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<v Speaker 1>Helping leaders motivate their people to a higher level of

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<v Speaker 1>performance through strong human relations, team building, and goalajiving. This

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<v Speaker 1>is the seven Minute Leadership Podcast with your host Paul Fellovaledo.

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<v Speaker 2>Hello everyone, and welcome to the seven Minute Leadership Podcast.

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<v Speaker 2>It's episode six seventy three. I want to give you

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<v Speaker 2>something today that sounds almost too simple to matter. One sentence,

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<v Speaker 2>one habit, one line that if you use it the

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<v Speaker 2>right way and use it often, will change your leadership

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<v Speaker 2>faster than another training, another book, or another meeting. Here

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<v Speaker 2>it is I was wrong. That's it. Three words that

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<v Speaker 2>most leaders avoid, delay or replace with corporate buzzwords that

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<v Speaker 2>nobody believes. Let me tell you why this matters, because

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<v Speaker 2>leadership is not built on perfection. It's built on credibility,

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<v Speaker 2>and credibility is built in moments where people are watching

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<v Speaker 2>you closely, especially when something goes sideways. Think about your

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<v Speaker 2>last mistake. Did you explain it away, did you soften it?

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<v Speaker 2>Did you blame the system, the timing, the team, the budget.

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<v Speaker 2>Did you dress it up so it didn't sound like

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<v Speaker 2>a mistake, or did you say clearly and directly, I

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<v Speaker 2>was wrong. Most leaders don't say it enough. Some never

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<v Speaker 2>say it at all, and their team knows it. Here's

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<v Speaker 2>what happens when you avoid those three words. Your team

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<v Speaker 2>starts to protect themselves instead of doing their best work.

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<v Speaker 2>They stop bringing you problems early because they assume you

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<v Speaker 2>will defend your position instead of listening. They start managing

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<v Speaker 2>around you instead of through you. And that is how

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<v Speaker 2>trust erods, not in one big moment, in one hundred

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<v Speaker 2>small moments where the leader chose ego over ownership. Now,

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<v Speaker 2>let's flip it. Picture a leader who says I was wrong.

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<v Speaker 2>No excuses, no long explanation, no defensive tone, just ownership.

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<v Speaker 2>What does that do It lowers the temperature in the

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<v Speaker 2>room immediately. It tells your team that accountability is real,

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<v Speaker 2>not something you only expect from them. It creates space

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<v Speaker 2>for honest conversation instead of guarded communication. And here's the

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<v Speaker 2>part most leaders miss. When you say I was wrong,

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<v Speaker 2>you don't lose authority. You gain it because authority is

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<v Speaker 2>not about always being right, it's about being trusted when

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<v Speaker 2>it matters. Let's talk about frequency. This is not a

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<v Speaker 2>once a year's statement. This is not something you pull

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<v Speaker 2>out during a major failure to save face. Great leaders

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<v Speaker 2>say this often, not because they're reckless or careless because

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<v Speaker 2>they're paying attention. They review their decisions, they reflect on outcomes.

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<v Speaker 2>They listen when someone on their team challenges an idea,

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<v Speaker 2>and when they see a miss they call it out themselves.

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<v Speaker 2>That's discipline, that's leadership. You want to know one of

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<v Speaker 2>the fastest ways to build a culture of accountability model

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<v Speaker 2>it in real time. You can stand in front of

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<v Speaker 2>your team and talk about accountability all day long. You

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<v Speaker 2>can write policies, you can enforce standards. None of that

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<v Speaker 2>will matter if your team never sees you own your

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<v Speaker 2>own mistakes, because culture is not what you say, it

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<v Speaker 2>is what you demonstrate. Now let's go deeper. There are

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<v Speaker 2>levels to this. Level one is saying I was wrong.

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<v Speaker 2>Level two is saying I was wrong, and here is

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<v Speaker 2>what I learned. Level three is saying I was wrong,

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<v Speaker 2>here's what I learned, and here is what we're going

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<v Speaker 2>to do differently. That's where transformation has happens, because now

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<v Speaker 2>you're not only owning the mistake, you're turning it into

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<v Speaker 2>a forward move. You're showing your team how to process

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<v Speaker 2>failure without hiding from it. Let me give you a

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<v Speaker 2>real world application. You roll out a new process it

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<v Speaker 2>doesn't work, your team struggle with struggles with it. Productivity drops,

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<v Speaker 2>frustration goes up. And you have two choices. You can

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<v Speaker 2>double down and defend the decision. You can say the

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<v Speaker 2>team needs more time, more effort, more discipline. Or you

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<v Speaker 2>can walk in and say I was wrong about how

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<v Speaker 2>we implemented this. We're going to adjust. Which leader do

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<v Speaker 2>you want to follow? Here? Which leader are people going

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<v Speaker 2>to give their best effort to? It's not even close.

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<v Speaker 2>Here's another angle. When you say I was wrong, you

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<v Speaker 2>give your team permission to do the same. And that's

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<v Speaker 2>powerful because now mistakes come to the surface faster, problems

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<v Speaker 2>get solved earlier, conversation get more honest. You eliminate the

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<v Speaker 2>fear that keeps teams stuck. You replace it with the responsibility.

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<v Speaker 2>Now let's address the pushback. Some leaders think saying I

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<v Speaker 2>was wrong makes them look weak, and that is outdated thinking.

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<v Speaker 2>Week leaders hide, strong leaders own week leaders protect their image.

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<v Speaker 2>Strong leaders protect the mission, and your team can tell

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<v Speaker 2>the difference every single time. And here's something else to

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<v Speaker 2>think about. If you're not saying I was wrong on

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<v Speaker 2>a regular basis, one of two things is happening. Either

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<v Speaker 2>you are not paying attention to your own decisions, or

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<v Speaker 2>you're not being honest about them. Neither one is acceptable

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<v Speaker 2>in leadership. You're going to get things wrong. This is

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<v Speaker 2>part of the job. The question is not if. The

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<v Speaker 2>question is what you do next. Now, I want to

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<v Speaker 2>give you a challenge for the next seven days. I

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<v Speaker 2>want you to listen to yourself. Listen to how you

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<v Speaker 2>respond when something doesn't go as planned. Do you explain,

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<v Speaker 2>do you deflect, do you minimize or do you own it?

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<v Speaker 2>And when you see the opportunity take it, say the

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<v Speaker 2>words I was wrong, Keep it clean, keep it direct,

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<v Speaker 2>no extra noise around it. Then follow it with what

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<v Speaker 2>you learned and what you're going to change. If you

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<v Speaker 2>do this consistently, something interesting will happen. Your team will

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<v Speaker 2>start to trust you faster, Your conversations will get sharper,

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<v Speaker 2>your decisions will improve because you're no longer trying to

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<v Speaker 2>protect them. You're trying to get them right, and that

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<v Speaker 2>is a completely different mindset. This is one of those

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<v Speaker 2>leadership moves that cost you nothing and gives you everything.

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<v Speaker 2>No budget required, no approval needed, no rollout plan, just

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<v Speaker 2>discipline and one honesty and the willingness to put your

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<v Speaker 2>ego in the back seat so your leadership can move forward.

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<v Speaker 2>So here is your takeaway. The one thing every great

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<v Speaker 2>leader says often is not a slogan, it's not a speech,

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<v Speaker 2>it's not something you print on a wall. It is

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<v Speaker 2>three simple words, I was wrong. Say it when it matters,

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<v Speaker 2>say it when it's uncomfortable, Say it before someone else

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<v Speaker 2>has to say it for you, because the moment you

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<v Speaker 2>own it is the moment your leadership gets stronger. This

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<v Speaker 2>has been the seven Minute Leadership Podcast, and I thank

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<v Speaker 2>you for listening.

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<v Speaker 1>For more, Paul Fell of Alito Podcasts, visit paulfellowalito dot com.