Dear Lewis: How do I demonstrate executive presence?

A senior director at a high-flying FAANG corporation struggles to conjure the executive aura for that coveted ascent to a VP role.

Here we are again, my friends, back for another installment of Dear Lewis.

Today, I’m revisiting a coaching client from two weeks ago. She’s trying to get promoted to a VP role at a FAANG company, and she can’t convey the executive presence that her boss and skip says she lacks.

It’s not uncommon to find middle managers get this feedback. And as always, I’m here to offer some guidance including:

• Explain executive presence and the factors that influence others’ perception

• Analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the client’s presence

• Recommend specific actions the client took to enhance her presence

Keep striving for greatness,

Lewis C. Lin

⚖️ How do I demonstrate executive presence?

One of my clients is Lisa (not her real name). She works as a senior director at a FAANG company. She’s been there for six years, and she’s really good at what she does. She’s launched some awesome products that billions of people love. Her team thinks she’s great, and so do her colleagues. But she’s feeling stuck, because she can’t seem to get promoted to VP, even though she deserves it. She comes to me for help and asks me what’s wrong.

I tell her that there’s nothing wrong with her, but there’s something wrong with how she talks. She has this way of speaking that makes her sound like a corporate drone that’s unsure of herself. You know what I’m talking about. It sounds something like this:

So, basically, what we’re trying to do here is to leverage our core competencies and synergize our cross-functional capabilities to create a value proposition that resonates with our target segments and differentiates us from our competitors in the marketplace. And, you know, we have some preliminary data that suggests that this approach might work, but we still need to validate it with some more rigorous testing and analysis. So, yeah, that’s kind of where we are right now.

I tell her that this way of speaking is boring, confusing, and meaningless. It doesn’t tell anyone anything they don’t already know. And it makes her sound like she doesn’t know what she’s talking about. The delivery reveals her lack of confidence and conviction. She speaks quietly, looks away, and uses words like “basically”, “kind of”, “might”, and “you know” that make her sound unsure and apologetic. She also doesn’t assert herself when someone challenges or disagrees with her. She just freezes awkwardly.

Being a leader is not just about what you do, but also about how you talk. We start working together to change her speech, so that she can show her leadership potential. Here are the exercises that we start to do:

• Adopt the Rule of 3. This is a simple way to organize our thoughts into three main points or messages that we want to get across. This makes it easier for people to follow and remember what we say. We give our audience a clear roadmap of where we’re going and why. She finds it hard at first because her words typically flow like a waterfall. But that’s the point. The Rule of 3 makes her sound like a Michelin chef who knows how to cook.

• Avoid upward inflection. This is a subtle but powerful way to change how we end our sentences. I share with Lisa that when we go up at the end, it sounds like we’re asking a question or seeking approval. When we go down at the end, it sounds like we’re making a statement or assigning a project. Lisa shares that it worked. She’s more confident and decisive. And her team is happier too. Before her team didn’t know if she was giving them suggestions or new tasks, and now there’s no confusion.

• Improve communication efficiency. I reinforce with Lisa that senior executives are busy people who don’t have patience for long-winded speeches or vague explanations. We need to get to the point quickly and clearly. We start by practicing responses in 30 seconds or less, cutting out unnecessary context. We also practice responses in 1- and 2-minute chunks, the latter which is reserved for instances where we really have something important to say. Finally, I tell her that we should never go on for more than 5 minutes because that’s when people start fiddling with their phones.

• Avoid the weasel words. I’m not just talking about the ahs and ums. I share with Lisa that word choice matters. We can be more precise to improve clarity and efficiency. So Lisa’s old pattern of using uncertain phrases have been replaced with precise mentions, usually with numbers, names, and places:

  • Nearly all customers > 87% of 30-day actives

  • Significantly better > +25 basis points

  • Liberal arts degree from a prestigious New England university > Economics degree from Harvard

The transformative power of executive presence is not just about what you say; it's about how you say it. Transforming your communication into a symphony of clarity, confidence, and precision can open doors to your leadership potential. Let your words guide your team towards growth and success.

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Simple, right? Well, not always

I'm here to help. Email me if you have any management or employee challenges. I've got your back, and your identity will remain anonymous.

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