PVLF 2026

Interview With Smita Das Jain, Author of “Leading With Words”

Smita’s Leading With Words shows how intentional communication empowers leaders, bridges empathy with authority, and unlocks true professional freedom.
on Sep 25, 2025

Frontlist: Leading With Words emphasizes communication as the cornerstone of leadership. In your view, how can effective communication become a tool of empowerment and liberation for both leaders and their teams?

Smita: Communication is how leadership comes alive.

In every workplace, leaders are looked to for direction. But true influence doesn’t happen through titles or strategies; it happens through your communication. The right words can create clarity, foster trust, and move people toward a shared vision. The wrong words can create confusion, anxiety, or apathy.

When leaders learn to communicate clearly, confidently, and consciously, they don’t just manage. They empower. They create psychological safety. They give others the space to speak up, take initiative, and bring their whole selves to work.

Liberation begins not in grand gestures, but in everyday conversations. Effective communication unlocks human potential. That is what Leading With Words is about.

Frontlist: Many leaders struggle with balancing authority and empathy in conversations. How does your book guide readers to achieve this balance in a liberating way?

Smita: That balance between clarity and compassion is at the heart of every chapter in Leading With Words.

Many leaders assume they must choose between being assertive and being liked. But authentic leadership isn’t about that binary. It’s about speaking with both structure and sensitivity.

The book offers frameworks and language tools that help readers express their point with conviction, without being aggressive, defensive, or vague. For example, how to say no without sounding cold. How to give feedback without diluting it. How to hold space for others without losing your stance.

Empathy doesn’t mean avoiding tough conversations. Authority doesn’t mean dominating them. The book helps readers find their voice in the middle. That’s where true respect is built.

Frontlist: You’ve had a rich corporate career advising Fortune 500 companies. What key communication challenges did you observe there that inspired you to write this book?

Smita: One challenge stood out everywhere: Smart professionals not being heard as much as they should have been.

I worked with brilliant leaders in strategy, operations, marketing and finance. People who knew their domain inside out. But when it came to speaking in meetings, aligning cross-functional teams, handling conflicts, or navigating pushback, many of them struggled.

They either over-explained or underplayed their message. Some felt invisible. Others felt misunderstood. Some spent long hours preparing PowerPoint decks, yet their messages failed to land in the all-important meetings.

After a certain level, it isn’t capability that holds people back. It is how they express their capabilities.

That gap stayed with me. Years later, when I began coaching, I saw the same challenges come up again. Leading With Words was born out of a need I witnessed over and over again: The need for professionals to be able to say what they mean, in a way that gets them heard, without losing themselves in the process.

Frontlist: The book discusses leading virtual teams and handling conflicts. How do you see these communication strategies contributing to a culture of inclusivity and shared growth?

Smita: Remote work has made communication both more accessible and more complex. Without body language, without hallway moments, leaders must now build trust, alignment, and belonging through a screen.

The strategies I share in the book, from framing clarity in virtual meetings to managing tone in emails, help leaders create structure and warmth, even in digital environments.

Similarly, the chapter on conflict doesn’t just talk about resolution; it talks about recognition. Recognising the discomfort, addressing the unsaid, and leading through discomfort with emotional intelligence.

When teams feel seen, heard, and respected, especially in difficult moments, they grow. Not in isolation but together. That’s how inclusion moves from a policy to a lived experience.

Frontlist: Your own journey as a TEDx speaker, coach, and writer reflects the power of words. How has communication shaped your personal journey of liberation and leadership?

Smita: When I started my career, I believed that my work would speak for itself.

I didn’t think I needed to say much, especially when seniors were in the room. I assumed that as long as I delivered results, people would notice.

That illusion broke early. Thanks to one manager who gave me a piece of feedback I’ve never forgotten:

“You do all the hard work and then keep quiet in meetings. No one notices you, and no one realises what you’ve contributed.”

It hit hard. But it also came at the right time.

Those words changed the way I showed up. I learned that doing the work was not enough. I had to advocate for it. I had to own my voice.

Years later, when I left the corporate world and became a coach, that lesson stayed with me. And it deepened. I saw how many brilliant, capable professionals – especially women – were still waiting for someone to notice their contribution.

Communication became my path to liberation. Both professionally and personally. It gave me the courage to change careers and start new ones using my authentic voice. To speak on TEDx stages. To tell stories that mattered. To coach leaders around the world.

Every TEDx stage, every book, every client conversation has deepened my belief that when we learn to express ourselves fully and fearlessly, we stop shrinking. That is liberation.

Every time we speak up to express our views, we reclaim a little more of ourselves. That is what leadership truly means to me.

Frontlist: In the book, you stress that even introverts can communicate like leaders. Why do you think it’s important to democratize communication skills rather than reserving them for a select few?

Smita: Because communication is not a personality trait. It’s a skill.

And when we treat it like an elite gift reserved for extroverts, or only for those with “natural charisma,” we exclude too many voices that deserve to be heard.

Introverted leaders often bring depth, insight, and empathy to the table. They may not speak first. But when they learn how to speak in their own style, with clarity and intention, they lead powerfully.

Leading With Words includes an entire chapter dedicated to introverted leadership. Not to change people, but to honour who they are while equipping them with tools that amplify their presence.

Democratising communication is how we democratise leadership. And that’s essential in any liberated workplace.

Frontlist: “Literacy to Liberation” is often associated with education, but your book frames communication as a form of literacy for leaders. How do you connect communication literacy to professional and personal freedom?

Smita: Communication literacy is the missing bridge between knowledge and influence.

You can be skilled, qualified, even brilliant. But if you can’t convey your ideas clearly, if you can’t handle difficult conversations with grace, if you can’t inspire action through words, your impact remains limited.

In that sense, communication is a form of professional currency. But it’s also more than that. It’s how we set boundaries, how we stand up for ourselves, how we articulate our vision and values.

For me, freedom is being able to express oneself without shrinking or shouting. Whether in a boardroom, on a stage, or in a one-on-one conversation.

Leading With Words helps people unlock that literacy so that they no longer hold back out of hesitation, self-doubt, or silence..

Frontlist: Finally, if there is one transformative message you’d like readers to take away from Leading With Words, especially in the context of liberating themselves as leaders, what would it be?

Smita: You don’t have to speak more to lead. You need to speak with intention.

Whether you’re managing a team, building a business, or navigating change, the way you use your words shapes the way you show up in the world.

Leading With Words is an invitation to communicate not just to be heard, but to be remembered. And to lead in a way that feels authentic, aligned, and free.

Use the power of your voice to reclaim yourself. Leading With Words will show you how.