Words Matter

Employee engagement as well as their sense of belonging and purpose will depend on how effective you communicate.
In your communication be deliberate about how you say things, not just what you are trying to say.
If I say that a piece of meat is 90% lean as opposed to saying it has 10% fat, it will be perceived as being healthier than the 10% fat option.
By reflecting on how you frame and say something, you are impacting how others perceive your message.
Some possible words to avoid or re-frame in communications:
WE: often used to motivate an employee to do something.
Use I and YOU instead to clarify the appropriate ownership without compromising the original purpose.
BUT: makes everything that precedes it meaningless. Use AND instead to get your point across or re-phrase appropriately.
WHY: carries judgment. “Why did you do that?” may be interpreted as “Don't do that!”, even though your intent is to simply understand what happened.
RESPONSIBILITY: often gets used when you are really attributing ownership. As the leader, you are ultimately responsible. However, you can hold your employee accountable!
NO PROBLEM: often used to say: “It was my pleasure” or “Happy to help”. However, by saying "no problem" we signal that there could have been a problem.
I HAVE TO: By replacing “I have to” with “I get to“, it sends a message that indicates our pleasure to serve.