Leaders who want to inspire confidence and drive success know that presence is an essential part of their leadership. On this episode of The Forward Thinking Podcast, FCCS VP of Marketing and Communications Stephanie Barton is joined by Sally Williamson, CEO of Sally Williamson & Associates, speaker, and executive presence expert for a conversation about the missing link to your success as a leader or communicator – your presence. She highlights what presence is and what it isn't, who your presence is really about, and what forward thinking leaders can do to improve their performance in today's evolving workplace.
Episode Insights Include:
Defining presence and its importance to leaders
Presence is not something you assign to yourself, it's the assumptions of others based on how they perceive you.
Presence has always been important, but it has become increasingly difficult in recent years as leaders are not always as visible as they have been in the past.
Leaders must increase their intentionality surrounding their presence in order to be effective at it.
Leaders need to identify when and why their presence matters and then act accordingly.
Executive brand vs. executive presence
Presence is more than just charisma, and it can be an integral part of an executive brand.
A personal brand is something that leaders need to consider and determine how they want to be seen by others and known for.
Coaching should not revolve around brands, it should focus on impressions.
Others will comment on your impression before they comment on your brand.
A leader's brand is the sum total of their impressions over time.
Presence is everyone else's impression of you, and is reflected in what others ask of you.
The 3 C's of developing key components of presence
There are three elements of presence coaching – confidence, commitment, and connection.
Ask others for feedback about the impressions they perceive in your voice and body language.
Presence is about your intention more so than your techniques.
Authenticity is a huge part of effective presence, and has to be balanced with authoritative confidence.
High visibility roles can't easily translate authenticity in a conversational and personal way.
The effective of presence on employee engagement
Consistency is the magic word with presence.
Within a thriving culture, people need to experience leaders and managers consistently.
When intentions are effectively communicated, trust will continually grow.
When people come to expect certain positive behaviors from leaders, they will continue to trust them.
Awareness is the first step to increasing and improving presence.
Consider the brand triangle- what do people say most often about you? What do you wish people would say about you? And what misconceptions do others have of you?
Common presence pitfalls and how to overcome them
People tend to plateau in their presence and stop focusing on it over time.
Expectations are constantly changing, and leaders need to transition from good to great quickly.
Working on presence will mean focusing on others even more than you focus on yourself.
Too often people don't want to work to enhance their presence, but intentional action has to be a part of your efforts.
Don't be afraid to ask for and then actually receive feedback.
Offer effective and helpful feedback when others ask for it.
Seek visibility opportunities where you can practice your presence.
This podcast is powered by FCCS.
Connect with Sally Williamson – Sally Williamson
"A leader's brand is something that has taken shape over time with many, many impressions." — Sally Williamson
"Presence is everyone else's impression of you." – Sally Williamson
"Presence is about intention, not so much about technique." – Sally Williamson
"The magic word with presence is consistency." – Sally Williamson
"Presence is less about pushing out and much more about pulling people in." – Sally Williamson
