50 Posts 50 Rules: Tom Peters on Leadership 39

39. Leaders have great stories. I remember a time a few years back when a colleague had said to me, “we don’t tell stories anymore”. This statement cut deeply, he had verbalized angst I had been feeling for some time but not yet committed to words. He was right.Stories are how groups share meaning, share values, share emotion, share culture. A leader as a master story teller, sound peculiar? It shouldn’t, a good leader will master story telling and use it effectively for the betterment and learning of the team.Challenge: Reflect back on the past year to a time when your team had a win, overcame an obstacle, provided outstanding service. Consider what was at the root of the event. Was it an outstanding group effort, a masterful problem solving ability by a team member, a compassionate act? Determine from the root of the event what the moral is and how it relates to team values or culture. Tell the story.