The Language and Actions of Great Leaders with David Marquet

#39: Retired Navy Captain and leadership expert David Marquet joins Chris to share the moment in the Navy that completely flipped his understanding of leadership. They discuss why the secret to leadership lies in giving up control, how to create spaces at work and at home where people can show up as their best selves, how slight language changes can make great character shifts in your life, and how you can have an impact at work no matter your pay grade. 

David Marquet (@ldavidmarquet) is a distinguished submarine captain who, as commander of the USS Santa Fe, took the ship and its crew from one of the worst performing in the Navy to achieving the highest retention and operational standings. He documented that journey in his best-selling book  Turn The Ship Around, which has been listed as one of the top 12 business books of all time. His most recent bestselling book Leadership is Language was released in 2020 and outlines how just changing your words can dramatically improve decision-making and execution on your team.

Partner Deals

For all the deals, discounts and promo codes from our partners, go to our Partner Deals

Selected Links From The Episode

Connect With David Marquet: Intent-Based Leadership International | LinkedIn | Website

David's Books: Turn The Ship Around | Leadership is Language

Youtube Channel: Leadership Nudges with David Marquet

David’s Talk that Chris shared dozens of times: Youtube

Full Show Notes

Who is David Marquet? [00:11]

Effective definitions of leadership vs. outdated definitions of leadership. [01:21]

Two tactics that completely changed how David Marquet viewed leadership. [03:52]

What you should focus on when making leadership decisions. [10:24]

How to make people more receptive to new decisions. [11:21]

Is it worth letting people make mistakes on purpose? [12:54]

Why you should give people more control than they can handle. [13:52]

What’s the responsibility of leaders when decision making is decentralized?[16:20]

How do you create a sense of urgency in your organization when you have important deadlines? [17:58]

How to have a more inclusive team meeting (and why you should take votes before starting discussions). [22:08]

How to get quiet people to speak up (3 levels of cognitive involvement) [27:06]

The least stressful type of leadership (David’s time as commander of the submarine USS Santa Fe) [31:40]

How to avoid wasting time at meetings. [33:49]

A whole book of “don’t say this, say that” (why David wrote a second book about leadership). [38:49]

A simple change in language to help you stick to your commitments and easily avoid peer pressure. [41:11]

Language leaders should avoid. [45:07]

When to stick with your decisions and when you should change the course. [47:55]

Why you need an emotional environment at work (and calculating the cost of your decisions). [54:56]

How you can have influence over stubborn managers. [58:26]

How to connect with David Marquet. [01:01:33]

Connect with Chris

Newsletter | Membership | Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn

Editor’s Note: The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date; however, some of our partner offers may have expired. Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.