Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our Future S2 Ep42: Greater than Fact: The Power of Leading with Stories
Guest: Paul Smith, former Procter & Gamble VP
What if the most effective leaders didn’t need to explain more, push harder, or manage excuses?
In this episode, host Maureen Metcalf is joined by leadership storytelling expert Paul Smith for a thought-provoking conversation about how leaders can most effectively influence behavior…and why logic alone so often fail at this.
Drawing on neuroscience, leadership research, and real-world examples, Paul explains why people don’t change simply because they understand more, and how stories fill that need by helping leaders create accountability without blame, pressure, or defensiveness.
You’ll learn:
- Why accountability works best when it’s chosen, not enforced;
- How emotion—not logic—drives decisions and follow-through;
- Why stories replace lecturing as a leadership tool;
- How leaders can reduce defensiveness while raising standards; and
- What the real test of leadership is when you’re not in the room.
This is not an episode about storytelling as a communication technique. It’s about storytelling as a behavior-change lever…and a more human, sustainable way to lead.
If you’re a seasoned leader who’s tired of explaining and ready to create real ownership, this episode offers a powerful reframe.
Other episodes you'll enjoy:
- Tales from the Top: How Leaders Use Stories with Tanvi Gautam
- Using Storytelling to Elevate Leadership with Chris Nolan
- How Great Leaders Are Made: Insights from “The Economist” with Andrew Palmer
For daily wisdom from our guests, be sure to follow us on LinkedIn.
RESOURCES:
To learn more about Paul and access his free resources for leading (and for parenting) using story, check his website at https://leadwithastory.com/.
Paul’s books include:
- Lead with a Story (paperback at https://amzn.to/4quEDq4, audiobook at https://amzn.to/4quEDq4)
- Sell with a Story (paperback at https://amzn.to/4q5MWJc, audiobook at https://amzn.to/4qFG4SN) and
- Parenting with a Story (paperback at https://amzn.to/3N2HBE1, audiobook at https://amzn.to/4q3JdM9).
Our host Maureen Metcalf posts a newsletter every week on LinkedIn. You can subscribe here.
Maureen’s latest book is Innovative Leadership & Followership in the Age of AI. You’ll find details about it at https://bit.ly/LeaderInAI, or check out the Kindle version at https://amzn.to/44buVz8. The audiobook version is now available at https://amzn.to/4dTCleZ.
Her other 10 books are available on Amazon here.
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OUR PODCAST TEAM:
Host & Executive Producer: Maureen Metcalf
Editor & Executive Producer: Dan Mushalko
Graphics Editor: Stacia Rogan
Booking Producer: Jenna Reik
Sponsorship Sales: Kristine Gross (kgross@worldtreeproductions.com)
Theme Music by Pavel Bekirov from Pixabay.
CONNECT WITH US:
YouTube: @InnovatingLeadership
LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/ILI-LinkedIn2
TikTok: @innovativeleadership
Website: InnovativeLeadershipInstitute.com
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About Our Guest:
Paul Smith is one of the world’s leading experts in business storytelling. He’s one of Inc. Magazine’s Top 100 Leadership Speakers of 2018, a storytelling coach, and bestselling author of several books on the art and science of storytelling. As part of his research on the effectiveness of storytelling, Paul has personally interviewed over 300 CEOs and executives in 25 countries, and documented over 3,000 individual business stories. That has allowed him to reverse-engineer what works in storytelling and what doesn’t.
He’s a former executive at The Procter & Gamble Company and a consultant with Accenture prior to that. A 20-year veteran of P&G, Paul worked most recently as vice president of consumer and communications research for the company’s $6 billion global paper business where he led a research team across four continents. He also held leadership positions in corporate finance, and at manufacturing plants and sales offices working closely with major global retailers like Walmart, Costco, Asda, and Sam’s Club.
Paul holds bachelor’s degrees in both astrophysics and economics and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.