Say it Again and Again and Again
There is something I believe to be true, that might not be blindingly obvious. It’s that leadership involves saying the same things over and over. Not because you enjoy the sound of your own voice. In fact, we all kind of dislike our own voice. Ever listen to yourself on a voicemail? Yuck. No. Saying the same thing over and over comes out because it’s the only way to make a message stick.
I’ve heard it said that the moment you’re so tired of saying something you’d rather chew on a sock than repeat it one more time—that’s when your team is finally starting to understand it. Repetition, dear reader, isn’t just a necessary evil. It’s the lifeblood of leadership.
The Curse of the Leader’s Echo Chamber
When you’re in a leadership role, you live and breathe the strategy. You’ve been in the meetings, seen the slide decks, and rehearsed the talking points. You know the mission like the back of your hand, which is to say, you’ve looked at it so often you could probably draw it blindfolded.
But here’s the thing: while you’ve been marinating in the message, everyone else is hearing it in passing, like a song playing faintly in the background of a noisy café. They might catch a word or two, but the whole tune? Not so much.
You have to turn up the volume. Play the song again. And again. Until it’s the kind of earworm people hum in the shower without realizing it.
Repetition: Not Just for Gym Rats and Toddlers
There’s a reason repetition works: our brains are wired to latch onto patterns. It’s why advertisers bombard us with the same slogans. Why every nursery rhyme you know is a lesson disguised as a jingle. And why the Beatles sang the word “love” approximately 613 times in their catalog. Repetition isn’t boring—it’s memorable.
In leadership, this means saying the same thing so often that your team could mouth along with you, karaoke-style.
Consistency: Repetition’s Smarter Sibling
Now, repetition alone isn’t enough. If you’re repeating a message but delivering it in a haphazard way—different words here, contradictory actions there—you’re about as effective as a GPS shouting “Turn left!” after you’ve already missed the exit.
Consistency is what gives repetition its power. It’s sticking to the same message, the same values, the same priorities, until they’re as unshakable as gravity. If you say one thing but do another, your repetition is just noise.
Why Leaders Should Embrace Repetition and Consistency
Clarity: Repetition ensures everyone knows the priorities. No guesswork, no confusion, no secret Slack channels asking, “What are we actually supposed to focus on?”
Unity: A consistent message brings people together. It’s the team chant before the big game, the shared purpose that makes people row in the same direction.
Trust: When your actions match your words, and your words don’t change with the wind, people trust you. They might not agree with everything, but they’ll believe in the stability of your leadership.
The Leader Who Repeated Himself
Take Abraham Lincoln. During the Civil War, he didn’t just mention the importance of preserving the Union once and move on to talking about the weather. No, he hammered it home in every speech, letter, and proclamation. The Union. The Union. The Union. By the time the war ended, even the horses knew what the priority was.
Or consider Steve Jobs, who famously said Apple’s focus was on simplicity. He didn’t just say it once in a quarterly meeting and hope it stuck. He repeated it endlessly—so much so that the word “simplicity” could have been Apple’s unofficial mascot.
When You’re Tired, They’re Just Getting Started
The golden rule of leadership messaging is this: by the time you’re bored of saying something, your team is just starting to hear it. By the time you can recite it in your sleep, they’re only beginning to understand what it really means.
Yes, it can feel like overkill. Yes, you might start dreaming about your own talking points. But that’s the price of making a message stick.
The Bottom Line
If you want to lead effectively, don’t just say it once. Say it again, and again, and again. Repeat it until it echoes in every meeting, every hallway conversation, every Slack thread. Be consistent, too—because without consistency, repetition is just noise.
And when you’re so sick of saying it that you’d rather take up knitting than utter the words one more time? That’s when you know you’re doing it right.