Developing Your Executive Presence

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Introduction Kate Fletcher

What is Executive Presence? It is the perception others have of your leadership capability. Judged on a whole spectrum of verbal and visual factors. Recent research concluded that executive presence counts for 26% of what it takes to get promoted. Ability to create a strong personal brand – to project gravitas and confidence in how you look, how you speak and how you behave.

Who am I? Establishing who you are … How do you want to be perceived? Ask colleagues how they perceive you. Why is this important? Programmed to form quick impressions. Judge intention & form reaction. Outward behaviour and expression. Seek regular feedback ‘What specifically gives you that impression?’ Reinforce and strengthen different aspects.

Martha Graham, American Modern Dancer, 1894 - 1991 The best of who I am? “Remember that you are unique, and if that is not fulfilled then something is lost.” Martha Graham, American Modern Dancer, 1894 - 1991 When we behave in an authentic way we’re more confident and fulfilled. Perceived as genuine and distinctive. Being at our best… Three words that capture the essence of who I am at my best. What’s the image, sound, concept and/or feeling that supports me being at my best? How will I keep this front of mind?

Poll 1: How often are you at your best? Think about those key times you want to be performing ‘at your best’. board or senior management meetings, key presentations, customer interactions, etc. What proportion of your time do you feel you are performing ‘at your best’? A 80%+ B 60-80% C 40-60% D 20-40% E Below 20%

Taming your gremlin Our ‘gremlin’ is the voice inside our heads. It can give us doubts Tends to tease and torment us Often limits our ability to be our best It can seem more powerful than us. We all have gremlins. Be aware of it Make friends with it Notice its language

Managing your gremlin - positive self talk Reverse that power imbalance so its grip recedes. Play mentally with the image, size and sound of your gremlin Converting your gremlin into an ally. What does my gremlin often say? What limiting behaviours do I adopt as a result? What positive purpose is my gremlin trying to serve? What other, more enabling, strategies could I adopt to serve that purpose? What will my behaviours look like with these strategies? What will I coach my gremlin to say/do in order to support me?

Listening with intent – filtering information Our conscious minds can only process a small fraction of the information coming in through our senses. Huge amount of unconscious processing. We’re often unaware of how we arrive at conclusions. Try to bring more conscious fact-based decision making into challenging situations. Enables you to be more open-minded, objective and accurate. Show their real selves

Making assumptions Some assumptions we make are the product of very strong filtering and not based on wider reality. Likely to impact how we behave in specific situations Get in the way of our effectiveness How do you engage with ‘difficult’ stakeholders? What assumptions do you make? What are you listening for? (lens) What assumptions and listening lenses would you need to make to be more effective? How would you behave differently?

Listening at different levels To listen actively demonstrates: Sincerity No assumptions It’s pro-active, professional Accountable The benefits: Accelerates trust Deepens insight Reduces misunderstanding and conflicts Improves relationships Strengthens co-operation

What gets in the way? We often ‘get in the way’ of our own listening by: Interrupting. Assume we know what the other person will say. Focusing on what we will say next. Lose interest. Harness their energy & passion – Not engaged employees offer the greatest untapped opportunity.

Poll 2: What proportion of time can we honestly say we actively listen for? B 90-100% C 70-90% D 50-70% E <50%

Summary Executive presence is the ability to project gravitas and confidence in how you behave, how you look and how you speak. Behaving authentically gives us confidence and fulfillment, so understand how you can be at your best more often. Our ‘gremlin’ is the voice inside our heads that often limits our ability to be our best so look for ways to turn this to your advantage. Active listening accelerates trust and improves co-operation and relationships, but we can often get in our own way. Decide which aspect of listening you will enhance and practice it for 21 days until it becomes more natural. Harness their energy & passion – Not engaged employees offer the greatest untapped opportunity.

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