When I made the transition from working with hyper growth startups to F500 innovation teams, I noticed something strange: brilliant ideas were dying—not because they lacked merit, but because leadership [and budget owners] couldn’t see themselves in the story of change.
Entrepreneurs get the vision from jump; it’s their idea after all. Convincing customers is the challenge.
For innovators, Their approvals got slow rolled. Or the powers that be thought they needed “more research.”
Executives don’t just need to see your idea. They need to see their role in it.
That’s where the Bridge Story comes in.
The Bridge Story connects the dots between the last big transformation your leaders championed and the new frontier you’re asking them to cross.
Here’s the formula I teach in every Innovation Storytelling workshop:
- Start with a familiar past challenge the company overcame.
- Show how leadership made it happen.
- Draw a clear line to your current idea.
- End with the bridge: “You led the way before—this is your next big opportunity.”
Let me give you an example.
When I was working with a global insurance innovation team, their executive sponsor was hesitant to move to AI-based claims processing. Too risky, too new, too many unknowns.
One product manager said, “Remember when we switched to digital claims? That felt impossible too—but you led the charge, and it made us industry leaders. This is that moment again.”
And just like that, the lightbulb went on. Leadership could see themselves in the story of progress. They recognized that risk taking, grounded in past successes, was the emotional connection necessary to get from inaction to enterprise wide momentum.
They crossed the bridge—and said yes.
If your leaders can’t see themselves in the future, remind them of the last time they built it.See you on the bridge