Leadership Is Language

How can we reshape the way we lead to fit our modern, fast-changing world?

1. Outdated Language Shapes Outdated Leadership

Most leadership language stems from the Industrial Age, dividing work into thinkers and doers. This rigid model limits creativity and collaboration in today's workplace. Deciders make choices; doers execute them, reinforcing an unnecessary hierarchy.

Rules from over a century ago, like those in Frederick Winslow Taylor’s 1911 book The Principles of Scientific Management, stifle innovation. Taylor’s rigid standards, like prescribing exactly 21 pounds for shoveling materials, may have worked for steel workers but don’t apply to the complex, adaptive environments we operate in today.

Modern workplaces require adaptability and diverse perspectives, but if leaders rely on old, top-down communication, they miss contributions from their team. This results in inefficiency, poor decision-making, and lost opportunities for innovation.

Examples

• Taylor’s shoveling rule prioritized efficiency above all else—irrelevant in creative workspaces.
• Hierarchical airline communication has contributed to avoidable crashes when copilots hesitated to question captains.
• The captain of El Faro used command-driven language, which discouraged his crew from speaking up during the hurricane.

2. Leadership Must Move Beyond Deterministic Thinking

Old leadership patterns reflect oversimplified yes/no, deterministic language. Such language limits critical thinking and can have damaging effects, especially in high-stakes situations.

For instance, the tragic sinking of the El Faro is partly attributed to its captain’s overly binary language. Statements like “We’ll be fine” left no room for discussion or alternative perspectives. Crew members, sensing the closed-off tone, refrained from raising concerns or suggesting changes during the hurricane.

Encouraging open-ended thinking promotes collaboration. Leaders who avoid deterministic dialogue invite a broader range of ideas, stimulating carefully considered decisions rather than blind compliance to predetermined choices.

Examples

• The El Faro disaster stemmed indirectly from binary language like, “We are going to stay this course.”
• Asking “How sure are we?” fosters discussion, while “Are you sure?” shuts it down.
• Pilots who openly discuss risks have been shown to make safer decisions under pressure.

3. Traditional Leadership Fails in Fast-Paced Environments

Today’s world moves faster than the Industrial Age could have ever anticipated. Static leadership models focus on control and compliance, yet this approach makes companies unprepared to respond to rapid change.

In modern industries, adaptability drives success. Delayed responses, like on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig, highlight the dangers of outdated leadership. While hydrocarbons spilled for nine minutes, bridge operators hesitated to act without managerial approval, wasting precious decision-making time.

Teams need empowerment, not micromanagement. They must feel entrusted to take initiative, helping organizations stay flexible and innovative amidst swiftly changing conditions.

Examples

• The Deepwater Horizon explosion happened because operators waited for permission rather than acting decisively.
• Ford took decades to evolve from handmade cars to assembly lines, but Tesla’s innovations occur in months.
• El Faro’s captain failed to take weather developments into account due to rigid pre-trip decisions.

4. Everyone Should Think, Not Just Follow

Leadership should blur the lines between thinkers and doers. When leaders encourage collaborative decision-making, employees feel engaged and invested in outcomes.

Francis Galton’s 1906 country fair experiment proves this principle: the crowd’s averaged guesses of an ox’s weight were alarmingly close to the correct figure. Groups outperform individual experts when everyone contributes equally. Diverse thoughts and insights enrich decisions.

This approach also increases job satisfaction. Employees with more autonomy feel inspired and are much less likely to burn out. Collaboration creates not only better ideas but also more motivated teams.

Examples

• Galton discovered that group averages often match or exceed expert guesses.
• Employees with decision-making autonomy burn out less frequently.
• Brainstorming sessions yield superior results when all participants contribute freely.

5. Language Should Empower Participation

Small shifts in language encourage people to speak up. Instead of commanding others, ask for their input. This creates psychological safety and makes individuals feel their voices matter.

For example, when a CEO rephrased “Tell me if you need me” to “On a scale from zero to five, how helpful would it be if I came to the site?” during a troubled project, the project leader felt more comfortable saying “five.” The CEO’s adjustment led to better collaboration and successful problem-solving.

Open questions improve team morale and unlock creativity. Simple tweaks—like turning instructions into a conversation—can make all the difference.

Examples

• A CEO earned better feedback during a crisis by asking a scaled question rather than dictating decisions.
• Open-ended inquiries, such as “What am I missing?” promote deeper discussions.
• Leaders who talk less create space for employees to contribute.

6. Stop Clock-Watching—Pause and Reflect

Many workplaces prioritize uninterrupted action, but great leaders intentionally plan pauses. Instead of rushing through tasks, they schedule breaks for reassessment.

On El Faro, no space existed for mid-journey reflection. If its crew had stopped periodically to evaluate weather changes, they could have adjusted their course. Modern leadership requires "controlling the clock"—actively scheduling discussion points to evaluate progress and decisions.

Pausing isn’t about slowing down production; it’s about preventing costly mistakes. Reevaluating during work ensures better solutions and adaptable teams.

Examples

• El Faro's rigid adherence to its early plan led to a catastrophic outcome.
• In agile companies, “sprint retrospectives” build progress checks into workflows.
• Successful leaders stop and reframe issues, reassessing decisions where needed.

7. Diverse Perspectives Drive Better Decisions

Teams often fail to generate diversity of thought because dominant voices overshadow quieter ones. But great leaders structure discussions to foster variability.

During a leadership seminar, senior executives shaped their group’s decisions by offering the first guess, which set an anchoring bias. By collecting individual, anonymous responses first, leaders avoid groupthink and encourage unique contributions.

Diversity strengthens decisions. Leaders should celebrate different opinions, even actively inviting dissent to drive team innovation.

Examples

• Card-based dissent systems, as used in the author’s workplace, create safer spaces for disagreements.
• Anonymous brainstorming encourages quieter employees to speak.
• Asking “What did you see that I didn’t?” inspires confidence in team members’ input.

8. Motivate Through Commitment, Not Compliance

Directive management results in employees doing the bare minimum—checking off boxes without passion. Commitment, fueled by personal ownership or curiosity, inspires enthusiasm.

When a person reframes “I can’t do this” as “I don’t do this,” intrinsic motivation takes over. Similarly, teams engaged in problem-solving will outperform those merely following orders. The focus should be on learning and improving, not proving skills or outputs.

Leaders create commitment by chunking work into phases. Periodic reviews maintain excitement while preventing over-attached thinking.

Examples

• New Year’s resolutions succeed when reframed from “I can’t” to “I don’t.”
• Toxic compliance culture on Deepwater Horizon hindered proactive safety checks.
• Team check-ins allow reevaluation before goals overly anchor decision-making.

9. Celebrate Completion—Don’t Work Indefinitely

Unfinished work creates mental stress and detracts from quality. Breaking goals into smaller steps with clear endpoints allows leaders and their teams to celebrate progress and reassess before continuing.

At the 2017 Oscars, presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway adhered to Industrial Age “keep it moving” thinking. If they’d paused to review their mistake—announcing the wrong Best Picture winner—the fiasco might have been avoided.

Celebration also helps teams recharge. When workers feel acknowledged for completing tasks, they’re more likely to stay motivated and creative moving forward.

Examples

• Oscars presenters hesitated to pause their announcement, worsening confusion.
• Pausing to celebrate small achievements activates motivation for upcoming work.
• Defined steps break complex projects into manageable successes, boosting morale.

Takeaways

1. Replace closed prompts with open-ended questions like, “What are your thoughts?” to encourage honest input.
2. Plan mid-project pauses to reflect on and reassess decisions, avoiding tunnel vision.
3. Build psychological safety on your team by inviting ideas and dissent without judgment.