* Name: Jim Pfitzer
Job: Storyteller
Location: Chattanooga and beyond (the coast of Oregon to Long Island, N.Y., and parts in between)
Best part of the job: “There’s so many good things about my job. I love the way I’m able to connect with people. I make a lot of deep connections with people. I’ve found that what deeply moves people in the stories doesn’t tend to be the unusual or the outrageous or the unbelievable. The things that touch people and move people are the very familiar things. I tell mostly personal stories. We all experience basically the same things.”
“So whether I tell a story about my relationship with my father or about an encounter I had with a black bear in the woods … no, not everybody’s encountered a black bear, but everyone has been in those situations where they’re afraid. Most people have had experiences with their parents. I take people to places in their own lives. My stories wouldn’t touch people if they didn’t remind them of their own lives.”