The StoryBank

Send us Fan Mail What if failure was the secret ingredient to success? When most leaders shy away from mistakes, Sara Blakely—founder of Spanx—embraced them. And it’s not just her story that’s powerful; it’s the mindset behind it. Imagine leading a team where failure isn’t feared but celebrated. Where every setback is a stepping stone. Blakely’s journey isn’t just about building a billion-dollar b...

Send us Fan Mail In today's fast-paced business world, leaders are always on the lookout for the perfect formula for building high-performing teams. We focus on hiring the brightest talents, implementing cutting-edge processes, or investing in the latest technologies. Yet, as this story from Google's groundbreaking research reveals, the true secret to team excellence does not depend on w...

Send us Fan Mail In B2B sales, trust and credibility can often make or break a deal. But what if a small change in how you're introduced could dramatically boost your success? A groundbreaking experiment in 2005 uncovered a powerful, yet surprisingly overlooked, strategy that led to a 15% sales surge—all without altering products, pricing, or the sales team itself. The takeaway for B2B profes...

Send us Fan Mail Success isn't about one brilliant moment or a single exceptional metric. It's about creating a culture of relentless, holistic excellence where every single detail matters. Imagine a world where your team's performance can be predicted by a combination of things as simple as how well you organize your workspace, how you communicate, or how meticulously you approach...

Send us Fan Mail What if a mistake in your product wasn’t just a failure to fix but the very key to its success?  Some of the most groundbreaking innovations don’t come from flawless planning but from unexpected twists and surprising insights along the way. Imagine discovering that what you thought was a problem was actually the missing ingredient to delighting your customers and reshaping an indu...

Send us Fan Mail What if the relentless pursuit of your goals is blinding you to unexpected opportunities?  Conventional wisdom tells us to plan, to strategize, to chase our dreams with laser focused precision. But what if true magic happens when we loosen our grip? When we allow curiosity to whisper louder than our carefully constructed plans? This is a story that will make you question: Are you...

Send us Fan Mail In the quest for organizational transformation, leaders often try to change everything at once—culture, processes, metrics, and systems. But what if the key to massive change lies in focusing on just one critical habit? Sounds like magic right? Listen on and discover how simplicity in focus can lead to extraordinary outcomes For more #storiesatwork do subscribe to our YouTube chan...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever noticed how small, recurring issues can be overlooked in business until they escalate into larger challenges? Sometimes, we become so accustomed to these minor problems that we fail to see the real underlying issue. Why do we sometimes act like a frog who stayed pot of water being slowly heated. Perhaps being aware of this “routinization of deviance” can be the key t...

Send us Fan Mail Ever wonder why some people hit their goals while others miss by a mile? Here's a story with an unexpected ending. Picture two leaders gunning for the same crazy-big goal. One's got all the bells and whistles - fancy gear, a huge team, and a to-do list longer than your arm. He's not just aiming for the main prize; he's trying to tick off a bunch of other boxes...

Send us Fan Mail A recent experience at the building site of my new home reinforced the lesson of not missing the woods for the trees. It also reminded me of a beautiful story I heard from Mark Schenk almost a decade ago. A story about perspective and about focusing on what matters. Listen on. For more #storiesatwork do subscribe to our YouTube channel which has two playlists -  #StoryBank https:/...

Send us Fan Mail Harvard University Prof. Theodore Levitt famously said, "People don't want to buy a quarter-inch drill. They want a quarter-inch hole!”. Does your team know what problem are they really solving for the customers with the products/services they offer? Are they trying to sell a better drill when the customer really wants a more efficient way of creating a quarter inch hole...

Send us Fan Mail Sometimes it is the second half that truly matters. Ever seen your team allow a half-finished project gather dust? Or have you ever started a diet, only to give up after a week? We all know the feeling of 'half measures' - starting something with good intentions, but not quite seeing it through. Is there a way to incentivise the team, or yourself to ensure completion? Pe...

Send us Fan Mail Ever wondered what it takes to make a dream come true? What would you do if faced with the dilemma of selling out for a quick profit or sticking to your vision, even if it meant years of struggle and uncertainty? While this is a story about Frank Darabont and the making of The Shawshank Redemption, it is not just a tale of filmmaking, but a reflection of life's choices and th...

Send us Fan Mail Imagine being on the brink of achieving your lifelong dream, only to face the ultimate test of your resolve. Our 100th episode in the Story Bank brings you a tale of unwavering determination and the extraordinary power of staying true to your vision. Discover how Silvester Stallone’s refusal to compromise led to a legacy that continues to inspire. Dive into this incredible journey...

Send us Fan Mail Commenting on the 90 mins football players spend on the pitch during a game, the famous Dutch footballer Johan Cruyff once said, “It is statistically proven that players actually have the ball 3 minutes on average. So, the most important thing is: what do you do during those 87 minutes when you do not have the ball? That is what determines whether you are a good player or not.” Wh...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever been in a situation where you have tried very hard to share facts to correct misinformation and been frustrated with the outcome? Why do people continue to believe false information even after it's been corrected? We've all seen it happen: despite clear corrections and updated information, some people still cling to the original false story. What makes misi...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever wondered why Apple introduced white coloured earphones? Was the advice don’t follow the herd always sound advice? What is the relationship between the above two questions? To find out, listen on….. Listen to the story on The Diffusion Innovation here: https://bit.ly/DiffIn For more #storiesatwork do subscribe to our YouTube channel which has two playlists -  #StoryBa...

Send us Fan Mail Like most other people who had a successful education and a successful start to a career, I was always brimming with confidence. While that is a very useful state of mind in many situations, it also often has an uncomfortable fallout - the belief that I know and understand most things. On reflection, I can see that there have been several situations, especially in my younger days...

Send us Fan Mail It was May 2nd, 1972. A 22 year-old struggling musician called Bruce Springsteen is on his way to the office of a very famous producer. He was very nervous as he entered the elevator, but during his ride up he did something that turned him into a confident person. If you want to learn the trick then listen on. For more #storiesatwork do subscribe to our YouTube channel which has t...

Send us Fan Mail In the late 90’s a professor at Berkeley did an interesting experiment.  He got together a group of people with the same background, level of education and economic strata. Essentially a matched set of individuals. He then divided the subjects of the experiment into two halves. One half was given an old dented Mitsubishi and the other half was given a new luxurious Mercedes. Then...

Send us Fan Mail What is common between Thomas Edison and Micheal Jordan? Here is what each of them has said about their success. Thomas Edison, the inventor most renowned for his invention of the electric light bulb was often criticized for his relentless trials and errors, which many perceived as fruitless. He famously responded to his detractors by saying, “I have not failed. I've just fou...

Send us Fan Mail It was the second half of 1992. I was a student of the finishing school of sales and marketing funded by soaps and detergents - otherwise called  @Unilever   I was staying with a farmer in a village in Etah in the state of Uttar Pradesh along with another intern - Pankaj Seith who is today a good friend. This was the famous rural stint which was useful for a city dweller like me t...

Send us Fan Mail It’s the 2nd of June, 2010. The French Open is underway at the Ronald Garros in Paris. Novak Djokovic was seeded No 3 in this tournament and on this day he was playing the quarter final against Jurgen Melzer who was seeded 22. Djokovic was up two sets. In his career so far Djokovic had been up two sets up in 49 times and had won all 49. But today was different. He lost.  A few day...

Send us Fan Mail Have situations like these ever happened to you? (A) You land up at a doctor's clinic with atypical symptoms that do not immediately threaten your health. The doctor hears you out but rather than adopting a wait and watch strategy, the doctor might ask you to go through a battery of diagnostic tests and none of them yield any results. A few months later, the symptoms vanish o...

Send us Fan Mail Let’s say you are a marketing manager with a portfolio of 15 brands across three categories. Revenues are under pressure. You are thinking of what you should do. Say you have three choice (a) add a few more brands (b) kill a few brands (c) do nothing (yes, this is always a choice) What would you do? My guess is, that if we surveyed 100 brand managers, option (a) would have the hig...