Lead with a Story Podcast
125 episodes - English - Latest episode: almost 3 years ago - ★★★★★ - 26 ratingsLessons in leadership, one story at a time – Based on interviews with 100 executives and leaders at dozens of successful companies around the world as they learned their most important leadership lessons – sometimes the hard way. Featuring stories from executives at Procter & Gamble, Dollar General, Hewlett Packard, Kellogg’s, Dun & Bradstreet, Saatchi & Saatchi, Verizon, and many more. Each episode brings you an important lesson through a single compelling story. 21 Leadership Challenges from Lead with a Story: vision, commitment, change, recommendations, customer service, culture, values, collaboration, diversity, policy, inspiration, courage, passion for work, teach lessons, coaching & feedback, problem solving, understand the customer, delegate, creativity, sales, and earn respect.
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Episodes
10 Tips to Succeed in Middle Management
May 18, 2021 11:15 - 21 minutes - 20.5 MBTools for influencing up, down, and across the organization from Scott Mautz, author of Leading from the Middle The post 10 Tips to Succeed in Middle Management appeared first on Paul Smith.
3 Simple Tools for the Self-Aware Leader
April 14, 2021 01:34 - 29 minutes - 27.7 MBCoaching experts Phil Renshaw and Jenny Robinson join me to share 3 tools to help develop better self-awareness in you and your people The post 3 Simple Tools for the Self-Aware Leader appeared first on Paul Smith.
The Spare Room
April 12, 2021 12:35 - 26 minutes - 24.6 MB"Where are you going to sleep tonight?" Those words began Emily Chang's 25-year journey of generosity, offering a spare room to people when they needed it the most. The post The Spare Room appeared first on Paul Smith.
Transparency vs. Clarity: One is Necessary for Good Leadership, One is Not
April 09, 2021 01:44 - 24 minutes - 22.7 MBCommunications expert Gary Ross joins me this week to explain the difference between transparency and clarity and why one is critical for good leadership and the other is not. The post Transparency vs. Clarity: One is Necessary for Good Leadership, One is Not appeared first on Paul Smith.
What Drug Addiction Taught Me About Being a Better Leader
January 05, 2021 23:06 - 39 minutes - 36.8 MBHow Michael Brody-Waite went from a drug addict on the street to CEO and what you can learn about leadership from his journey. The post What Drug Addiction Taught Me About Being a Better Leader appeared first on Paul Smith.
Learning from Leaders
August 27, 2020 14:03 - 7 minutes - 7.48 MBHumor Engineer, Drew Tarvin, starts new podcast with former Procter & Gamble executives called Learning from Leaders, open to public. The post Learning from Leaders appeared first on Paul Smith.
The 10-hour Plan to Publish a Bestseller
July 27, 2020 22:18 - 37 minutes - 34.8 MB“Hey Paul, I’m thinking about writing a book. Can we talk? I’d love to get some advice.” I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gotten that email since my first book came out eight years ago. I usually end up spending an hour explaining everything I’ve learned about the subject. And I’m always happy to do so. The post The 10-hour Plan to Publish a Bestseller appeared first on Paul Smith.
From Frustration to Founder: Building a Business That Should Have Been There Already
June 12, 2020 21:51 - 25 minutes - 24.2 MBJason Hartman has been earned a small fortune in real estate across 11 states and 17 cities. His office boasts pictures of him with Richard Branson, Jerry Seinfeld, Steve Forbes, Tony Robbins, and Brittany Spears, among others. But he didn’t start his most profitable business until he sold his real estate company and created a … The post From Frustration to Founder: Building a Business That Should Have Been There Already appeared first on Paul Smith.
Monkeying around with corporate policy 2
April 23, 2020 16:31 - 8 minutes - 8.53 MBIMAGINE CONDUCTING this experiment. Put five monkeys in a cage with a bunch of bananas hanging from the ceiling. Underneath the bananas, place a ladder just tall enough to reach them. The post Monkeying around with corporate policy 2 appeared first on Paul Smith.
How COVID-19 is Changing the Way We Work and How You Can Adapt
April 01, 2020 21:09 - 27 minutes - 25.8 MBI normally don’t pull a bait-and-switch on my podcast guests. But this week I did. I was scheduled to interview Jacob Morgan about his new book The Future Leader: 9 Skills and Mindsets to Succeed in the Next Decade. But Jacob is a futurist, and specifically an expert on the future of work — he [read more] The post How COVID-19 is Changing the Way We Work and How You Can Adapt appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
9 Mistakes That Can Ruin Your Future
February 05, 2020 21:08 - 25 minutes - 24.3 MBConfession: I was a little disappointed when I started reading this book and realized it was fiction. I thought I was reading a serious, non-fiction business book. But then I couldn’t put it down. And by the time I was done, it was my favorite business book I’ve read in the last year. That was … The post 9 Mistakes That Can Ruin Your Future appeared first on Paul Smith.
A Leader’s Greatest Gift: Struggle
December 11, 2019 15:20 - 25 minutes - 24.1 MBIt wasn't until Bobby Herrera was eighteen, in the Army and three weeks into boot camp, polishing his boots by flashlight at 11:30 p.m., that he began to re-evaluate the value of struggle in making him the leader he is today as the CEO of the Populus Group, one of the fastest-growing HR service companies in the U.S. The post A Leader’s Greatest Gift: Struggle appeared first on Paul Smith | Business Storytelling Coach.
What I Learned From Being Steve Jobs’ Executive Coach
October 31, 2019 02:15 - 26 minutes - 25.3 MBJohn Mattone is one of the world’s top executive coaches, along side other legendary names like Tony Robbins, or Marshall Goldsmith, or John Maxwell. He's coached some of the most admired CEOs in the world including Steve Jobs and former Pepsi CEO Roger Enrico. He's the author of nine books The post What I Learned From Being Steve Jobs’ Executive Coach appeared first on Paul Smith | Business Storytelling Coach.
Humor at Work: What Works, What Doesn’t, and What Will Get You Fired
October 03, 2019 11:59 - 24 minutes - 22.7 MB"People get more done when they enjoy their work. So, humor in the workplace isn't about making work funny, or being the funniest person in the office. It's about making work fun, and getting better results." The post Humor at Work: What Works, What Doesn’t, and What Will Get You Fired appeared first on Paul Smith | Business Storytelling Coach.
How NOT to Tell Your Company’s Founding Story
September 10, 2019 02:27 - 4 minutes - 4.72 MBMost 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 The post How NOT to Tell Your Company’s Founding Story appeared first on Paul Smith | Business Storytelling Coach.
Behind the Pages of The 10 Stories Great Leaders Tell
August 15, 2019 14:40 - 4 minutes - 5.22 MBI got a surprising email in April of last year. It was from a woman named Meg Gibbons at a publishing company called Sourcebooks. The post Behind the Pages of The 10 Stories Great Leaders Tell appeared first on Paul Smith | Business Storytelling Coach.
Lessons from Getting Locked Out of Your Own Company
August 09, 2019 14:34 - 29 minutes - 27.2 MBJoshua Spodek has five Ivy League degrees, including a Ph.D. in physics and an MBA from Columbia, is a bestselling author, and a professor at NYU. The post Lessons from Getting Locked Out of Your Own Company appeared first on Paul Smith | Business Storytelling Coach.
4 Ways to Work Remotely Without Working from Home
July 09, 2019 01:43 - 23 minutes - 22.3 MBWhen you're trying to help your employees be more innovative, getting them to leave their office and do their work somewhere else might not be the first idea that comes to mind. The post 4 Ways to Work Remotely Without Working from Home appeared first on Paul Smith | Business Storytelling Coach.
Lessons from Losing a $2.25 Billion Company
May 24, 2019 15:16 - 25 minutes - 23.9 MBI’ve interviewed a number of people who’ve run multi-billion dollar companies. But this might be the first time I’ve interviewed someone who’s LOST a multi-billion dollar business. At the age of 26, and fresh out of Harvard Business School, Warwick Fairfax made a successful play to privatize one of the largest public media conglomerates in … The post Lessons from Losing a $2.25 Billion Company appeared first on Paul Smith | Business Storytelling Coach.
The Five Voices in Your Company and How to Lead Them
May 10, 2019 19:49 - 32 minutes - 30.7 MBIf you’ve ever tried to use Myers Briggs in your organization, you know the problem with it. It’s just too complicated. Most people can’t remember which of the 16 personality types they are, or what difference it would make even if they could. My guest this week has a solution for that. Steve Cockrum is [read more] The post The Five Voices in Your Company and How to Lead Them appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
What Are Your Leadership Blind Spots?
April 29, 2019 18:28 - 17 minutes - 16.4 MBThis week I had a chance to talk to Rich Berens, the CEO and Chief Client Fanatic of Root Inc. (seriously, the best job title I’ve ever heard), and a noted speaker on the issues of strategy and change. Rich has a new book out called What Are Your Blind Spots? Conquering the 5 Misconceptions [read more] The post What Are Your Leadership Blind Spots? appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Leaders Have No Rules
April 24, 2019 15:00 - 20 minutes - 19.4 MBThis week I got the chance to chat with Kevin Kruse, the founder and CEO of LEADx, a company that offers a leadership development platform powered by artificial intelligence. He’s a New York Times bestselling author, host of the LEADx podcast, and he has a new book just out called Great Leaders Have No Rules, that we spent [read more] The post Leaders Have No Rules appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
How to give your leaders a year’s worth of decision-making experience in a single day, risk-free
April 02, 2019 12:00 - 21 minutes - 20.6 MBMost leadership development is leadership training — you go to a class, listen to the teacher, take some notes, do a few exercises, and then you’re done. And there’s nothing wrong with that. It can work. The problem is that I think we all know that most leadership skill is learned on the job from the [read more] The post How to give your leaders a year’s worth of decision-making experience in a single day, risk-free appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Three Questions Every Leader Needs to Ask Themselves
February 27, 2019 02:57 - 14 minutes - 14.2 MBMy guest this week is executive coach, Kim Ades. She shared a memorable story about a client of hers who came to her after he’d been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. The advice she gave him will serve all of us well, so I encourage you to listen to the interview above. At the end, [read more] The post Three Questions Every Leader Needs to Ask Themselves appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Employee to Entrepreneur
February 05, 2019 16:34 - 19 minutes - 18.6 MBHave you ever considered quitting your corporate job and starting your own business? Most of us have thought about it a little. But not as much as Steve Glaveski has. Steve’s the CEO and Co-founder of an innovation accelerator in Melbourne, Australia, and the author of a new book called Employee to Entrepreneur: How to [read more] The post Employee to Entrepreneur appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
My 6 Favorite Leadership Metaphors and 2 Methods to Create Your Own
December 05, 2018 19:12 - 15 minutes - 15.1 MBWhen my then son Matthew came home from his first day of fifth grade, he announced, “I’m going to learn to play the euphonium!” I said, “That’s great!” Then I sheepishly added, “Uh, what’s a euphonium?” In response, he just matter-of-factly said, “It’s like a small tuba that makes higher notes.” All I had left [read more] The post My 6 Favorite Leadership Metaphors and 2 Methods to Create Your Own appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Long-Term Strategic Planning Doesn’t Have to Be Boring
November 08, 2018 09:36 - 5 minutes - 5.74 MBSometimes a long-term vision is so lofty or so aggressive it comes across as an unachievable dream, instead of a realistic vision. If that’s the case with your vision, congratulations on having such a worthy idea! But if people don’t believe your vision will ever happen, they won’t be motivated to help you deliver it. [read more] The post Long-Term Strategic Planning Doesn’t Have to Be Boring appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Un-Stuffing the Stuffed Shirts
September 10, 2018 21:53 - 7 minutes - 7.17 MBIt’s lonely at the top. Or, so I’ve heard. And the reason is that senior executives are often viewed as unapproachable and impersonal. And in a military setting where officers have to send troops into deadly combat, that irreproachable stature is probably necessary. But in a business environment, it can do more harm than good. [read more] The post Un-Stuffing the Stuffed Shirts appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
You’re a Leader, Not a Comedian — You Can’t Get Away With That
August 16, 2018 04:50 - 16 minutes - 16 MBIt’s okay to be funny in the office. In fact, I think a sense of humor is critical to success in life and work. But at work, you’re a leader, not a comedian. You don’t have the same latitude as a stand-up comic on stage. And to confuse the two can be costly. To sort through the [read more] The post You’re a Leader, Not a Comedian — You Can’t Get Away With That appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
What To Do When the Unwritten Rules Rule
July 19, 2018 00:50 - 4 minutes - 4.79 MBEvery company has two different sets of rules: the official rules written in the policy manual, and the unspoken rules that everyone actually follows. A classic example is working hours. Company guidelines might say that quitting time is five o’clock. But if everyone else works till six and looks at you funny when you leave [read more] The post What To Do When the Unwritten Rules Rule appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
The Monthly Challenge: How to Solve Tough Problems and Build Collaborative Teams at the Same Time
June 19, 2018 13:33 - 5 minutes - 5.58 MBA friend of mine we’ll call Tom was a partner at a big consulting firm. One day, he showed up at one of his client’s offices and heard this: Sorry, Tom. We’re going to have to cancel your retainer—at least for a little while.” Now, to a consultant, those are about the worst words you [read more] The post The Monthly Challenge: How to Solve Tough Problems and Build Collaborative Teams at the Same Time appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Marketing 101: Lower-Tier Shouldn’t Always Mean Watered-Down
May 30, 2018 11:13 - 4 minutes - 4.83 MBIn the late 1990s, Titleist had a 75 percent market share of the golf ball market among the best golfers in the country (those with a handicap of 15 or less). But that only represented about 5 percent of golfers. It only had a 20 percent market share among the other 95 percent of golfers. [read more] The post Marketing 101: Lower-Tier Shouldn’t Always Mean Watered-Down appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Getting Personal at Work: Good Idea or Bad Idea?
May 09, 2018 19:03 - 27 minutes - 25.7 MBIs it a good idea to share your most personal struggles, thoughts, feelings, and stories at work? Tom Gartland thinks so. Tom is the former President of the Avis Budget Group, North America, and the author of a new book called Lead with Heart: Transform Your Business Through Personal Connection. Tom joined me on my podcast [read more] The post Getting Personal at Work: Good Idea or Bad Idea? appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
The 8 Types of Leaders in the White House (and Which One Are You?)
April 16, 2018 14:06 - 21 minutes - 20.3 MBAre certain leadership styles more prevalent than others in among Presidents of the United States? Which Presidents fit into which categories? What attributes of leadership do those types have? How can we find out which type of leader we are? And how can knowing that help us be a better leader? Those are the questions I [read more] The post The 8 Types of Leaders in the White House (and Which One Are You?) appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
In-Home Research: What a 6am Breakfast in Mexico Taught the CEO of the World’s Largest Cereal Maker
March 20, 2018 12:53 - 4 minutes - 3.83 MBIt’s 6 A.M. in Queretaro, Mexico, about 130 miles north of Mexico City. Most of the residents are just waking up. But one woman is already dressed and has visitors in her kitchen. No, this isn’t the time of day nor type of guests she usually entertains. These are senior executives from the Kellogg Company [read more] The post In-Home Research: What a 6am Breakfast in Mexico Taught the CEO of the World’s Largest Cereal Maker appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Don’t tell me to “think outside the box.” Give me a bigger box! Here’s how. . .
February 27, 2018 01:01 - 208 MB VideoPerhaps you’ve seen this puzzle. There are nine dots on a page, arranged in a 3-by-3 matrix. The challenge is to connect all nine dots with four straight lines (or fewer) without lifting your pencil or retracing your path. If you haven’t done it before, or it’s been a while, give it a try. Okay, [read more] The post Don’t tell me to “think outside the box.” Give me a bigger box! Here’s how. . . appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
3 Steps to Giving a Presentation You Don’t Believe In
January 16, 2018 18:36 - 4 minutes - 5.15 MBHere’s a situation that happens far more often than we’d like to admit. What do you do when you’re told to give a presentation that you just don’t believe in? It usually happens to a midlevel manager who’s told they have to deploy the latest corporate mandate. Now they’re stuck in between the executives issuing the [read more] The post 3 Steps to Giving a Presentation You Don’t Believe In appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Former Dun & Bradstreet CEO Sara Mathew on Leadership, Integrity, Courage, and Humility
December 26, 2017 12:00 - 26 minutes - 24.8 MBA leader’s skills, character, and values become clear only when they’re tested in challenging times. Those also happen to be when our skills and character are most likely to grow. I recently had a chat with Sara Mathew, former Chair and CEO of Dun & Bradstreet, about a couple of harrowing and humbling experiences that put her leadership to the test, [read more] The post Former Dun & Bradstreet CEO Sara Mathew on Leadership, Integrity, Courage, and Humility appeared first on Paul Smith | Cin...
3 Bad Jokes and 1 Important Lesson in Courage from Comedian Drew Tarvin
December 04, 2017 15:55 - 16 minutes - 15.5 MBProfessional comedian and self-described “humor engineer” Drew Tarvin recently completed a nomadic tour of the U.S. performing in all 50 States. His book The United States of Laughter: One Comedian’s Journey Through All 50 States details his funny, harrowing, and poignantly insightful experiences in each State. I recently caught up with Drew and asked him to share his experience in [read more] The post 3 Bad Jokes and 1 Important Lesson in Courage from Comedian Drew Tarvin appeared first on...
“Do the stories I tell at work have to be true?”
November 13, 2017 18:54 - 7 minutes - 7.98 MBAs a storytelling coach, I’m often asked, “Do my leadership or sales stories have to be true?” My perhaps surprising answer is, “No, they don’t. You can completely make up a story you tell at work, but only under one condition. And that condition is that you tell your audience you made it up. Otherwise, [read more] The post “Do the stories I tell at work have to be true?” appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
One Question That Led to an Innovation Breakthrough for Procter & Gamble and Can Do the Same for You
October 23, 2017 14:51 - 3 minutes - 4.04 MBTIDE HAS BEEN the number one selling brand of laundry detergent in the United States since soon after its introduction in 1946. The main reason for that is that the chemists and engineers at Procter & Gamble are committed to improving the cleaning formula year after year. In the late 1990s, one of the improvements [read more] The post One Question That Led to an Innovation Breakthrough for Procter & Gamble and Can Do the Same for You appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Finding the Fire at Work: What We Can All Learn From the World’s Most Grueling Athletic Competition
October 02, 2017 19:13 - 19 minutes - 18.8 MB“Over 70% of people are uninspired, disengaged, and passionless at work” – That’s according to author and speaker Scott Mautz. Scott joined me on my podcast this week to talk about how to change that. He shared the results of his work in that area from his new book Find the Fire: Ignite Your Inspiration [read more] The post Finding the Fire at Work: What We Can All Learn From the World’s Most Grueling Athletic Competition appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
“How Did We Kill This Man?” A Management Nightmare that Led to a Better Leadership Philosophy
September 12, 2017 11:17 - 26 minutes - 25.3 MBI recently had the chance to visit with performance coach Cort Dial, author of the book Heretics to Heroes: A Memoir on Modern Leadership. He shared the story of a fascinating but tragic incident early in his career that led him to develop a very different leadership philosophy. It’s always more exciting to listen to [read more] The post “How Did We Kill This Man?” A Management Nightmare that Led to a Better Leadership Philosophy appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
How to Hire Top Talent Without an Interview
August 14, 2017 11:00 - 16 minutes - 16 MB“Be slow to hire and quick to fire.” That’s the conventional wisdom in human resources. Take the time to make sure you’ve got the right candidate before making an offer. The result is a lengthy process that starts with a detailed online application and multiple rounds of interviews spread out over weeks. Some companies even [read more] The post How to Hire Top Talent Without an Interview appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
How to Earn Trust on Day One
July 17, 2017 15:11 - 4 minutes - 4.79 MBIn July of 1999, the New York Times and CBS conducted an interesting survey. They asked, “Of people in general, how many do you think are trustworthy?” The average answer was 30 percent. Then it asked, “Of people you know personally, how many do you think are trustworthy?” The average answer shot up to 70 [read more] The post How to Earn Trust on Day One appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Two Leadership Lessons from an American Author’s Walk Across Spain
July 03, 2017 12:26 - 14 minutes - 13.7 MBThis week my guest is Victor Prince. He’s a leadership trainer and author of the books, Inside the Box and Executive Farm. My last discussion with Victor was about lessons from the 2009 presidential inauguration. And I spoke previously with his co-author, Mike Figliuolo, about their book, Inside the Box. But today, Victor joined me to talk about [read more] The post Two Leadership Lessons from an American Author’s Walk Across Spain appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Compensating Behavior: A Leader’s Guide to Finding Problems You Don’t Know You Have
June 26, 2017 14:01 - 4 minutes - 4.94 MBNone of your problem-solving skills as a leader will work when the problem you’re facing is a problem you don’t even know you have. Before you can solve problems, of course, you have to identify them. Below I share a simple but highly effective way to do that. And the best way to explain it is [read more] The post Compensating Behavior: A Leader’s Guide to Finding Problems You Don’t Know You Have appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Does Customer Service This Amazing Ever Happen at Your Company? If So, Would You Even Know It?
June 05, 2017 11:00 - 7 minutes - 7.21 MBWhen Ray Brook’s flight landed at Portland International Airport on Monday morning, he headed straight for National Car Rental where he had a reservation. He had a meeting with a customer in 30 minutes and a full schedule of visits to warehouses and distribution centers for the next four days. But when he tried to [read more] The post Does Customer Service This Amazing Ever Happen at Your Company? If So, Would You Even Know It? appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Loyalty and Leadership: An Unholy Alliance
May 12, 2017 16:13 - 3 minutes - 4.2 MBLoyalty is one of those things that sounds like a good idea or an admirable character trait, until you think about what it really means in a real-world situation. One of the creepiest moments in my working career was when my team got a new boss and in our first meeting with her, she looked [read more] The post Loyalty and Leadership: An Unholy Alliance appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.
Tough Feedback? Talk to My Agent. Receiving Performance Feedback Like a Pro
May 01, 2017 11:19 - 4 minutes - 5.06 MBThere’s an endless amount of advice available for how to give tough feedback effectively, but very little on how to receive it well. One person who learned how the hard way is Gail Hollander. Gail has been in the advertising business for 25 years, and has worked in several of the most prestigious agencies in [read more] The post Tough Feedback? Talk to My Agent. Receiving Performance Feedback Like a Pro appeared first on Paul Smith | Cincinnati, Ohio.