Storytelling and Leadership

Virgin’s Richard Branson, Zappos’ Tony Hsieh, and Tesla’s Elon Musk, apart from their obvious success, all share another thing in common. Each utilizes storytelling to maximize their effectiveness as leaders. Many of the most influential leaders of our and all time, including arguably the most influential leader in history, used storytelling whenever they had a particularly important point to make.

Encouraged by these influences, a father who was a known storyteller and a Nigerian priest who used stories to bridge a language barrier, author, and successful businessperson, Phillip Kane used stories each Friday throughout his career to help business associates relate to key issues facing the organizations he had the privilege to lead. These weekly letters had less to do with what was going on in the business than how people thought about what was going on in the business.

By helping shift and align his teams’ point of view, Kane and the teams he led were able to accomplish more and win more often. All because of the stories he told. Many of them are assembled here in one place for the first time. Organized around key themes like encouragement, trust, and gratitude, Kane also provides additional insights for existing or aspiring leaders looking for a different, better way to appeal to those who should be following them.

Featured twice in Kouzes’ & Posner’s, The Leadership Challenge (Wiley), first-time author, Phillip Kane’s storytelling technique and the leadership lessons he imparts are key for any leader seeking to create winning teams built on a fundamental foundation of caring and service to others.