Meryl Runion - Perfect Phrases for Leadership Development: Hundreds of Ready-To-Use Phrases for Guiding Employees to Reach the Next Level

Hundreds of Ready-to-Use Phrases for Guiding Employees to Reach the Next Level

Meryl Runion and Wendy Mack

Copyright 2011 by Meryl Runion. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

ISBN: 978-0-07-175957-1

MHID: 0-07-175957-3

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I am delighted to introduce you to this wonderful book from Meryl Runion, with my contributions. When I met Meryl she had already written five successful books, including Perfect Phrases for Managers and Supervisors, which was on my shelf, and she had a huge community of SpeakStrong fans. I was a bit awe-struck but put at ease by Meryls generosity, spirit, and curiosity as well as our mutual love of knowledge and the outdoors.

Meryl and I hike weekly to trade ideas and share inspiration. On one of our hikes, Meryl mentioned she had an idea for a new Perfect Phrases book on developing emerging leaders. I stopped in my tracks and said, Wow! The world needs that book! My client organizations and organizations globally are on the verge of leadership crisis. As baby boomers retire, there are not enough people ready to move into their positions. Those that recognize this are actively creating and implementing succession planning programs and processes.

While succession planning is a step in the right direction, it wont be enough if the focus is simply on putting people into management roles. The senior executives I work with recognize that while they can promote managers, they need people who can truly lead. They see leading as being able to influence and inspire, to get things done even when you are not in charge, and to catalyze and create change.

The world of work is changing. Speed and constant connectivity are the norm. The control that accompanied leadership roles disappeared as information became available with the click of a button. Being a leader today is not about having followers who wait for you to tell them what to do and how to do it. Its about mobilizing energy and accelerating alignment so people are willing and able to take actions that further the interest of your organization... without waiting for direction.

Leadership communication is undergoing a significant shift. In a Leadership 3.0 world, leaders ask questions. We have conversations rather than issue commands. We listen more and talk less. We dialogue rather than delegate, demand, direct, and debate.

Meryls New Dynamics of Communication and the phrasing recommendations are invaluable for anyone who wants to develop leaders who succeed in this new world of work. As you use the phrases to develop, encourage, and support others, youll find yourself paying attention to and improving your own leadership skills.

While I am sure this book would have come to fruition without my enthusiasm and contributions, it has been great fun to be involved through its development.

So, read this book. Mark it up and refer back to it. Use the suggested phrases and develop your own. You do a great service to your organization by developing the next generation of dynamic leaders!

Wendy Mack

The nature of leadership has changed dramatically in the twenty years Wendy and I have worked with leaders. Thats why this book turned into resting grounds for outdated leadership concepts and a haven for Dynamic Leader practices.

This process evolved in the e-mails Wendy and I sent each other with our favorite leadership quotes and adages. We dashed off oldies but goodies and newly discovered gems, only to realize we needed to update them. For example, I sent Wendy the adage, A leader is someone others choose to follow. I like how the saying captures choice over coercion. Yes, and Wendy reminded me that its not about getting people to follow anymore. Its about getting them to engage. Yeah, I knew that. That adage went on my list of sayings to revise. An Internet search on the phrase, a leader is someone who... uncovered a hundred other adages, many useful, but none that captured the essence of leadership we witness emerging in todays work world and that we present here.