The language of leadership!

                                 Bill McFarlan: The language of leadership

Great leaders as well as great sales/service professionals are great communicators who speak in positives and use strong, committed language. They tell stories, use examples and ‘paint pictures’ to bring their communication to life. They speak with CLARITY and listen to understand.

• Be seen, be heard, be understood!

• Given the hybrid nature of the workforce and frequent use of video technology invest time to get your lighting, backdrop and position of your computer ‘right’.
• Look at the camera! (Smile please 😊 ).
• Work on your volume, pace and tone.
• Project energy and enthusiasm.
• Be a slow talker to avoid speaking so fast you leave people behind. Think Sir David Attenborough 

• The 6 language of leadership principles:

• The pyramid of communication
• Talk in pictures and avoid jargon
• Talk in positives (project confidence v fear) No PINK ELEPHANTS PLEASE
• Use commitment and avoid watering down words
• Give a direct answer to a direct question
• Use regret, reason, remedy to recover a situation

1. Using the pyramid of communication ensures you:

• Arrange your communication to start with what is most important
• Work out what is in it for THEM (as in the audience) W.I.I.F.T v WIIFMe
• Get to the point quickly
• e.g.Think of a newspaper headline - it is at the top! Do your emails read in this way or are your key messages buried in the body of your communication?
• Answer these 3 questions:
• What do I want to say?
• Who am I talking to?
• How do I arrange what I want to say?

2) Painting pictures in the mind of your audience:

• Creates clarity
• Think Eiffel Tower v a famous global landmark (less specific and you are in danger of different interpretations and therefore people taking different actions
• Avoid jargon as it means nothing to the customer/other party
• Build a ‘deck of cards’ - great stories/examples to add to your presentations, include in team meetings and bring customer conversations to life.
• What stories/examples are the aces in your pack?♦️♠️♥️
• Make sure your stories and examples are RELEVANT

3) Pink Elephants:

• Say what you mean
• Speak in positives (express confidence)
• Avoid negatives (often based on your fears)
• Are we putting the wrong images in people’s minds?
• If you say ‘don’t think of a pink elephant’ you do!
• ‘I am not being negative but……’ (you are)
• ‘Don’t mess this up……….’ (there is more chance I will)
• I am being critical but………’ (you are)
• ‘Don’t go on the road’ v ‘stay on the pavement’
• 2 great bridges to use are:
• Only by……
• Yet to………

4) Use committed not watering down words:

• I truly believe
• I firmly believe
• Our commitment is
• My clear goal is
• I am determined to
• My clear ambition for this team/business is
• These expressions express confidence and belief.
• Where as these expressions are wishy-washy and lack commitment:
• I’ll try
• I’ll do my best
• hopefully, possibly, relatively, maybe
• I think (v I truly or firmly believe)

5) Direct answer to a direct question:

• Yes
• No
• I don’t know (followed by ‘what I do know is…….’)
• It’s too early to say
• I can only speak for (myself/my team/my department)
• Give a direct answer and then redirect to something you do know and are confident to speak about.
• No, build a bridge, make your point and STOP! ✋
• You can’t listen your way out of a sale but you can talk yourself out of a sale.
• eg ‘Do you believe your policies are too expensive?’ ‘No. What I do believe is that our policies provide the broadest range of cover with simple and easy to understand exemptions and a fabulous track record of successful claims. Let me give you a recent example………….’

6) How to recover a situation:

• Regret (I am sorry………)
• Reason (What has happened is……..)
• Remedy (so what I am going to do next is………)

•  ★Some concluding thoughts:

• Seek first to understand
• It takes time and experience to learn the art of being brief - practice!
• Less can be more!
• Communicate so a 9-11 year old can understand you
• Be positive and be committed
• Listen to understand v listen to respond
• End every email with a call to action
• SIMPLIFY - CLARIFY - MAGNIFY