One Word Can Make the Difference

In the business of leadership, one word can make the difference. As a leader, you have one goal.  And that goal is to build relationships with people who are highly motivated to move in the direction that you and the organization are going.  So, how can just one word make a big difference?

I recently heard an executive give a speech to his team.  And, in that speech, he must have used the word “I” about seventeen times.  He told his team, “I handpicked you.” He told his team, “I have made commitments to the executive team of what we are going to accomplish.”  He stated, “I have done this before many, many times and I know I can do it again.” The challenge with the “I” word is it doesn’t build a relationship with people who are highly motivated to follow you to go help you accomplish those goals.  

One simple change would have helped him so much.  We can do this.  These are our goals.  Our team is stronger than the team has ever been in its history and I am so excited about our vision and what we can do.  So, switching just one word instead of saying “I” substitute “we,” you will make a huge difference as a leader.

A couple more points.  When do you use “I?” It’s really simple.  I screwed up. I didn’t handle this as good as I know I could have and I’m so grateful that you were there to help catch my mistake and fix this.  As a leader, you can use “I” and what you accomplish will probably be solely related to “I” because a lot of people may not be highly motivated to move in the direction you are going. But, when you use “we,” you really do express it’s us; it’s a team; let’s go do it.  I know we can.