What is executive presence?
If you think of it as a “Je ne sais quoi” that some administrators have and others don’t, you’re not alone. Executive presence is not an easy thing to describe or measure because it’s essentially someone’s ability to inspire trust and confidence and move people to take action.
Ask yourself what you need to see in others, in order for you to trust them and have confidence in their ability to lead. Think of personal traits as well as behaviors. What you see and value in others will show you what you want to improve in yourself.
As an executive coach, here are the characteristics, skills and behaviors I help my clients develop to improve their executive presence. That will give you some ideas on where to start. As you will see, it’s not just body language and elegant clothes.
Self-mastery
Executive presence starts with self-confidence, composure, ability to think and respond strategically instead of reacting to triggers, and remaining calm under pressure. Leaders need to be self-aware, transparent, courageous, and willing to take full responsibility for their decisions and actions.
Interpersonal communication
Executive presence depends heavily on a leader’s ability to know when to speak and when to be quiet, to listen to truly understand others, to show sensitivity, empathy, and compassion, to communicate effectively, to build rapport with others, to create allies, to get buy-in, and to prevent conflict.
Charisma
Charismatic leaders are highly confident without appearing arrogant. They know how to eloquently and succinctly communicate an inspirational vision of success. They demonstrate intelligence, humor, caring, and are personable. Their body language communicates confidence and emotional intelligence. Their physical appearance is appropriate for their role.
Trustworthiness
Having an executive presence requires being genuine, honest, and demonstrating high integrity. Being trustworthy implies following through on commitments, keeping one’s word, and not being easily influenced (manipulated) under pressure. The leader needs to have clear values that are consistently reflected in their actions and behaviors.
Why it matters
Having an executive presence is critical for higher ed. leaders because their ability to command a room, to earn respect, to lead, and to influence, will determine how effective they are at their job.
Think of how many administrators you’ve seen who lack confidence, doubt themselves, don’t have or fail to communicate their vision, get easily triggered, get overwhelmed, complain when things aren’t unfolding the way they wanted, don’t listen or fail to understand other people’s needs and situations, are easily manipulated by difficult people, make you feel unsafe because they change their minds often and you can’t figure out what they stand for, or even worse, are too insecure to own their role as executive and leader.
Do you think they are well equipped to advocate for you when budget cuts have to be made? Do you trust them to lead you and your department through difficult times? Are you confident they can skillfully resolve conflicts between faculty and administrators? The answer to all three questions is usually no. Reporting to someone who lacks executive presence is stressful and demotivating. That’s why everyone in higher ed. administration should care about improving in that regard.
Executive presence is also critically important to gain access to new opportunities. Those who inspire trust and confidence and know how to inspire others to act and motivate them to do their best are highly valued and sought-after.
How to Improve Your Executive Presence
# 1 Don’t try to fake it until you make it
Getting a more elegant wardrobe and trying to control your body language isn’t going to work. While it’s 100% true that physiology affects emotions and doing a power pose before you walk into a meeting can make you feel more confident, as a general rule, trying to look what you’re not, will work against you. People can sense who is genuinely confident versus who is trying too hard to look confident and charismatic by trying to impress others. Remember that the most impressive people never try to impress anyone.
#2 Deal with your inner-critic
Your executive presence, or lack thereof, is directly affected by the emotions you feel. If you are timid, fearful, anxious, worried, upset, frustrated, or angry, you won’t be able to keep your composure. Your emotions are determined by your core beliefs and by what your inner critic has to say. To change how you are perceived by other people, you need to change how you feel about yourself. The fastest and most effective way is to work with an executive coach to overcome what has held you back until now.
#3 Decide what to learn and transform
Don’t try to change too much overnight because that would be overwhelming and discouraging. Write down what skills, competencies, and behaviors you wish to develop and tackle them one at a time. Once a new behavior has become a habit, learn another. It’s important to have a clear plan on how to improve your executive presence. You will need a system to keep you accountable. Create metrics, timelines and deadlines, or better yet, work with a coach so that you won’t be tempted to let yourself down.
#4 Always set an intention
Before you walk into a meeting or give a talk, always be prepared and visualize what you wish to see happen. Ask yourself, what outcomes are you here to create? Gaining clarity on your goals will help you act in alignment with these goals, prevent self-sabotage, and keep you focused. Also, creating a picture of success in your mind will make you feel far more confident than if you worry about all the things that can go wrong.
# 5 Think of yourself less
When administrators try to improve their executive presence, they tend to become overly preoccupied with how they look, how they speak, what people think of them, and whether they are good enough or doing well enough. Becoming more self-conscious and inviting self-doubt makes things worse. Instead, focus on the work you came to do and providing the highest value possible. It’s not about you, it’s about the outcomes you create.
As you keep moving up on the organizational chart, more will be expected of you. For example, if you are a Dean now and you want to become a Vice-President, you need to look, act, and feel like a Vice-President.
Even if you’re not looking to change jobs anytime soon, remember that improving your executive presence will give you more influence, more success, and will give you access to more opportunities.
Click here to schedule a complimentary call with me and discuss how I can help you become a more charismatic, influential and successful leader in higher education.
About the author: Dr. Audrey Reille has empowered thousands of professionals through one-on-one coaching, group coaching, speaking engagements, and online courses. Audrey is the go-to coach for leaders in higher education administration. She empowers them to thrive by reducing stress, optimizing strategies, improving professional relationships, and developing a strong and empowered mindset.