The confusion between these two voices is one of the most common things I see working with senior leaders. In my own experience, I leaned on the personal voice as much as possible — it felt more authentic. But the most damaging pattern is using the company voice while pretending it's personal. People sense it immediately, and trust erodes fast.
Agreed. When I think back to my first leadership role I relied on my personal voice too much, which eroded trust as the team realized I was allowing pointless debate. It took me a while to gain the confidence to use both.
I sometimes state when I speak with my personal voice. People assume that I usually speak with my company voice, so I mention when an opinion is my own.
The confusion between these two voices is one of the most common things I see working with senior leaders. In my own experience, I leaned on the personal voice as much as possible — it felt more authentic. But the most damaging pattern is using the company voice while pretending it's personal. People sense it immediately, and trust erodes fast.
Agreed. When I think back to my first leadership role I relied on my personal voice too much, which eroded trust as the team realized I was allowing pointless debate. It took me a while to gain the confidence to use both.
I sometimes state when I speak with my personal voice. People assume that I usually speak with my company voice, so I mention when an opinion is my own.
Exactly, well said!