“The Big Picture” essentially is a serious business book that was written with what we hope is a light touch - and one that we think is extremely timely.  One of our central premises for the book is that every business can be a better one if the people running it know how to create a narrative that appeals to customers, employees and suppliers.  If you know how to tell a story, it becomes easier to get everybody on the same page, and if everybody is on the same page, it is easier to work together toward the same goal.  But if your employees think that your business is about one set of priorities, and your suppliers believe it is about another, and customers don’t have a basic understanding of what your business is about philosophically, it is hard to have a strategic approach to business progress and innovation.

When you use well known stories to illustrate your company’s core narratives, then it becomes easier to communicate with people.  Movies are part of our cultural mythology - they provide common touch points that everybody can relate to. 

Interestingly, since the book has come out, one of the common responses we’ve gotten is that “these aren’t business lessons - these are life lessons.”  And that’s true.  I think you can apply many of the lessons in the book to almost every situation - personal relationships, politics, government, education, etc...

If you are in a situation where you are preparing for a presentation, or pulling together a strategy to deal with a competitive threat, you might at some point feel like your plans and personnel are inadequate to the task, or not performing to their potential.  That’s when you can cite “Jaws” as an example...it is a movie that most people have seen, and if you use the shark as a metaphor, it creates a narrative that may be more compelling and actionable.

Or, “The Bridge On The River Kwai” is about the difference between thinking tactically and strategically, and the importance of understanding the long-term implications of short-term decisions.

A little inspiration is good for the soul. And even the bottom line.

Read an excerpt here or click below for ordering instructions and more information on this exciting book.