For those who have followed my writing at Real Leaders about public speaking, you will recall I have often emphasized the relationship between effective leadership and storytelling.

By storytelling, I mean the sharing of everything from purposeful parables to personal life experiences. By employing the art of storytelling, you accomplish two goals essential to effective leadership: 1) You create a personal bond with your audience by sharing a story that has meaning to you; and 2) You inspire your team to reach greater achievement, not because you told them they had to, but because you let the story elevate their thinking and performance.

You may agree with me on this point, but you may also be thinking that you are not a compelling storyteller and never will be — and if you feel this way, you will not be alone in this category. Recently I was introduced to the masterful storyteller and radio personality, Scott Lee. He dazzled me with stories and explained how to unlock the power in every retelling that can lead to a desirable outcome. Here is a brief record of our conversation about storytelling.

James Rosebush: Why do you think leaders need to incorporate creative ways to reach their employees and customers through storytelling?

Scott Lee: Because no one cares about the facts! No leader won the day or convinced anyone of their plan solely because all the “math” works. People get behind leaders that stir their feelings, and feelings are stirred with amazing stories. George Washington didn’t inspire an exhausted group of men that left a trail of blood in the snow with any Excel spreadsheet or PowerPoint….he read them a story! Morale among his men was low, and Washington knew he had to motivate and encourage them to fight one more battle in hopes the momentum would change. Just before the fight at the Battle of Trenton, he had Thomas Paine’s pamphlet, The American Crisis, read to them, out loud, in a snowstorm, on the shores of an icy Delaware River. It started with this… “These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.” The day after the victory at Trenton, Washington had 15,000 new recruits to continue fighting for liberty. Leaders need to ask who on their teams will stay and fight and what is so convicting about their business that will make people do “extra” ordinary things!

I have heard that story but never thought to frame it in a way that relates to leaders today. Your business credo is “engaging the business world one story at a time.” Why stories?

The goal is to engage on a radically different level that reaches the right side of the brain. People generally prefer Hollywood over Washington DC, they prefer emotion over logic, and they make decisions based on feelings. We all know this is true by looking back to the last large purchase you made, which almost certainly was not logical! Mine was buying my ski boat! I don’t even remember the salesman telling me the price, yet I spent more money than two of my cars combined, and I can only use the boat four months of the year! There are many avenues to the right side of the brain, but few are as productive as a simple story. 

No one has ever objected to the statement, “Let me tell you a story!”  

How does a leader choose the right story for the right audience?

Leaders should tell stories tailored to their audience. So, the first step is determining who you are addressing and, second, the goal of the meeting. For example, if you are talking to a sales team and need them to sell through the hurdles and objections they are experiencing, then perhaps you share how others did it. Leaders should tell stories that they know and stories that have inspired them. This is not a time to experiment. Finally, they should remember that they are the story! The motivational speaker Jim Rohn said, “You should work harder on yourself than your job!” Leaders, the story starts with you.

What would you want leaders to do after reading this interview?

Act! 

After the signing of the Declaration of Independence, a great malaise came over the colonies. John Hancock, a signer of the Declaration, after seeing this, responded by saying, “I urge you by all that is dear, by all that is honorable, by all that is sacred, not only that you pray but also that you…. act!”  

The Founding Fathers signed a document that committed their “lives, fortunes, and sacred honor.” Their lives became the story, and the Declaration of Independence became not only a message to King George III but a galvanizing call to action for the people in the Colonies! It demonstrated an unthinkable commitment to the cause, one that called for personal engagement and sacrifice. That is what leaders do.

They show the way with words, stories, and deeds. 

James Rosebush managed the Reagan White House Office on Impact and has a personal passion for coaching executives to speak like Ronald Reagan. He has also enjoyed unique access to Queen Elizabeth II, from which he has learned much about leadership. Here, he answers questions from CEOs on how to speak with impact.

Some speeches come across as performances. Are there any lessons I can learn from watching people in the performing arts?

I’m fascinated by this phenomenon. Have you ever been in a conversation with someone who talks to you naturally, and five minutes later they’re on stage and have weirdly adopted, what I call, “stage speak?” For some reason, when you stick a microphone in someone’s face or put them on a stage, they automatically adopt a slow and pretentious way of speaking. They exchange an informal, personal approach with a pompous one. If you find yourself in this situation, say to yourself, “I want to speak conversationally as if I were looking at one or two people’s faces — drop everything else and be conversational.” 

You are not out to impress but to express your ideas and share them with friends. Don’t view your audience as critics (they might be — but banish that thought for now). The more informal and natural you are, the more relatable. Remember that professional actors can move you emotionally, always come across naturally, and are not self-aware or pretentious. If they ever did this at a casting, they would never be selected for a movie. Think of yourself as an actor — your naturalness will measure your success.

With most speeches now online via streaming video, how should I adjust my speech-making techniques, if at all?

It’s tough, isn’t it? I’m on Zoom and Crowdcast all the time, and it’s a daily challenge. Here are seven tips to keep in mind. 1/ Know your audience. Even if you can’t see the audience, try to “see” them. That means learning more about them and leaning into that knowledge and being consciously aware so you can think about the type of person you’re speaking to. 2/ Choose a strategy that promotes engagement. Even though I typically ban Q&As for live speeches, I do them now because human interaction helps. 3/ Stand and deliver. Don’t sit while you perform. It gives you more power and acts as a focal point. 4/ Dress up a little. Give up those baggy sweats. Both men and women should be attentive to this. 5/ Lighting is critical. I use a LumeCube, but you could use a light ring, too. Turn off lights behind you and light your face from the front. It will make a big difference in how your audience perceives you. 6/ Select a brand-building backdrop. We’ve all seen some creative ideas out there, but pick one and make it your brand. Anything is better than pillows propped up on your bed. 7/ Tell your stories. Stories are a sure-fire way to win your audience and are more critical now than ever. Smile on camera, and use your most dynamic voice — even though you can’t judge the audience’s reaction. 

Invesque is a publicly-traded healthcare real estate company with 121 properties in 20 states and two Canadian provinces. They own medical office buildings, assisted living, memory care, and skilled nursing facilities. I asked CEO Scott White about his leadership philosophy throughout the past, difficult year.

What is your history at Invesque?

I was part of a team that raised capital and assembled a seed portfolio back in 2015. Then, I was one of the founders who took Invesque public in 2016. Today, I’m the Chairman and CEO. We started with eleven properties and approximately $300 million in gross book value. Today we own 121 assets and roughly $1.8 billion in gross book value. From the IPO in 2016 through 2019, we were among the fastest-growing public real estate companies in North America.

That’s an impressive track record. Let’s talk a bit about your leadership philosophy. How did you take this company from a small private start-up to an almost $2bn public company in less than five years?

My leadership philosophy is simple. I surround myself with an exceptional and talented team from different backgrounds and experiences. I encourage open discussion and debate to challenge everyone to reach outside their comfort zones. I don’t need a team that looks the same, acts the same, and agrees with each other all the time. I often hear leaders talk about building a team of “like-minded professionals.” I think that’s the worst thing you can do. Instead, I need to be continuously challenged by different perspectives. At the same time, I also need a team of people to work together productively to achieve extraordinary outcomes.

The other key component of my leadership philosophy is empowerment. To succeed, you must empower your team. Really empower them. We live in a world where people want to contribute. They want to make a difference. More than anything, they want to think independently and be challenged. All of this leads to empowerment. Empower those around you to think, decide, and act.  

In terms of rapid growth, it’s part of our DNA. We are “deal junkies” and love M&A as a tool for value creations. We are restless and active, and we don’t wait for ideas and transactions to come to us. We go out and aggressively look for opportunities and, in some cases, even create deals. We know our markets well, and we leverage our extensive network of relationships with owners, operators, and developers.  

2020 was a crazy year. The pandemic presented almost insurmountable challenges to leadership and running a company. What were your scariest challenges?

As a starting point, we operate in an industry that was on THE front line. I mean, really on the front line. The facilities we own and, in some cases, operate were ground-zero for COVID. 

First and foremost, we dealt with the day-to-day life and death issues of keeping our staff and residents safe. We had to think fast, work fast, and execute quickly as COVID beat us in the trenches early on.

Our residents are among the most vulnerable segment of society. This was a full-on, lights flashing, sirens blaring, all-hands-on-deck crisis that we had to navigate. We worked tirelessly to assess our risks and find ways to effectively mitigate them quickly. The industry was caught off guard, and we had to make sure we had adequate PPE, staffing, and safety protocols to protect everyone. So, we prioritized health and safety, and it required a massive team effort.

Then we had to think about communication and execution while managing remotely. We operate in 20 states and two Canadian provinces. We have a corporate staff spread across four states. Now, everyone is working from home. Communication, coordination, and execution became that much more challenging. But not insurmountable. When you go back to my leadership principles of building and empowering the right team, everyone knows what the challenge is and what is expected. We worked tirelessly to keep everyone safe and keep our business moving forward.

As you look back on the pandemic, what do you think are three key lessons you’ve learned?

Humans are meant to interact in person. We all need to belong and to be a part of a living, breathing community. For the first time in my life, I recognized the cost of social isolation. I realized what it was like for our residents to be separated from friends and family for a prolonged period. I also learned what it meant to have our team apart and not meeting face to face. My key takeaway from this experience is how important social interaction is to our society, and recognizing the extreme toll social isolation takes. I think coming out of this, we will reorient our beliefs and expectations around human interaction.

I think we also learned how much we could do remotely. I have worked in a remote environment for eight years. With technology, discipline, and the right mindset, it’s very doable. I think the world is now recognizing this. No, we are not all going to work endlessly from home full-time. However, I think we will approach things with an eye toward what can be accomplished effectively and efficiently remotely via technology. Industries will change. For example, telemedicine is just one of many sectors where I saw significant reservations before the pandemic. Like work from home, it took this transformative event in history to show people you can do things differently, remotely, efficiently.

And finally, decision-making does not have to be as slow and arduous as it has been historically. 

During the pandemic, I witnessed decisions being made in hours and days rather than weeks and months. Many companies pivoted strategies, took calculated risks, and made significant investment and capital allocation decisions with less time, data, and analysis than has been the historical norm. We learned that decisions could be made more quickly, with less information, and with better outcomes rather than the pre-pandemic world of analysis-paralysis and risk mitigation as the leading elements of decision making.

And finally, what does the world look like post-pandemic?

We will live in a much better world post-pandemic with a lot of positive change. We have had a chance to pause and reflect during this crisis and develop a greater sense of who we are and what is important to us. Gratefulness will return in significant ways. Gratefulness for the little things we all took for granted before the pandemic. Also, appreciation for what a great world we live in, what a great company we work for, and what great friends and family we spend time with.

Indeed, as an industry, we will be better prepared for future pandemics and more robust protocols around the containment of the spread of infectious disease. Even the flu will be better contained and dealt with in the future, and saving more lives.

Michael Brice has played a lead role in providing cybersecurity solutions to many companies, and has deep commercial and military experience in the financial services industry and in classified government operations. He answers questions around the growing concern of online security — and why CEOs can no longer afford to ignore it.

How did you become involved in Cybersecurity?

As a Marine Signals Intelligence and Electronic Warfare Officer, I was involved in cybersecurity before the word “cyber” was even in our lexicon. In that capacity, I served in the First Gulf War and saw how rapidly evolving communications technologies could be weaponized for immediate effect. Previously, electronic intelligence activities had predominantly been more of a nation-state, strategic chess game that didn’t involve the average person. 

After leaving the Marine Corps, I became a Chief Information Officer for a publicly-traded company where I learned that the civilian consequences of a cyber event could have significant shareholder impact. This concept was not something I had ever considered while in the military. 

Specifically, the concept that a hack with no operational objective could result in a huge public relations fiasco or result in the firing of a CEO from a simple loss of data (e.g., personally identifiable information) was a new concept to me. 

With this new understanding, I realized that I wanted the same adrenaline rush I had only previously felt when dealing with nation-state actors while on active duty. I wanted to find a way to go head-to-head with the bad guys. While it didn’t happen overnight, I eventually created a cyber consulting and forensic firm focused on the financial services vertical. While I’m never pleased to see the carnage cybercriminals can inflict on our clients, I still get a rush every time we work on an investigation, knowing that we can and will make a big difference.   

What would you consider the most significant cyber challenges facing CEOs today?

Although we work with extremely intelligent C-suite leaders, I find that many have not elevated cyber or prioritized cyber to their executive agenda. It’s somewhat stunning because cyber risks can often result in a catastrophic financial and reputational event for a company and an existential risk for the CEO. Many of the CEOs we work with assume that their CIO, CTO, or IT department have it covered. One thing I’ve learned in business is that when it comes to existential risks, you may trust, but you must always verify. CEOs often have a poor understanding of strategic cyber risk. As a result, they don’t require critical additional security oversight controls to ensure they know the actual dimensions of the strategic risks associated with cyber.

Many executives don’t grasp the crucial difference between Information Technology (IT) staff and cyber staff. While IT staff members spend their entire career focused on making IT operations work as smoothly as possible, cyber staff spend their careers discerning how a malicious actor might disrupt those operations. The epitome of this example is when I see an organization allow the IT department to conduct an internal investigation into a breach. Often, the breach was a mistake or failing of IT in the first place — so having IT investigate themselves is clearly not an optimal approach. Yet, I continue to see this misguided reliance on IT when cyber professionals should be involved.

Let’s assume a CEO has a proper appreciation for strategic cyber risk — what issues might they still face?

I see many executives address cyber risk as if there’s an end-state solution with execution that is single-threaded — that focuses on remediation of a specific vulnerability. By single-threaded, I mean a presumption that the risk will be remediated by merely performing several discrete actions (e.g., annual training, quarterly phishing, penetration testing, etc.) — to address what I consider the ‘low hanging fruit.’ While this is a good start, it misses the key issue – which is the undeniable fact that cyber is a continuously evolving science in which today’s solutions will not prevent tomorrow’s threats. The CEO’s cyber plan needs to address cybersecurity as a continuously living program that will quickly evolve in ways that we cannot currently foresee or even budget for — and that last one (budget) is a real challenge right now. If you ask ten CEOs how much investment is required in cybersecurity, I suspect you will get ten different answers. Cyber program development and related budgeting are challenges that genuinely need an experienced security expert who can quantify risk and translate it into a budget so that the CEO can understand and accept.  

What’s your biggest challenge? 

Finding and retaining world-class cybersecurity talent. Due to the nascent nature of the many diverse technologies associated with cybersecurity, it’s tough to find experienced employees. Consequently, it’s easy to fall into the trap of hiring a person who might look good on paper with the appropriate certifications, but have very little real-world experience. While we don’t mind developing our talent, inexperience sometimes results in poor decision-making, making a bad cyber situation much worse. On top of that, due to the shortage of talent, retention is also a challenge. It’s not unusual for a highly skilled cyber employee to change jobs every 12-18 months. 

Tell me about your best success story.

That’s easy – we saved a PE firm from losing $300 million. We were brought in to do a forensic investigation by a Private Equity (PE) firm with a holding company that had lost $1 million to wire fraud. 

The PE firm wanted us to determine how the holding company had been breached and confirm that it wasn’t an inside job. In the course of our investigation, we discovered that the holding company hadn’t suffered a breach, nor was there a malicious insider who had been involved. 

Instead, it was the PE company that had been breached. Moreover, the breach was ongoing. We were able to terminate the malicious actor’s access approximately one week prior to the PE company making a $300m wire transfer. We were also able to explain how the prior wire had been fraudulently misdirected and not detected — primarily from a combination of poor security controls and no voice wire transfer confirmation controls. We’ll never know what might have happened with that wire if the corrective actions hadn’t been implemented per the investigation. However, I believe the criminals would have targeted the entire $300 million in the same way they successfully redirected the prior $1 million wire.

We are all born free and equal in dignity and rights. To increase global awareness of the first two articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the UN Human Rights Office has teamed up with LA-based The Krim Group and renowned photographer Justin Wu to relaunch the “World is in Our Hands” initiative in support of OHCHR’s #StandUp4HumanRights campaign.

Todd Krim founded The Krim Group as a social impact consulting company that helps nonprofits, charitable foundations, and corporations secure celebrities for special events and social media campaigns.

The challenge kicked-off on International Youth Day, August 12th, 2020, with young global influencers such as Jazz Jennings, an American YouTube personality, spokesmodel, television personality, and LGBT rights activist; Spanish musician, Pablo Alboran; and singer and dancer, Nia Sioux. They all shared an iconic photo taken by Toronto-based director and photographer, Justin Wu, paired with a personal message expressing their stance on the importance of standing up for human rights. They also issued a call to action, encouraging their audience to share their words. The “World Is in Our Hands” message will be amplified through a partnership with Variety.

Justin Wu’s photography is best known for his uplifting approach in his videos and commercials; most notably, his music video for Jay-Z’s Life+Times’ Empire State of Mind’.

www.standup4humanrights.org

Here are three ways to improve the circulation of ideas through useful conversation — and increase the likelihood of successful negotiations at the same time.

Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of conversing with a number of the world’s great leaders. These conversations have not only yielded substantial information, but have been instructive on how to have a productive, enjoyable, and memorable conversation.

Through these talks, I began to see that the delivery of the conversation is as important as the content itself, and that natural curiosity in others is one of the most valuable traits a person can have.

 The good news is that this skill can be acquired.

I remember one of my first bosses, a senior corporate executive. I was incredibly frustrated because he had the habit of starting every meeting with at least 10 minutes of small talk before getting down to business. In my inexperience, I thought this was a useless waste of time.

I finally caught the strategy. During the introductory banter, he was building bridges that he could cross when the talk became more specific and detailed — maybe even heated. He was creating mutual trust through his natural curiosity in others.

The Queen of England, clocking in as the world’s longest reigning head of state, was to me by far the best purveyor of the art of conversation. Having had the opportunity to talk with her on many occasions over several years, I was flabbergasted at how she had honed the skill to perfection.

“Jim,” she would say, “what do you think about the increasing use of computers today?” (After I had arranged for one to be given to her from the American people for her personal use.) “What’s in that drink you’re having tonight? Tell me about it…” commenting on what I had ordered when she took us to dinner at Trader Vic’s in San Francisco.

It could be anything. Trivial or significant. It was, however, always focused on me — as if I were the important one. She never, ever talked about herself or complained about anything. The focus was always on the other person and delivered as if she were really interested in my answers.

George and Barbara Bush had similar skills. They were expert at deflecting attention from themselves. I remember telling her she was doing a great job as First Lady — which was true. I wanted to tell her why I thought so. 

She would have nothing of it. She immediately started asking me about my daughters and how they were doing in school. In this case, I had started the conversation about her and she miraculously turned it back to me!

George Bush had these skills as well, and is famous for his prolific letter writing and verbal communicating. Have a look at these letters and you see a person intent on showing interest in his subjects rather than himself.

Have you ever had a conversation and later realized that during the talk no one asked any questions about each other? There is a serious cost when leaders pay little attention to others. If you lack the ability to define the person, it is much harder to negotiate with him or her and conclude with a positive outcome. Here are three ways to improve the circulation of ideas through useful conversation:

1. Extreme self-centeredness is crippling and can result in the failure of effective communication

People don’t change their personalities and narcissistic tendencies all that easily. The first step though, is to recognize the price we pay for insufficient interest in others. Lost business deals, failed governmental negotiations, poor personal relationships, and doomed marriages can be costly if we do not at least attempt a sincere level of interest in other people. 

Admit the problem is the beginning of the solution. Becoming an outward-facing person with genuine interest in others does not happen overnight, but there are a few key skills that will help move you in the right direction. Becoming more interested in the views of others than in your own opinions makes life more interesting at the most personal level — and more successful when the stakes are bigger.

2. Conduct thorough due diligence on the other person

Prepare yourself for any discussion, meeting, or negotiation by researching the background and life details of the person with whom you are meeting. If you do not do this, you may be walking in blind to a situation that could waste time for everyone because you are ignorant of what the other person is bringing to the table.

This research is easy to conduct online. Once the meeting starts, you can deploy the information strategically to show that you took the time to learn more about the individual prior to the meeting. When I worked in the White House, we prepared President Ronald Reagan with extensive briefing books about the people with whom he was meeting. We also produced videos illustrating how the other leaders walked, talked, and conducted themselves in various situations.

This brought a high degree of texture to the person being profiled and contributed to the success of many bi-lateral meetings. You may not be the President, but you can utilize the same principles and access a good deal of data about the individuals in your meeting.

3. Let the questions roll

When I am meeting someone for the first time, I put my curiosity to work. I usually ask them where they were born and brought up. Do they have siblings? How long have they worked in their current capacity and how
did they get into it? People are usually flattered by you asking these questions — if they are sincere.

Ask these questions because you’re genuinely interested in hearing the answers. If you are listening carefully, you can suggest a follow up, and soon you’ll gain their confidence. Most people like to talk about themselves and will not find it difficult to tell you helpful personal stories, if you ask the right way. These insights are indispensable in negotiation.

Have a question you’ve always wanted to ask about speechmaking? Email James Rosebush your questions and he’ll publish them each week: jsrosebush@growthstrategy.us

www.GrowthStrategy.us

SPEAKING WITH IMPACT
Each week, speech coach and leadership mentor James Rosebush will answer a question on how to improve your public speaking.

This week, Mark Percy, President, and CEO of CLA Orange County, asks: “Collaboration is essential to get anything done these days. How can you authentically connect to your audience to help further this goal?”

Dear Mark,

Great question, and crucially related to today’s disruptive and partitioned culture. There are active and destructive forces wanting to divide communities, businesses, families, and schools. The public speaker is a leader and has an opportunity to enlighten, lead, and unify. Although diverse opinion is essential, unity around a standard premise or goal is critical to getting anything done. This particular public speaking skill is also equivalent to living productively. Let me propose three things a speaker can do.

1. Approach the podium with a genuinely open mind, lack of prejudice, and appreciation for everyone in the audience, regardless of their opinions or beliefs. The audience will feel any baggage you carry when you stand in front of them, so keep it light!
2. Be thoroughly educated and get briefed on the views, attitudes, and opinions of those in your audience. There is no excuse for not knowing who you are speaking to.
3. Decide ahead of time that you will not show any anger or react adversely, despite your audience throwing these emotions at you. Don’t take their poison!
4. Commit yourself to leave the audience inspired, and even if not unified, then at least appreciative of each another. You might end your speech by saying how much you’ve enjoyed being together and that your collective strength rests in your ability to work together. Then, thank them for their efforts — on any point or issue you feel will resonate. Respect them!

How do other readers of this column feel about creating a sense of collaboration with an audience? Comment below.

SPEAKING WITH IMPACT
Each week, speech coach and leadership mentor James Rosebush will answer a question on how to improve your public speaking.

Barbara Bellafiore, CEO, Bell Media, asks: “What is the best way to begin or end a speech to an audience with differing levels of technical expertise?”

Dear Barbara,

Great question! The first thing is to make a connection and build a bridge to your audience. You need them to trust you. Start with a little story, perhaps about the use of a technical skill you have, and how you applied it to a situation — and what happened as a result. It might even be about failing in that attempt. This will make you seem human, adaptive, and available to your audience — and a little vulnerable as well.

This is your warm-up — gain their confidence first. Then, explain that you’ll be speaking about some technical terms and apologize in advance for possibly overreaching. Reassure your audience that you’ll be happy to stay around afterward to explain anything to people who want to learn more. You don’t need to dumb down your content, but make sure you use words and communicate in ways that the audience can relate to.

I remember one time, listening to a speech about systems integration by a brilliant and fast-talking woman who impressed me for her intellect, but left me reeling from her vocabulary — which was almost exclusively, new, made-up terms. I was impressed with her intelligence and my lack of it. I don’t think she cared much about relating to her audience. It seemed more about a show of superiority for her. Don’t fall into that trap. Relate to the audience around your perceived knowledge level they possess — and learn as much as you can about them before you craft your remarks. Then you are sure to win them over and educate them at the same time. Good luck!