What leaders need to say (and not say)
How a leader talks to his or her team can either spur them to success or hinder their development. We control how we respond and verbalize our thoughts, so itâÂÂs up to us to act wisely.
To make it easier, Inc.com gives a list of phrases and challenges the reader to try to say each of them daily to at least one person. The list includes:
- âÂÂThis is the situation.â Let people know whatâÂÂs going on.
- âÂÂWhat do you need?â These four words let people know that you care about them and want to see them maximize their potential.
- âÂÂTell me more.â When we are quiet we are likely to hear more ideas from others.
- âÂÂI trust you.â DonâÂÂt have people on your team that you donâÂÂt trust.
Another phrase I think is important to use when necessary: âÂÂI was wrong.â A leadership article on LinkedIn states that being upfront and honest and admitting youâÂÂre wrong to your team will only lead to greater mutual respect.
While these, and more, are phrases we should put into practice, there are also some phrases we should stop using â immediately.
CBSNews.com lists seven of them. Here are a few:
- âÂÂDonâÂÂt take this wrong but â¦â Before you start to speak, make sure you can articulate well what you are trying to say.
- âÂÂItâÂÂs not my fault.â Leaders need to take responsibility when things go wrong.
- âÂÂThatâÂÂs just the way I am.â If you want your team to grow and change, you need to lead by example.
I, too, must continue to work on incorporating more of these phrases into my everyday speech and weeding others out.