The hidden power of what you say – and what you don't

This week in What I've been reading: Leadership is Language by L. David Marquet

Feb 14, 2025

Most of us want to be the kind of leader who empowers our team, who helps our people learn and grow, and who creates a culture where people thrive and deliver their best work. But does our language and choice of words reflect that?

Leadership is Language offers a framework to understand the impact of what we say (and what we don’t), and a playbook to communicate in a way that we can draw out the best from our teams. L. Marquet encourages us all to drop the inflexible, command and control language that is still the norm in many cultures, and embrace the language of learning, collaboration and creative thinking. That may only require a subtle rephrase at times, yet the impact is far reaching.

Full of stories and practical examples, this book will help you harness the power of your words to create high performing teams and cultures.

Image shows a book being held, the book is called Leadership is Language and is by L. David Marquet

What’s it all about then?

Leadership is Language is based around three core concepts.

The first is exactly as the title of the book states – that leadership is language. Much of the language still used in leadership originates from the era of industrialisation, based on command and control, and a world where those in charge do the thinking, and those who aren’t simply do what they’re told.

Prompted by an incident early on in L. Marquet’s command of a then failing submarine, the USS Santa Fe, where the crew passed on an order that was non-sensical and impossible to fulfil, the author had his own realisation about the need to shift our language:

Replacing ‘a reactive language of convince, coerce, comply and conform with a proactive language of intent and commitment to action.’
Replacing ‘a language of “prove and perform” with a language of “improve and learn”.’
Replacing “a language of invulnerability and certainty with a language of vulnerability and curiosity.'

This thread runs through this book, and is explored in depth in L. David Marquet’s first book, Turn the Ship Around, which tells the story of the incredible turnaround in performance on the USS Santa Fe from this relatively simple change.

The second key concept in the book is the distinction between so-called bluework and redwork. Bluework is thinking and decision-making, work that embraces variability and is rooted in curiosity. Redwork is the doing, the execution, the work that is about reducing variability.

Each type of work is identifiable not just in terms of what we are actually doing, but in the language we are using in that moment. Redwork sounds like: “let’s make this happen”, “Are we on track?” or “Are you sure?”. It is rooted in certainty, control and compliance, and the language does not invite challenge. Answers are often yes/no, and in redwork conversations the person in charge is usually doing most of the talking.

In contrast, bluework sounds like: “How do you see this?”, “How sure are you?”, “What am I missing?” or “What can we do better?”. The language and phrasing are based in curiosity, openness, creativity and vulnerability. It requires deeper thought, and takes time. Discussions are usually more balanced, with greater contributions across the group.

To be clear, it’s not that redwork is bad and bluework is good. Both have their place. If following a detailed, safety-critical procedure we are aiming to eliminate variability and stay resolutely in redwork, and that’s a good thing. But if we stay in redwork all the time, or more specifically, our language does, then when we’re trying to draw out creative or challenging thinking from our teams it simply won’t work.

Being successful in this context is about being able to balance the two ways of working, and understand when and how to transition between the two. This is the focus of the third key concept in the book, the New Playbook for Leaders. Here, L. David Marquet lays out six new leadership approaches, and contrasts them with the older, more familiar approaches that exist today. These “plays” (using the language of a playbook from sport) also work together to reveal “…an underlying approach that oscillates between action and reflection, doing and deciding.”

They’re summarised in this excellent graphic (you can zoom in or enlarge in the Substack app):

The New Playbook for Leaders, © Intent-Based Leadership International LLC

You can find more detailed summaries of each, including suggested phrases for making the shift, on a set of one-pagers available here. They’re well worth a read.

Above all this book is about paying attention to our language, and considering its impact, a topic very close to my own heart and one I talk about a lot in Do Sweat the Small Stuff. As L. Marquet says:

“After all, what is leadership but language? As I changed the way I communicated with the rest of the crew, it affected the way they communicated with me and with each other. Changing the way we communicate changed the culture. Changing the culture transformed our results. Changing our words changed our world.”

What are the highlights?

There are two things that reliably make me enjoy any kind of business book. First, stories, and second, practical examples. This book has plenty of both.

The opening story, of the the ill-fated cargo ship El Faro on it’s journey from Florida to Puerto Rico, immediately brings the ideas to life. Sharing the precise words spoken between the Captain and crew shows how easily our language can set the tone, and set us on a disastrous course. Literally in this case.

There are stories peppered throughout the book, including some which run through multiple chapters which illustrate the different leadership plays in a real world context.

The sample phrases and conversations are valuable too. They bring out the nuances in phrasing and choice of words that can make a substantial difference. One more reason to sweat the small stuff, because that small stuff has a big impact.

I appreciated that emotion was addressed throughout. It would have been easy to write a book like this and simply focus on the practicalities of what to say. Recognising the importance of emotion in our communication and decision-making, and discussing trust, vulnerability, social distance and power gradients (and their impact) added depth to the points made.

Anything you didn’t like?

If you’re familiar with agile leadership, you may not find much that’s new in here, though the practical application and examples are still helpful. The core ideas share a lot with that philosophy, based around communication, commitment and collaboration.

A niggle had throughout the book was an emphasis on hierarchical organisations – probably unsurprising given the author’s background. For me it leads to some points feeling over-simplified where the distinction between leaders and do-ers – between ranks? – is less clear cut in many organisations.

My only other health warning is that it is, of course, fairly American in style and language. While this makes a few of the example phrases a little clunky (from my British perspective) it doesn’t affect the points being made. They just require some cultural translation at times!

Why should I read it?

It’s a powerful and practical reminder of how much our language as leaders sets the tone. This is a call-to-action to pay far more attention to our impact through what we say, and harness that as a force for good.

Have you read it? What do you think of the concepts I’ve described? Join the conversation by leaving a comment below:

Mastering micro-interactions as a leader

I recently recorded an episode of the Influence and Impact for Female Leaders podcast with Carla Miller. If you’d like to learn more about micro-interactions, their nuances and their impact, here’s the link to listen. There’s lots in there very closely connected with L. Marquet’s book.

We explored:

What is the ‘small stuff’ and why should leaders sweat it?
What are micro-interactions and why do they mater so much?
How important it is for leaders to recognise that their job is their people;
Becoming more conscious of the impact of both the content and delivery of our words;
The ways in which many leaders unconsciously create a team culture through their behaviour; and
Top tips for making every interaction count in a positive way.

Let me know what you think!