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Preface The great enemy of communication, we find, is the illusion of it. —William H. Whyte1 As a “thinking manager,” you undoubtedly want to become a better story- teller or presenter. I wrote this book with you in mind. Whether you are a newcomer to leadership, a seasoned speaker, a senior executive, or some- one who wants to rise in prominence or rank, I will help you improve your ability to tell your customers stories about the benefits that your products or services bring to their lives. The techniques are also applicable to many other audiences, including colleagues, suppliers, distributors, job inter- viewers, and the press. For many decades I have devoted my full attention to storytelling. In every article or script I wrote as a print and broadcast journalist, every commercial video I produced, every consulting session I have ever con- ducted, I have dedicated myself to improving narrative skills—my own and, most important, my clients’. Many people envy those who seem “nat- ural” in front of an audience. They were just born with that innate talent, right? Wrong. Those who make it look easy work very, very hard behind the scenes. There is a myth, for instance, that Abraham Lincoln wrote the Gettysburg Address on the train from Washington to the cemetery in Pennsylvania. As Garry Wills tells us, however, in an entire book dedi- cated to the speech, the 16th president was generally a slow writer, honing sentences to smooth perfection.2 (We’ll revisit this later.) In the modern era, many regard Bill Clinton (in his prime) as a great orator. Yet we forget that his speech nominating Michael Dukakis at the Democratic National Convention in 1988 was so boring and so long-winded that the audi- ence applauded when he finally said, “And, in closing.” Plus, we must