.
Every Leader Is a Storyteller
Jesus told stories (
parables). Maybe storytelling is important.
Jeff Evans writes, “This book is not a memoir, even though it draws from my life. It’s not a textbook, though it contains principles. It is a guided journey through moments that taught me what leadership really requires: the ability to tell the right story at the right time, with clarity, integrity, and presence.”
How do I inspire you to trust me and read yet one more book?
And do we really need another book on leadership? Yes—and this one will surprise you.
The author, with a fascinating and diverse background, invites us into his memorable stories—and pricks a few nerves along the way.
“…when a leader fails to bring clarity, confusion fills the space; and when confusion comes, someone must steady the moment.”Who is Jeff Evans? (LOL—that’s his URL!) He has spent 40 years in boardrooms, war rooms, and those crisis moments when leaders are tested. His assignments and travels have spanned Reagan-era political campaigns to global ministries (leper colonies in Ethiopia), and meetings with Presidents, Rosa Parks, and Mother Teresa. The stories are stunning. The lessons learned: legendary.
This award-winning producer and leadership communications advisor explains: “Most leadership books teach external techniques. This one asks you to do harder work: to examine the story underneath the story. My hope is simple: that as you walk through these scenes with me,
you will begin to see leadership not as a title or a position, but as a narrative craft—one that shapes the people around you every day, whether you realize it or not.
“Every leader is a storyteller. And every story—yours included—has the power to move people to action.”
(Yikes—that got my attention because I know many leaders who are terrible storytellers. This is a must-read.)Scenes in the Leadership Stories:• The “Diag” rally on the lawn at the University of Michigan: The 1984 counter-rally to Walter Mondale’s presidential campaign visit.
Lesson learned: “I walked onto the Diag that morning as a volunteer. I walked away with the first hint that I might one day be a leader.”
• “People don’t follow data. They follow the story that makes the most sense of the moment they’re living in. Reagan gave the country a story of possibility. Kemp gave America a story of empowerment. Lousma gave Michigan a story of service and integrity.”
Lesson learned: “Watching them didn’t just inspire me. It taught me how influence actually works.”
The Presidential Motorcade Story (a memorable metaphor!)• Ever learned leadership as a driver in a presidential motorcade? Jeff Evans, then a student at the University of Michigan, attended a Secret Service briefing and then drove a vehicle in President Reagan’s motorcade.
Oh, my! •
Lesson learned: “Leadership moves like a motorcade. And the story established before anyone moves is what keeps the whole formation together.” Evans adds, “The story had been framed before anyone arrived. And that framing created the clarity that made the moment work.
You can feel when clarity is present. You can feel when it’s missing. It changes the air in the room. It changes the way people stand, the way they react, the way they absorb information.”
Pop Quiz: “Framing” the Story!Why read yet one more book on leadership? Because you’ll gain a new appreciation for how leaders “frame” the story. (
Pop Quiz: Write a one-sentence definition of what it means to "frame" a story. And no…you can’t ask AI.)
The author reveals fascinating examples of how the most effective leaders “frame” a story. (See Chapters 3, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, and 15.) Evans elaborates in Chapter 14, “Influence from Outside the Frame.” (Maybe my favorite chapter.)
“Leadership doesn’t always announce itself from the spotlight. More often, it works from the edges, from the places where framing happens and momentum is shaped. It lives in the voices that steady a chaotic moment, in the organizations that reassert their identity, in the candidates whose clarity alters the trajectory of a race even when they don’t win it.”
And this about a California legislator on his first day as party leader:
“His first act in office sent a message no one misunderstood. On day one, he released the entire support staff—every aide, every analyst, every administrator—and invited each of them to reapply for their positions. No automatic carry-overs. No protected roles. No assumptions.”
“Without a speech or a slogan, he communicated that a new culture was beginning—one where clarity of mission and unity of purpose were non-negotiable. It was his way of saying, ‘There’s a new sheriff in town,’ without ever needing to use the words.”Uncharacteristically (because I’m old school), I read this book on my Kindle—and, honest, I highlighted 344 quotes, passages, and take-aways. Way too many to include here (
you’re welcome!)—and I’m likely leaving out the content that
you may need the most for your current leadership situation—so another reason why you should read this book.
I loved these practical zingers from Chapter 3—perfect for your weekly staff meeting:• “When you name the moment in plain, human language,
people stop inventing private interpretations. They settle. They exhale. They can finally stand on the same ground.”
• “Role clarity doesn’t make teams rigid. It makes them free. It stops energy from leaking through overlap, hesitation, and quiet resentment.”
• “That kind of clarity isn’t micromanagement. It’s stewardship.”
•
“Most leaders don’t realize how often they speak in fog."• “Clarity is kindness.”
• “Clarity is not an accessory to leadership. It is the condition that makes leadership possible—and it begins in the unseen discipline of a leader who refuses to lead from fog.”
I was fascinated by the author’s Marine One stories. (In 2022, I posted my review of
Inside Marine One by Col. Ray "Frenchy" L'Heureux.) Jeff Evans expands on the leadership lessons learned from observing the team behind the president’s helicopter. Chapter 4 is must-read: “The Silent Language of Precision.”
•
“When tasks are rushed, when deadlines slide, when the small things are treated carelessly, people don’t merely notice the lapse; they feel it. Doubt creeps in. Confidence weakens. Teams become hesitant, unsure when the next misstep will appear.
Without ever intending to, the leader has created a secondary narrative, one that fights against the goals they’re trying to advance.” • “The pilot did not teach a class that day—no guidelines on leadership. Yet he delivered one of the clearest lessons of my life: precision steadies the people who are watching.”
•
“I’ve watched organizations over the years that struggled, not because they lacked talent or resources, but because precision had been treated as an accessory rather than a core part of the culture.” • “Teams flounder when they cannot sense steadiness above them.”
Chaos Is Contagious! • “Marine One didn’t leave me with an inspirational quote or an emotional surge. It left me with a standard. The lesson was simple, but it carried depth that I would grow into over the years: how you execute tells the story that people will believe.”
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“A leader can talk about excellence all day long. But only precision proves it.” • “Chaos, I learned early, is contagious.”
• “I’ve watched leaders inherit teams already worn thin—by broken promises, constant pivots, and years of inconsistency.
In those moments, speeches don’t help. Vision statements don’t heal fatigue. What changes the atmosphere is something far less dramatic: a pattern of steadiness. Small decisions handled well. Problems addressed without panic. Follow-through that doesn’t depend on applause.”
• “Morale doesn’t recover all at once. It returns quietly—the moment people stop bracing for the next misstep. The moment they realize the leader will show up the same way tomorrow as they did today.
The moment precision replaces unpredictability.”You’ll find another 300 relevant leadership lessons and insights from this award-winning author. Who should read this book first?
TO ORDER FROM AMAZON, click on the title for
Storytelling for Leadership & Influence: How Leaders Frame Meaning, Shape the Moment, and Rebuild When the Story Breaks, by Jeff Evans. And thanks to California State Senator
John M. W. Moorlach (Ret.) for recommending this book.
YOUR WEEKLY STAFF MEETING QUESTIONS:1) Each of the six sections of
Storytelling for Leadership & Influence concludes with perfect content and questions for your weekly staff meetings.
“Leadership Reflection” gives value-added reminders, and
“How to Apply This” ensures that leadership lessons are learned.
(Why don’t all books do this?) Example: In describing a ministry set-back in Ethiopia that required a “Plan B,”
the author asks us to answer three questions: 1) Name your mission in one sentence; 2) Name the current plan in one sentence; and 3) If the plan dies today, where does the mission still live—and what would faithfulness look like there? (Evans adds: “Plans break. Purpose relocates.”)
2) Jeff Evans warns,
“If you preach calm but respond with volatility, the room won’t remember your values. It will remember your temperature.” Assignment: Share a recent example of this principle. (Or listen to "
Being a Non-Anxious Presence" on
The Mentored Podcast, with Carson Pue and Ingrid and Chuck Davis. Or, read Day 13 in
Finding Courage.)
SECOND READS: Fresh Solutions From Classic BooksYou have changed—and your problems have changed—since you read this the first time!Book #42 of 99: The Church & The ParachurchFor your team meeting this week, inspire a team member to lead your “10 Minutes for Lifelong Learning” session by featuring Book #42 of 99 in our series, “Second Reads.” The big idea:
REREAD TO LEAD! Discover how your favorite books still have more to teach you and the people you’re coaching and mentoring.
The Church & The Parachurch:
An Uneasy Marriage
by Jerry White (1983)
Back in 2009, I wrote that many megachurches often look more like parachurches than "local churches." And in many "parachurches" today, I find that they are functioning more in tune with a biblical model of "church" than do many local churches. Yet there are excesses on both sides, some sad and some even hilarious. Many pastors still distrust parachurches—and block the doors. "All they want are my best volunteers and their money."
• Reviewed in Issue No. 148 (July 21, 2009)
•
Read my review on Amazon.
• Order from
Amazon.
• Management Bucket #2 of 20:
The Customer Bucket.
Jerry White’s book, published in 1983, is still relevant today—40 years later! I believe churches can learn from parachurches—and vice versa.
Update! In the foreword to the 2025 book from IVP,
Beyond Church and Parachurch, by Angie Ward, Jerry White writes that “little has changed, yet everything has changed.”
He adds, “Tensions still exist between local churches and mission movements (parachurch agencies). Theology, competition, money, and perception still pervade the landscape of the church.” He notes the “seismic changes in our culture and technology” and shrinking denominations, yet the growing megachurch movement. Hmmm. After rereading Jerry White’s 1983 book, let’s read this 2025 book about moving “From Competition to Missional Extension.”
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“If you have $10,000 to spend, invest $5,000 in researching and understanding the market.” That’s an insight from Bob Hisrich noted in The Customer Bucket chapter in Mastering the Management Buckets. See page 31, in the workbook, to learn why you must “Ask people what their real needs are, then shut up, and listen, listen, listen.” (Read more Hisrich insights here.)
IMPORTANT NOTICE! Effective Oct. 1, 2025, all 657 eNews issues, previously archived on Typepad.com are slowly (!) being moved to a new website here. New book reviews will also be archived at John Pearson’s Buckets Blog. Or, click here for John’s recent book reviews on Amazon.
Issue No. 658 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (Oct. 3, 2025) features a new book coming Oct. 7—describing the four seasons of a CEO. The “...