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10 Stories Great Leaders Tell
Good leaders ask, “How do I tell better stories?” Great leaders ask, “What stories do I need to tell?” Will you be a more effective leader if your stories are well-crafted and delivered? Of course. And I spend most of
A 6-Minute Guide to Storytelling with Data: The “How We Got Here” Method
Can you tell stories with data like you can with words? Absolutely! In the video above, I'll show you one of my two favorite methods for doing that. Have a look, and then try it out yourself. If you'd rather read, see
Lead With A Story
How NOT to Tell Your Company’s Founding Story
Most company founding stories are boring. And that’s a shame. Because nobody ever quit their job and risked everything to start a new business for a boring reason. But if you read the company website for most companies, their founding stories sound like this: "Our founder started the company in 1936 in her basement with $500 and two employees. Today we have over twenty thousand employees, offices all over the world, and last year made the Fortune 500 list for the first time...” Yawn. I [read more]
Behind the Pages of The 10 Stories Great Leaders Tell
I got a surprising email in April of last year. It was from a woman named Meg Gibbons at a publishing company called Sourcebooks. She basically said she liked my work, and that she'd be interested in publishing one of my next books. But she said, "Here's the deal. I only work on books designed to be read in one hour." Basically, books for the busy executive who gets on a plane and wants to learn something important before the plane lands. I guess I hadn't been paying attention, but there's a [read more]
Parenting with a Story
What to Know Before They Go (to College)
My guest today is Dr. Pamela Ellis. She conducts research into the areas of high school of college transition, parent engagement, African-American males in education, and college completion. As part of that, she's visited more than four hundred colleges and universities internationally to understand their cultures and their academic and social opportunities available to students. That's allowed her to help hundreds of young people successfully navigate the college-admissions process, as well [read more]
Kids, Sex, and Screens: Upping Your Parenting Game
If you're curious whether you should stalk your kids online (spoiler: you should, at least for a while), this is the woman to ask. My guest this week is Dr. Jillian Roberts. She's a child psychologist, a professor, and the associate dean at the University of Victoria. And she's also the author of the new book, Kids, Sex, and Screens: Raising Strong, Resilient Children in the Sexualized Digital Age. I asked Dr. Roberts to explain the problem she's trying to solve with this book. She explained [read more]
Sell With A Story
Ethical Persuasion vs. Manipulation
What's the difference between ethical persuasion and manipulation? That was the primary topic of my conversation this week with Brian Ahearn. And it's an important difference that any salesperson, marketer, or leader (all of whom influence people for a living) needs to be keenly aware of so they can stay on the right side of that divide. Brian is a keynote speaker, trainer, and consultant who specializes in applying the science of influence and persuasion in everyday situations. He is one of [read more]
Salespeople: Arm Your Sponsor with a Story, Not Just a Pitch
{#21 in a series of the 25 Most Useful Sales Stories, from Sell with a Story} Every salesperson worth their salt does their best to get in front of the ultimate decision-maker. But we all know that’s not always possible. Usually, that’s because the decision is being made too far up the hierarchy for the salesperson to get access (like by the president or CEO or even the Board of Directors). When that's the case, good salespeople find an internal sponsor to champion their cause. Then they [read more]
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