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The Experts Who Never Applied
Every Tuesday, The Productive Disruptive delivers storytelling science, message makeovers, cultural commentary, and a little rebellious hope for anyone still stubborn enough to believe communication can change the world.
Dorian Johnson
February 17, 2026
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I’ve been noticing something lately in my work.
It keeps showing up in different places, with different people, in different contexts. But there’s a throughline I clocked.
Some of the people doing important health-related work in their communities do it as an extension of themselves.
It’s just work they’re called to do, and they step into it.
It shows up in schools. In churches. In barbershops. In everyday spaces that might not get framed as “health spaces,” even though so much health gets shaped there.
A teacher who keeps snacks in their desk because they’ve learned over time which students come in hungry (unfortunately, teachers often pay for it themselves).
They’re responding to food insecurity or instability at home.
A church member who notices that someone has stopped showing up and starts checking in.
Pulling people back into community.
Hosting health-focused events after services.
Turning fellowship into something that actually buffers against isolation through a shared faith.
A barber who uses the shop as more than a place to get a cut.
Who runs back-to-school drives.
Connects kids to summer jobs.
Raises money when a family is struggling.
That shop becomes infrastructure. A place where resources move. Where norms get shaped. Where people feel seen.
None of these people applied to be “public health workers.”
They’re just doing what feels necessary and responding to what’s in front of them.
And the more I’ve paid attention to this, the more I’ve realized something.
This is a powerful archetype for storytelling.
The Unclaimed Expert.
People with real, hard-earned knowledge who may not have been taught to name it.
When you center people like this in your stories, a few things shift.
Especially compared to stories that keep orbiting the same kinds of characters.
The systems become clearer.
Food insecurity isn’t abstract when you’re looking at a teacher buying snacks.
Isolation isn’t theoretical when you’re watching someone get pulled back into community.
That’s what stories can do. They turn systems into faces.
🧠 Story Science Side Note: the more abstract something feels, the less emotionally real it is.
Psychologists call this Construal Level Theory.
“Food insecurity” may feel distant to some.
“Ms. Johnson buying snacks for students who might not know the next time they’ll eat” feels easier to grasp.
📝 Message Makeover:
Before:
“I’m just helping.”
After:
“I’m responding to a gap.”
All of the examples earlier are about more than kindness.
They’re responses to gaps in the system.
And when enough people do that, it could ripple.
🛠️ The PHacilitator’s Corner:
Think about your community.
Who holds things together?
Who’s doing the quiet work?
How do they differ from the other expert stories we usually hear?
Perpetually tired.