EP 145: Leader Language: Are You Amplifying Your Credibility or Undermining Your Influence? With Marissa McCourry

Every word you choose either builds your credibility or chips away at it. In this episode, Jaime sits down with leadership and executive coach Marissa McCourry to unpack the three buckets of leader language and the surprisingly common habits that are quietly undermining how others perceive you.Whether you lead a team of two or two hundred, this conversation will make you rethink the way you ask questions, structure your sentences, and deliver your ideas. You will walk away with concrete, immediately applicable tools to communicate with more confidence, more gravitas, and more impact.If you have ever caught yourself saying "does that make sense?" or ending a statement like it was a question, this episode is for you.What You Will Learn:How the questions you ask either invite collaboration or shut it down. Why "does that make sense" is self-doubt on full display and what to say instead. The sentence structures that quietly signal insecurity and how to eliminate them. Why period, pause, power is the simplest shift you can make to increase your leadership presence. What uptalk is, why it undermines your gravitas, and how to stop doing it. Why plain talk is not the same as unprofessional talk and how the best leaders use both.About Marissa McCourry:Marissa McCourry helps leaders navigate challenge and change, sharpen their emotional intelligence, and expand their leadership capacity. Her coaching is marked by a blend of compassion and candor, offering plain talk, grounded insight, and practical tools that drive lasting behavior change. Clients consistently describe her approach as clarifying, confidence-building, pragmatic, and immediately applicable.With over 25 years in HR, talent, and executive development, Marissa has coached senior executives across industries to increase their impact, strengthen their teams, and thrive in complex environments. She brings a cross-sector perspective having held leadership roles at global companies including Vanguard and Visa, consulted for Fortune 500 firms, and served as a senior leader at a top-ranked executive education institution.Connect with Marissa:icf-coaching.org/mfluencelinkedin.com/in/[email protected]