Here is a brief excerpt from an article by Bill Murphy Jr. for Inc. magazine. To read the complete article, check out others, and obtain subscription information, please click here.

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People judge you by what you do–and by what you say. Here are nine phrases that should roll off your lips every single day.

[Actually, here are the first four.]

Your words are among your greatest tools. They’re a window into your vision, your values and your abilities. So, whether you’re running a giant organization or just trying to herd a group toward a certain outcome, there are messages you need to communicate constantly in order to lead effectively.

Start every day planning to say each of these things to at least one person, and watch the results:

1. This is the situation.

People want to know what’s going on. Odds are, they’ll find out anyway, or worse, fill in the gaps with conjecture. When you keep important things excessively close, you sap morale, rob yourself of your team’s insights, and make people feel undervalued. Sound crazy to let them in on everything? Walmart founder Sam Walton did it for decades, and he did okay.

2. Here is the plan.

A leader is supposed to lead. People will offer great suggestions, especially if you’re saying and doing everything else on this list, but you need to be able to make decisions and stand behind them. Your team needs to know where you’re trying to take them, and how. Also, don’t forget the crucial corollary: You need to be able to say “no,” especially to moves that would be inconsistent with your plan.

3. What do you need?

This is crucial for two reasons. First, people need to know that you care about them on personal and professional levels, and that you want them to succeed. Second, if you’ve put together a great plan, you need to leverage every person’s abilities to the maximum extent possible. If they are not able to give it their all, you want to know why.

4. Tell me more.

Let people know you’re more interested in finding good answers than hearing yourself speak. Give others implicit permission to share their opinions–or heck, invite them explicitly, if you have to. Staying quiet is an invitation for others to offer ideas and insights.

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Here’s a direct link to the complete article.

Bill Murphy Jr. is a journalist, ghostwriter, and entrepreneur. He is the co-author of Breakthrough Entrepreneurship with John Burrstone and a former reporter for The Washington Post.