Leading Through Language

15 THE LANGUAGE OF LEADERSHIP IS…CONFIDENT

Confident language is a necessity when you're closing a deal. Here's a cautionary tale illustrating that point. Steve, a senior manager in a major accounting firm, was focused on privately held companies. He felt his accounting firm should expand their work with those companies, and he pitched the idea to his bosses.

“I'm sorry to be taking you away from your clients because I know this is a busy time and you are all swamped.”

He paused. The Partners looked at each other. One said, “You're right, so I hope this won't take long!”

“Oh, don't worry, it won't,” said Steve, laughing awkwardly. “It's just that there may be something you'd want to know about the private company market. I could be wrong on this one, but I think we might have just a bit more upside there if we'd focus our efforts on these companies rather than competing for the tightly contested public market business. But in the end I know you all probably know way more about this than I do….”

There was a pause. One of the Partners replied, “Well, Steve, I'm sure you've done some good work but we do feel we know more on this one, so let's just stick with our strategy for now.”

The meeting wrapped up and Steve went away crestfallen that his audience hadn't wanted to hear more.

Steve's story is an example of the pitfalls of using language that suggests you lack confidence in your ideas. His audience was not fully to blame for not drawing him out. They listened to the words he ...