Member-only story
Enhance Your Posts with Symbolic Photos
Develop an eye for the metaphor, and you’re sorted
The guy in the photo is my friend Graeme. He was painting the exterior of a local restaurant, and I went in to ‘foot the ladder’, that task being to prevent the bottom of the ladder sliding out due to the weight of the person at the top. It’s a fairly tedious job, so I entertained myself by taking snapshots, including the one above.
Graeme knew nothing of the photo until I posted it on his Facebook page as a birthday card several years later. Underneath the greeting, the legend ran I always knew you’d make it to the top. This story demonstrates that the ladder is an ideal metaphor for achievement; reaching the top; getting there. Here are three examples of how that same photo could be used to enhance articles.
- You want to report on a success after a hard slog: It was a tough climb, but I got there.
- Your earnings on here remain low, while you read of others raking it in; Why am I stuck on the bottom rung while others are climbing high?
- You feel disgruntlement over assurances that didn’t live up to what was promised: When they told me I was going up in the world…
Like most people, I have a camera in my pocket at all times, and I have developed a mindset to be on the lookout for photo opportunities…
