What a Boiling Frog and a Motorcycle Accident Taught Me About Leadership

Stories are powerful. They captivate us, shape our beliefs, and stay with us long after we hear them. I believe it’s part of what makes us human.

The Power of Stories

In the business world, example, the boiling frog analogy is commonly used to explain how people adapt to harmful situations over time. While a real frog would jump out when the water gets too hot, it still serves as a powerful metaphor. It helps explain how people can become accustomed to change over time when that change happens gradually. Even if those changes lead to serious, negative consequences that we don’t notice until it’s too late.

Stories, whether true or not, are persuasive when facts alone fail to capture our attention or motivate us to action.

Think about influential people you know—what are some of the things they have in common? I bet many of them are excellent storytellers. Able to weave ideas into simple, memorable narratives. Or they have a way of painting a vivid vision of the future and inspiring others. Or they are able to share personal experiences in a compelling way that spurs action.

It’s Never One Thing

The dog is fine. It got surgery before I did. I tell you this because I want to share with you that I ran over a police dog with my motorcycle once.

We were driving west through North Dakota in 2013, trying to get back to the Rockies after visiting my parents in Winnipeg. It was Patti’s first time meeting them in person. I didn’t want to be on a busy interstate or the TransCanada, so I chose a lesser road. It was a clear, sunny day with no traffic. Until we came up over the elevated railway track.

There were a lot of cars on the oncoming shoulder, some of them police cars. I was thinking “Someone is having a bad day!”, when a dog came running out from between the cars across the road in front of us. We learned later that this was drug interdiction training exercise on a “quiet” road. The dog was chasing a ball thrown by one of the officers before they realized we were there.

There’s a lot more to the story, including how the local ambulance was in the shop that weekend. The backup hadn’t been stocked with supplies and equipment. The driver left town on the only road out, but going the wrong way. It really was a chain of bad luck, timing, geography, lack of preparation, and human error.

I tell this story when I need to make the point that “It’s never one thing.” When things go wrong, it’s usually not because just one thing went wrong. Which is good to keep in mind when we’re tempted to let routine maintenance slide. Or putting off preparing for an emergency. I’m sure you can think of a couple of examples where an unlikely chain of events led to both good and bad outcomes.

Shaping Who We Are

I believe that the stories we tell ourselves and each other create our culture. Great storytellers shape who we are. For me, politicians, successful business leaders, and Hollywood come to mind as some of the better story-tellers.

One of my favourite examples of the vivid, visual Hollywood/business storytelling comes from The Big Short (2015). In it, Chef Anthony Bourdain uses leftover fish to explain derivatives – the financial instruments that caused the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. He compares making a fish stew from unsellable fish to repackaging risky financial products into something seemingly desirable. It’s a perfect analogy that simplifies a very complex concept. And it sticks because it’s visual and relatable.

So What?

If you want to be more persuasive and engaging as a leader, learn to tell stories. Craft a narrative arc, show rather than tell, and connect with your audience emotionally. Part of being a better leader isn’t just knowing where you want to take people. It’s about sharing that vision. In a concrete, believable, and engaging way.

If you want to sharpen your storytelling skills, you can study good stories. Here are three examples of great storytelling in entertaining, digestible format:

• The Big Short (Film): A satirical look at the 2008 financial crisis, with great lessons on risk management and creeping normality, has many great storytelling techniques, including the one mentioned above.
  
• Mad Men (TV Series): Insights into client relationships and business dynamics, with bonus scenes of master story-telling in a corporate setting. The season finale from Season One, Episode 13 (“The Wheel”) for example, shows how Don Draper understands the client’s needs better than they do themselves. Kodak executives initially want to focus on the technical aspects of their product, a slide projector. But Don understands that successful advertising needs to tap into emotional resonance, not just product features.
  
• Suits (TV Series): Focuses on negotiation, strategy, and solving complex problems—all told through engaging narratives. In Season 2, Episode 7 (“The Mock Trial”) Louis, known for being more technical and rule-bound, attempts to win the trial using strict legal tactics. Harvey, however, has taught him the power of storytelling in the courtroom. He uses a personal, compelling narrative about his own life experiences to emotionally sway the “jury” (the firm’s associates) during a mock trial in preparation for the real trial.

---

What business-themed movies or TV shows have taught you about storytelling and leadership? Share your favourites in the comments—I’d love to hear your thoughts!