Some leaders are exceptionally talented at narrating problems out of existence. A real issue quietly shapeshifts into a more comfortable story: weak products become “sales challenges,” high turnover turns into “refreshing the ranks,” misalignment is reframed as “strong personalities,” and mediocrity gets a glossy rebrand as “cutting-edge.” The language changes—but the reality doesn’t.

In situations like these, I avoid arguing with words. Instead, I use images.

I’ll put up a single slide and ask one question: “What does this picture represent?”
That moment—when interpretation replaces defense—changes everything.

Over the years, this has included images such as:

• Two teams laying railway tracks from opposite directions that never meet

• People stepping off a building

• A preacher addressing a sleeping congregation, with some congregants actively “sinning” in the pews.

• A turd on the table that no one wants to acknowledge

The pictures do the work. They bypass rationalizations, surface what everyone already knows, and create space for honest, productive conversation.

It’s a simple technique—and remarkably effective.

Example

A picture of a torture chamber elicited the truth: this is the way we treat our clients, despite the verbiage of how much we “love” them

Two fat people having a big lunch whilst everyone else gets a few carrots : the CEO and the CFO are the only people who make decisions

A jail cell brings up murmurings of safely code violations