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The Story Hijack

(This post is available as a podcast episode. Click here if you prefer listening.)

You’re in the exec meeting. You finally have the floor and share a story you’ve chosen carefully, something that proves a point, that shows what’s really going on.

But halfway through, a colleague jumps in: “Oh, that reminds me of when we…”

And suddenly, it’s their story. Their airtime.
Your point vanishes into thin air.

So frustrating, isn’t it? “Why do they always have to hijack the story just to make themselves look smart?”

Honestly, it stings. It can feel like they’re trying to undercut you.

But are they?

Here’s what might be going on:
In leadership teams, airtime is currency.
It signals relevance, influence, status.

So when someone hijacks your story, it’s not necessarily to undercut you. Often, it’s a move to prove they belong. It’s insecurity wrapped in performance.

And if we’re honest, it’s not even unusual.
Every one of us has done it at some point.

You hear a story, it triggers one of your own, and you can’t resist. You jump in to contribute, to connect, to show you’ve got something valuable too.

Seen through that lens, the hijack is less about malice and more about need. The need to be heard. The need to be seen.

So what do you do?

You don’t win by fighting for airtime harder. You win by using your airtime to turn the spotlight around.

Instead of keeping it on yourself, you point it forward.
Onto the team. Onto the path ahead.

Making them feel seen. Nurturing a sense of belonging.

As long as airtime feels like it’s about individuals, people will fight for it. But when you turn it toward the group, the fight disappears.

Because when people feel the spotlight includes them, they stop grabbing for it.

Keep lighting the path!

PS: Join us tomorrow for an exclusive live session on How to Lead with Clarity, even when “the system” doesn’t seem to want it.

Surrounded by incompetence


Ever been in that meeting?
You ask a simple clarifying question.
And suddenly you feel like you’ve stepped on a landmine.

The Diva glares.
Sighs.
Rolls their eyes.
And makes you feel like asking was a crime.

Which it was, of course, not.

The worst thing you can do now is defend yourself.

A Diva’s outburst is about them, not you.
Their ego.
Their need to look untouchable.

To protect that they’re putting on a show.

So they can step into the starlight and appear untouchable, the one who “sees through” everyone else.

If you jump in to defend yourself, you are playing exactly the role they want you to play.

You are on their stage.
You play their game.
A game you can’t win.

The more you explain or justify, the brighter their starlight gets and the deeper you sink in that unforgiving spotlight with all eyes on you.

The better move is simple:
Don’t play.

Let their comment hang there without fuel.

And then gently direct the conversation back to the work.
Let everyone see that this is not about ego.
It’s about progress.

Have you met a Diva?
How do you deal with them?

Keep lighting the path!

The Diva


Are you there when it matters most?
The Diva has their very own definition of what that means.

They show up when the spotlight is brightest.
Not when the work is hardest.

They arrive just in time to claim the credit.
But somehow never in time to carry the weight.

You’ll hear them say things like:
→ “It was my vision all along.”
→ “I gave the final push.”
→ “They couldn’t have done it without me.”

But of course, they weren’t there when:
→ The team wrestled through dead ends.
→ The deadline loomed and no answers came.
→ People showed up for each other when no one was watching.

The Diva skips the struggle.
But they love the stage.

And if you’re not careful, they’ll rewrite the story.
Turning the team’s grit into their genius.

But the real problem is … it stops being about the work.

Suddenly, it’s about who gets the spotlight.
And that’s when progress stalls.

How do you keep the focus on progress when The Diva shows up?

What’s worked for you?

Keep lighting the path!

PS: Image created with ai

Space to share

In conversations, do you notice when people light up?

It’s rarely because of what you said. It’s because you created space for them to share, to feel valued, to be themselves.

The divas who seek the spotlight will never get there.
They prefer the spotlight for themselves.
Leaving no room for others to shine.

These moments are reserved for those who know when to step back and give space.

Keep lighting the path!

Deeper conversations

When you speak, what matters more:
Their admiration — or their trust?

A catchy phrase might impress someone for the moment.

But the best words don’t leave people impressed.
They leave people understood.

“Look at me” grabs the spotlight.
“I see you” turns it onto them. It invites connection.

Guess which one leads to a deeper conversation?

Now, what would change in your conversations if you prioritized connection over cleverness?

Keep lighting the path!

What Rocky teaches us about business storytelling

Almost everyone has been Rocky at one point in their life.

You just knew that you have what it takes … if only the world was at bit more fair and didn’t throw all the mess at you while treating the already big fish with (even more) money, (even more) relationships, and (even more) luck.

When someday luck would call you – just like Apollo did with Rocky to give him the opportunity to fight for the world championship, you’d prove that.

Haven’t you been Rocky? You knew that if only luck would call you to give you the opportunity to show the world that you really have what it takes, you would prove them right? Just like Rocky did? (I know that many of you actually have.)

That’s why Rocky resonates with so many people – even those who would never watch a real boxing fight. It’s not the boxing why people love Rocky. It’s the journey.

Rocky, just like any good story, is a canvas, a canvas we project ourselves on. We look at the hero, but it’s us who we see. If it’s a great story, we derive lessons from what we see and implement them for our own lives.

The same principle works for business stories.

Unfortunately, most business stories work rather differently. They are not designed as a canvas but as a spotlight. A rather bright one, in fact, so that the audience can appreciate the hero and cheer for them.

The problem with that is that audiences already have a hero to root for: themselves. They don’t need you to replace that hero.

A better way to tell a business story is to think of it as a canvas so that – even while we’re speaking about ourselves – it’s the customer who recognizes themselves in the story.

Can you point to a business story that does that for you? I’d love to hear it!

Spread the Word

Picture of Dr. Michael Gerharz

Dr. Michael Gerharz