Strategic Storytelling - A Leadership Development Tool
October 30, 2007
As the waiters cleared the dessert plates from the banquet tables, Joanne, the VP of Sales, stepped to the podium and began the annual meeting. The CEO, Jeff Carlson, could feel the heat building under his collar. He wiped his sweaty palms on the linen napkin and took another sip of water to wet his cottonmouth lips.
Joanne welcomed everyone with charm and candor. She got a few laughs with a short story about the Region Three delivery truck that was impounded for parking illegally. Then came the moment when she introduced Jeff.
As he moved toward the podium, he felt time stand still. The room was dark except for the spotlight, which felt to Jeff like a heat lamp beaming on his face. He glanced down at his notes, made a funny comment about the driver of the truck, and then, with hands shaking almost uncontrollably, launched into his speech.
Afterward, as his mental acuity returned to normal, he asked his wife how he did. He really didn’t know. It was as if he wasn’t there during the speech, at least not as the confident and secure CEO that he knew himself to be.
Jeff knew instinctively that something was missing when he spoke in front of a group. After observing the confidence and poise of the guest speaker that followed him, he finally put a name to it: his power. In every other aspect of his life, he was a confident and powerful man. But when he stepped in front of a room full of people to speak, he lost connection to that power.
Does that happen to you? Do you feel the same level of confidence and power while giving a speech as you do while running your company or department? If not, it’s time to learn an important skill that will make sure you retain your power on the platform: strategic storytelling.
Storytelling is a powerful leadership tool. It puts you in touch with your authentic power so you can motivate and inspire your audience. Professional speakers have learned how to turn storytelling into an art form. They know they can both connect with their audience and deliver vital messages using the power of storytelling.
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Time Is Money – Budget It Carefully
October 26, 2007
by Napoleon Hill
All of us have a single denominator in our fight for success. All of us have an equal amount of time in which to achieve it. Simple rules of health demand that eight hours of every day be spent in sleep. Eight hours more taken up in earning at least the bare necessities of life. That leaves us eight hours more of free time that can be used for whatever purpose we desire.
This is the period you can use to achieve success. Since you work so hard eight hours for the boss, why not put in a few hours more working for yourself instead of spending it idly? Benjamin Franklin once said, “Show me what a man does with his free time and I will tell you accurately whether he will be a success or failure in life.”
The man or woman who doesn’t need to hold down a regular job is doubly blessed for they have twice as much time to devote to their own ends.
Richard Monot found himself in that position. For more than a year, he spent his days in idleness and found—as so many have—that it really isn’t fun to loaf continually. Being a lover of flowers, he bought a tract of land and began growing peonies. His gardens soon became a showplace. More important, they began making more money for him than he’d ever been able to earn in his regular work hour labors.
You should constantly try to “go the extra mile” during the period of the day the boss pays for your service. This brings promotions and pay raises. But it’s even more important that you go the extra mile for yourself during your free time. How are you spending these hours now? Do you fritter them away or do you use them to achieve success?
First, of course, you must decide upon a definite goal in life and lay out a plan for achieving it. Then use your free time to put your plan into action. Remember, whenever you waste time, you are wasting your life.”
Source: Success Unlimited. August 1963. Page 31.
How Not to Talk to Your Kids
October 22, 2007
The inverse power of praise.
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By Po Bronson
What do we make of a boy like Thomas? Thomas (his middle name) is a fifth-grader at the highly competitive P.S. 334, the Anderson School on West 84th. Slim as they get, Thomas recently had his long sandy-blond hair cut short to look like the new James Bond (he took a photo of Daniel Craig to the barber). Unlike Bond, he prefers a uniform of cargo pants and a T-shirt emblazoned with a photo of one of his heroes: Frank Zappa. Thomas hangs out with five friends from the Anderson School. They are “the smart kids.” Thomas’s one of them, and he likes belonging.
Since Thomas could walk, he has heard constantly that he’s smart. Not just from his parents but from any adult who has come in contact with this precocious child. When he applied to Anderson for kindergarten, his intelligence was statistically confirmed. The school is reserved for the top one percent of all applicants, and an IQ test is required. Thomas didn’t just score in the top one percent. He scored in the top one percent of the top one percent.
But as Thomas has progressed through school, this self-awareness that he’s smart hasn’t always translated into fearless confidence when attacking his schoolwork. In fact, Thomas’s father noticed just the opposite. “Thomas didn’t want to try things he wouldn’t be successful at,” his father says. “Some things came very quickly to him, but when they didn’t, he gave up almost immediately, concluding, ‘I’m not good at this.’ ” With no more than a glance, Thomas was dividing the world into two—things he was naturally good at and things he wasn’t.
Big Hugs and Love!
October 21, 2007
If ever there was a video to show the power of gratitude, this video is it. You think this lion is all eating the lady’s face. Well, that is not the case. The lion was rescued by this person a couple years before, and this lion is soooo happy to see her. This will bring a smile to your day.
Originally found in Russian at Любвеобильный лев.
