I spent a week in Madison doing a series of workshops on storytelling and leadership at the University of Wisconsin–Madison for student-athletes and coaches.
For student-athletes, I focused on how story can help them connect with others and build a personal brand to capitalize on NIL opportunities. For coaches, staff, and more advanced students, the focus shifted to story as a leadership tool.
Specifically, I often talk about using stories to teach lessons. Research suggests it can cut teaching time in half. While you can use true stories from your own life, you can also use fictional stories or parables. These have been used to teach lessons since humans first stood up in front of others around the campfire. I often share stories about leaders like Phil Jackson. The former Bulls and Lakers coach is often referred to as a Zen Master because of his use of Zen koans to teach players lessons.
For example, he used the story of the master pouring liquid into a student’s already full cup thus causing the cup to overflow. This story teaches the concept of having an empty or beginner‘s mind. Jackson would use this story to teach players—including legends like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant—to remind them to bench their egos and stay coachable.
You Don’t Have to Be Aesop
Teaching stories are a useful tool, but some get hung up on sourcing useful parables. I’m often met with looks from the audience that seem to say, ”I’m not Aesop — or Phil Jackson. Where do I find useful fictional parables I can use to teach lessons?” This is where I hold up my phone and point out that these devices have put countless movies and TV shows at our fingertips. These are our modern fables and parables.
Talking to the Badger athletes in Madison, I zeroed in on the cornucopia of sports movies like Rudy and McFarland, USA, which teach us to never give up and overcome systemic challenges (after last month, you know I needed to include an example of a running movie).
The Moral of the Story Is …
One of the most powerful teaching stories is also a seasonal classic—and, ironically, features a teaching story in action.
In It’s a Wonderful Life, George Bailey (Jimmy Stewart) is struggling. So much so that his guardian angel, Clarence, is sent to Earth to dissuade him from ending it all. Clarence tries reason, but George isn’t having any of it. So Clarence opts to teach George that he really does have a wonderful life by illustrating what the world would look like if he’d never been born. Granted, Clarence deploys some angel magic to do all of this, but story is at the heart of this lesson.
SPOILER ALERT: It works. George learns that no man is a failure who has friends. A bell rings—Clarence gets his wings.
Story Strategy: Teach with Story
Teaching stories are everywhere—from your own life to your streaming queue. Use the stories you find to teach new skills and close gaps when people just don’t get it.
Apply it: The best place to start with a teaching story is the lesson you want to teach. Or to take a cue from the tortoise and the hare (a classic teaching story) — What‘s the moral of the story? From there, think about your own life. Is there a time you learned a similar lesson? If not, think of your favorite movies. Has a character learned this lesson? If your team hasn’t seen the movie, maybe it’s time for a screening (with some helpful framing from you).
A version of this first appeared in Story Strategies—my monthly email newsletter designed to help you connect with your audience through the power of story. Get the next issue delivered to your inbox.
