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GREAT COMMUNICATION SECRETS OF GREAT LEADERS
naturally. When she became publisher of the Washington Post, she forced her-
self to come out of her shell and appear on the public stage. Her book is her
attempt to gain perspective on her career, to tell more about her husband,
Phil’s, ultimately fatal battle with manic depression, and, as she writes, “to
arrive at some understanding of how people are formed by the way they grow
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up and further molded by the way they spend their days.” Sounds like a pretty
strong self-assessment. Ultimately, the reflection story not only leads to
self-discovery for the one who tells it, but also contributes to heightened
self-awareness on the part of the reader or listener.
HUMOROUS ANECDOTE
Stories don’t necessarily need to have a moral, but it’s good if they do. Yet that
does not mean that stories must be dark. Quite the contrary: An exercise of wit
can often evoke more wisdom.
Promoter Bill Veeck was a legendary storyteller as well as a one-man
band of practical jokes. A favorite trick was to stab himself in the leg with an
ice pick (his wooden leg, the one with a built-in ashtray). Only a man with
Veeck’s whimsy could turn a war injury into a prop for a joke. It was that sense
of fun that inspired him to dream up ways to make coming out to the ballpark
as much fun as going to the circus. Sports columnist Jim Murray once wrote
of Veeck, “His mind was 71, but his heart was 12.” 6
Jokes, too, can illuminate and elucidate. Choose them carefully, however,
particularly if you are not familiar with the audience. Make certain that the
humor is either self-deprecating or else directed at a universal target of
ridicule—bureaucracy, used car salesmen, the I.R.S., politicians, or Holly-
wood types.
For example, a Hollywood producer comes home early one morning to
find his wife waiting for him. She’s in a foul mood and demands an explana-
tion. The producer explains that he had been entertaining a lovely leading lady
who invited him back to her place. Then, the producer continued, “one thing
led to another.” The wife was not placated. “Don’t lie to me. You’ve been out
playing poker with the boys.” 7

KINDNESS TO STRANGERS
Compassion is a vital element of leadership. Leaders can talk about it until
they are blue in the face, but one story can say more than all the lectures.
Mother Teresa had a rich treasure trove of stories, many of which make
profound moral points. For example, she tells the story of the young child of 3
whom she encountered on the street. Seeing that the little girl was hungry,
Mother Teresa gave her bread. “Eat, eat the bread. You are hungry.” The girl
did so very slowly. “I am afraid. When the bread will be finished, I will be
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hungry again.” When you hear a story like that, you cannot fail to be moved,