Leaders: speak last

People hear a leader talk and think “oh ok, I guess that’s what we’re going to do” even if that person just meant “here’s an idea, but don’t treat it any differently than everyone else’s ideas.” The leader hat, like the manager hat, never comes off.

So the easy solution is for leaders to speak last. Wait as long as possible. Let everyone else have a say. Focus on asking instead of telling. The longer you wait, the less likely you are to sway the discussion too far in the direction of your opinion.