Listen to how often you say “my team” versus “our team.” People hear the difference before you do.
LEADERSHIP
WHAT THIS MEANS
Small possessive words leak an attitude you may not have noticed yourself holding. One version places you above the group and the other places you inside it, and people register that difference instantly even if they never mention it. Language is not the cause of the attitude, but it is an honest readout of it.
Listen back to yourself for a week, in messages as well as speech. If the ownership words keep appearing, the fix is not vocabulary. Look at whether you truly think of the group’s wins as shared, and start there.
A QUESTION TO SIT WITH
How often do you speak about the group as yours alone?
MORE IN LEADERSHIP & INFLUENCE
- When the whole crew is hyped on a dumb idea, the bravest move is offering a better one that still sounds fun.
- Good leaders absorb the pressure from above so the team can focus below. Be the umbrella, not the drain.
- Punish someone for telling you the truth once and you’ll only hear good news forever. That’s how ships sink.
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