376 The Art of Storytelling: What Makes A Good Leader?

376 The Art of Storytelling: What Makes A Good Leader?   What is it that makes a leader someone worth following? Is it the way they approach problems? Is it how they treat those who follow them or those who don’t? Or is it something more unique to each individual?  In today’s episode Sarah Elkins demonstrates through her art of storytelling how she has led others and helped them to lead in turn, and how important it is to follow a leader who makes you see the best in yourself, and to help others see the best in themselves.   Highlights Show your qualities through your stories, don’t just tell. A healthy and powerful work environment is possible when everyone works together and the leader takes steps towards improving their skills. Being self conscious of your skills and the room you have to improve.  Be confident in your abilities and find a way that is helpful and understanding to help others see them as well. Speak their language if you must.    Quotes “Why now? Because they’re growing and they don’t want to sacrifice their strong culture of caring for and developing their employees.” “The fact that you’re asking this question makes you a good leader. The efforts you’ve made over the years to learn, to grow, to develop yourself, your self knowledge that you have room to improve, that’s what makes a good leader.” “You’ve been using your own tools in your leadership style, not someone else’s and that’s what makes you successful to this point.”   Dear Listeners it is now your turn, It’s my gift to you; to be your guide in collecting, practicing and sharing your most meaningful stories, so you have the power to choose how your internal messages and your internal dialogue shape your future. So you have the tools to improve communication at work and at home. And so you have the tools to advocate for yourself and others in the form of the most effective communication and connecting authentically with the people around you. Through story.  As I mentioned I am celebrating my five year book-versary, starting today Your Stories Don’t Define You was published May 31, 2020. Starting this podcast was a wakeup call for me, I realized I was coaching my guests in sharing their pivotal moment stories, and they were finding great value in our time together, way beyond any promotional opportunity the podcast was offering. The book is designed to guide readers in collecting and sharing their stories with exercises and worksheets throughout. To celebrate my book-versary, I’m offering to sign and ship copies from Montana to you, and every purchase will include an offer for a 20 minute bullseye story mining session. In 20 minutes we will uncover at least one meaningful story for you to fine tune for you to use in your next interview, team meeting, speaking engagement, networking event, or maybe it’s a date.  I really appreciate your support over the years and this is my way of giving that back.  And, as always, thank you for listening.    Purchase Your Stories Don’t Define You and get your 20 minute session, here! About Sarah "Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision." In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with. My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home. The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available! Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana. Be sure to check out the Storytelling For Professionals Course as well to make sure you nail that next interview!