more fair environment seemed easier to me. As a famous saying goes:
‘We cannot direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails.’”
Instead of conforming to the status quo and playing by the rules of the short-story-competition world, Ela had an idea: “I wanted to start a short story competition where anyone could enter in any genre they like, use any font they wanted. It was also free to submit and open to anyone.”
The only requirements were that the stories should integrate three predefined keywords and should be limited to 500 words, a condition decided upon by Ela and her two volunteer friends in order to manage the volume. Together, the three volunteers would vote on the stories, and anyone who had two votes would be shortlisted. All shortlisted stories were then published on the website for the community to vote on. The winner received 100 dollars, a cost that Ela fronted herself. Thus, Mash Stories was born.
“My idea was to have a hobby on the side. I wanted to encourage others as a writer, and do something against the system, which I found unfair. And what happened was that in three years we ended up with 69 volunteers and thousands of breathtaking stories. We had a university professor from California and a British literary agent living on a Greek island as judges. We had amazing voice artists reading stories for us for free, just because they believed in the project. I was still paying 100 dollars to the winner from my pocket at that point, but it was standing against the current. We were making a statement, saying ‘You guys are wrong. We’re not going to join your club; we’re going to do the right thing.’
“In the end we published and promoted over 2,200 writers. Not only that, we were selected among the Top 50 Websites in the world by Grey Goose Vodka. Being listed before massive projects like NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory was sheer joy. We also took home the second place in the 2015 Webby awards in the social media category. We were competing against 13,000 platforms, fighting against giants in the industry, With no funding, no investment.
“It was a great example of leading by example: You just go and be the change you want to see in the world. I wanted to see writers get treated fairly, so I put my time and resources to do it.”
These days, you can still visit Mash Stories online and browse their fantastic archive of stories, blog posts, and podcasts; but Ela has begun to focus on a new passion: public speaking and coaching. Through workshops on themes as disparate as perfectionism, leadership, and self-discovery, Ela draws on her experience as a change-maker and trailblazer to guide others toward realizing their true potential. However, the vision remains the same: living the change you want to see in the world.
“I live a very content life. I’m tremendously lucky, and being happy is my way of appreciating my life,” says Ela. “I could’ve never imagined being here when I was a little girl. So now I want to inspire others to live their dreams. Through my workshops, I share my experiences, all the knowledge I gained through my diverse education, and the wisdom I gathered through coaches and spiritual teachers over the years.
Leading by example is the basis of my coaching programmes. And I want to create a community of people who are ready to face their fears and live beyond their dreams, and I’m here to empower such individuals. So get in touch with me if you have any questions or comments about leading by example. I’d love to hear your story!”
If you are interested in learning how you can be the change you want to see in the world, contact Ela via Facebook. And check out Mash Stories to learn more about the project.
