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14 Business Phrases to Strengthen Your Presence

Working through a corporate system to grasp different styles of how others communicate, listen, and influence remain difficult for many people until they’re poked hard enough or have an epiphany..

I recently came across an odd book, The Leader Phrase Book, 3000 Phrases to Lead By.. Since a phrase isn’t even a cogent sentence, I was curious. It has list after list of phrases for all sorts of situations, rejoinders from the mild to the absurd. But as I thought about it, such a phrase book has merit. I’ve often observed those in leadership roles often fall back on certain phrases when faced with a challenge; it allows them cover without fumbling over their reply, and lets them more confidently fend off a verbal joust. That comes with practice.

We all need such arsenals instead of getting tongue-tied and saying nothing (which, let me quickly add, is sometimes the best reply). I went through the book, inevitably with a degree of repetitive phrases, culled and edited a few useful phrases-you can sketch out the settings:

[list style=”circle”]

  • “Let’s keep this professional, we don’t need to escalate it further.”
  • “I respect your point of view and value your opinion, but that’s not the way I see it.”
  • “No insult intended, of course, but these numbers don’t add up, and not sure what we’re aiming for. Can we clarify it now?”
  • “I’m sorry-you seem distracted. Am I not getting through to you?”
  • “Are you open to taking on some additional work?” (If “yes”, fine, but if “no”, a possible retort could be:)
  • “Sure, but can we now clearly prioritize the other 4 tasks you’ve given me?”
  • “Let’s take a breather and regroup when we’re all calmer and more civil; arguing is pointless.”
  • “I’m surprised you said that-could you please rephrase it now?”
  • “I’m sure you didn’t mean that the way it came out, did you?”
  • “Excuse me for asking, but why are you speaking to me like that?”
  • “Please let me finish and then you’ll have the floor, I promise.”
  • “It’s good we don’t see eye to eye-keeps things interesting.”
  • “You gave me a lot to think about, and thanks for taking the time to tell me.”
  • “I’m glad you brought that up, it’s an excellent/interesting/provocative point.”

    • [/list]

    None of these will make you a “leader.” You can see the ones I picked mostly deal with confrontation, and how to firmly push back when responding. This is the most common issue I come across, and not exiting a meeting muttering under your breath “I should have said something..”

    There are thousands of additional phrases to use, but you may want to consider fluency on a few until it sounds natural, and see how it helps in a difficult setting..Add it to your repertoire and bring it out, con brio, when needed.

     

    Written by Neal Horwitz, MD of Henry Hale Maguire