Stone sorts through questions of leadership
FOR RELEASE: Monday, July 13, 2009
Huntington, Ind.-On June 25, the Huntington University Center for Leadership sponsored a luncheon featuring Dr. Mike Stone. Stone is the founder of Fort Wayne-based Impact Strategies Inc., a company whose clientele includes private and community foundations, United Ways, social services agencies, school systems and community development organizations. Stone's presentation was titled "Mindful Leadership: Getting Your Story Straight."
His lecture began with a quote from Harry Truman stating that "a leader is a person who has the ability to get other people to do what they don't want to do and like it."
Stone went on to discuss admirable qualities within a leader such as passion, leading from the heart; intellect, leading from the head; and authenticity, leading from the soul. These qualities then tied in to how stories relate to leadership.
Stone highlighted three kinds of stories presented by a leader. The first is the ordinary story in which a leader relates a traditional story in a new way. The second is the innovative story which "brings new attention to a latent story." The third is the visionary story which turns things upside down, and Stone pointed out that "we have the opportunity to craft stories in this manner."
Finally, Stone asked basic questions within leadership, explaining that the 'what,' 'how' and 'why' are standard questions, but the 'who' is often missing. He challenged his audience to ask "Who is the self that is leading?"
This event was part of a series of luncheons offered on the fourth Thursday of every month.
The Huntington University Center for Leadership is housed on the university's campus in the EXCEL Adult Degree Programs office. Under the leadership of Dr. Rick Upchurch, director of the EXCEL program, the CFL provides leadership training and resources to businesses, community leaders and pastors in northern Indiana.
