Keeping language clear and consistent during change
Keeping language clear and consistent during change
5 minutes
While delivery and nonverbal cues are key to conveying messages, the words we choose are equally powerful. Consistent language acts as a compass, guiding people toward the intended approach and direction. When the language used doesn’t align with the planned change, it can create confusion and derail progress, leading to misalignment.
As leaders bring others up to speed on organisational change, being clear and consistent about what kind of change is critical. Without this clarity, teams may fill in the gaps with their own assumptions, leading to confusion, uncertainty, and even panic.
Ultimately, a large part of success in organisational change is clear communication. For this to happen, it lies in how leaders communicate what type of change is happening and how consistent leaders are in using that language.
The change leader is regarded as a repairman. Hence, terms such as repair, adjust, and correct are aligned to this type of change.
The change leader sits as the trainer or coach. So, using language such as nurturing, growing, getting better, and improving are words that suit this type of change.
Here, the change leader is the planner. Moving forward, leaving the past behind, growing with/beyond the times may be used to communicate this.
The change leader is a visionary aiming to discover greater possibilities. To help your team visualise this, lean towards words such as reinvention, transformation, revising, and revamping.
