Leadership from the Inside Out, 3rd Edition

CHAPTER TWO

STORY MASTERY

Leading with Inspiration

Stop for a moment and visualize basketball great Shaquille O’Neal—a monumental professional athlete, 7 feet tall, 300 pounds of muscle, and wearing a billboard-size neon smile—alongside his legendary college coach, Dale Brown—older, past his prime, more than a foot shorter, sagging a bit in the middle, and sporting his own, more diminutive grin. It’s hard not to be amused, isn’t it? They were an odd, comical-looking duo. But despite their superficial contrasts, these two men, player and coach, shared what I think of as an unexpected love story.

I became aware of their sweet, endearing connection and compelling love for each other while I was watching an ESPN documentary. As the story unfolded, ...