At GEC Research Center, we surveyed 1,400 current and aspiring leaders to pinpoint the most pivotal ways in which people undercut their own executive presence. We found 8 extremely common forms of self-sabotage:
- Hesitating to make decisions
- Seeming timid or even fearful
- Lacking confidence and conviction
- Being longwinded
- Remaining silent
- Being disorganized
- Being too easygoing
- Not showing imagination
Whether you’re exhibiting a couple or all of these behaviours, it’s affecting how others perceive you. Let’s examine how to correct each of these all-too-common ways of undermining executive presence.
1. Hesitating too long to make decisions
The only way to overcome this issue is to start making choices definitively. Beginning with smaller issues, start taking a leap instead of waiting for someone else to take action. Adopt a new set of decision-making norms for yourself for the bigger choices, challenging yourself to make a decision within a set time frame. Identify three people you can turn to for advice when needed, rather than asking absolutely everyone for their opinion. (Having too many cooks in the kitchen is a sure way to delay action!) As you follow this protocol, others will view you as more confident and competent.
2. Seeming timid or even fearful
Build real relationships with a range of people in order to start feeling and acting more comfortable with them. You’ll start showing up as your authentic self, and taking greater initiative, when you feel like an equal to those around you. Get to know superiors and peers over lunch or coffee, so you’ll feel more relaxed around them. Follow up to keep building your rapport over time. Your strong support network will help you feel and act more boldly.
3. Lacking confidence and conviction
To appear more confident, present your ideas with conviction in meetings, presentations, and one-on-ones. Take an active role in controversial debates. Present yourself as a poised, commanding leader with a valuable perspective, and that’s how others will perceive you. As you take these actions, you’ll grow your confidence because you’ll see that people respect you and want to hear your thoughts.
4. Being longwinded
If you ramble, you may have trouble reading the room, meaning you don’t notice that people are zoning out. To correct the problem, strive to be succinct in all your communications. No one wants to feel their time is being wasted. Refine your key talking points before a presentation or meeting, starting off with the most important ones. Cut out material that’s less central to your message—you can always take follow-up questions afterward. Observe how people receive what you’re saying, so you can rein things in if you’re getting off course. Being clear and concise will ensure your ideas get heard.
5. Remaining silent
Speaking up can be a struggle for many people. I advise leaders to commit to speaking up three times per meeting to begin with, and then to increase the number over the coming weeks. Organizing your thoughts before the meeting, or reading a relevant article, will help you come equipped with plenty to say. You don’t have to introduce a new idea every time—there are many ways to participate, like synthesizing ideas, highlighting an important insight that others are missing, and stating why you support another person’s idea.
6. Being disorganized
To become more organized, prepare carefully for big and small meetings. Before a one-on-one with a direct report, look back on notes you’ve taken about her progress. Come up with several specific ways to improve or recent successes to highlight, sharing concrete examples. Prepare your thoughts on meeting agenda points in advance, so you don’t seem harried, and block out 5 to 10 minutes before each meeting to collect your thoughts. By taking these steps, you’ll appear polished and collected, and therefore more capable.
7. Being too easygoing
If you have a casual approach to leadership, tap into what you find most meaningful about your work. Strive to exude passion for the vision behind your work, focusing on the value you deliver. Soon, your team will start showing a new level of passion for their work as well, and your influence will expand.
8. Not showing imagination
To get out of this rut, carve out time for reflection and strategic thinking every week. Make it one of your highest priorities, not something you’ll bump from the schedule for a mundane task. Strive to learn about the latest industry news and research and explore potential cross-disciplinary collaborations. Talk with colleagues across disciplines and reflect on your conversations. By making creative thinking a priority, you’ll leverage your innovative capabilities and become recognized for your intelligence and imagination.
As you work to mitigate these 8 common forms of self-sabotage, you’ll allow your positive qualities to shine through—and develop some important new ones. By showing up as a confident, passionate, imaginative leader who participates fully in every meeting and interaction, you’ll make a name for yourself as a leader with executive presence.
Joel Garfinkle is the author of Executive Presence: Step Into Your Power, Convey Confidence, and Lead with Conviction. He has 23 years of experience as an executive presence coach, conducting webinars, keynotes, and one-on-one coaching programs.