Breaking down executive presence

Clear + compelling + confident + composed = Trust and alignment

The Whole Leader is a monthly publication about leadership, identity, and the realities of trying to build a sustainable career in tech. It’s the best place to get a feel for my voice, approach, and philosophy as an executive & leadership coach.

Read time: 4 minutes

Did a friend forward this to you? Subscribe to get my posts directly in your inbox:

---

“It doesn’t come naturally to me,” is what I hear from leaders when we talk about executive presence.

The good news is that this is normal - it doesn’t “come naturally” to most people. Leaders who are great at it typically got there through reps. What looks effortless is the result of preparation, practice and continuous learning.

Here is how I think about executive presence, in 4 learnable parts.

First, a definition

In day-to-day leadership, executive presence allows individuals to:

• Communicate a clear and compelling point of view

• Project confidence and composure, even in high-stakes situations

• Build trust and alignment across teams and stakeholders

Over time, these signals shape how others perceive a leader’s influence. (Source)

I like this definition from MIT because it’s simple. It boils executive presence down to a very workable formula:

Clear + compelling + confident + composed = Trust and alignment

Clear

To be clear, you must know who is in front of you and what they need to walk away understanding.

Before your next “big moment,” think first about who you will be speaking to:

• What is your relationship?

• What is their relationship to this work?

• What’s their stake in the outcome?

• What context or beliefs do they already have?

• How much brain bandwidth do they have available?

Now that you know your audience more, you will have a better idea of what is important to say to them.

The most common “what to say” failure mode I see is too much detail up front. Instead, lead with the headline (1-2 sentences) and follow that up with a few bullet points of detail (yes, that’s it).

This is where I sometimes get pushback: “But Theresa, the details are important!”

I understand that the details are important - I really do. But, it took you time to learn and sort through all that context, and you just don’t have the luxury of that time with your audience. Figure out what is most important for them, and say that.

Another common failure mode to be wary of: blabbering on. Say the thing, then stop talking. Silence is powerful, over-explaining dilutes your point.

Compelling

This is energy and the buy-in that you’re trying to cultivate. It is about effectively communicating “this matters and you should care about it.” This is sales, and (again) you have to know your audience to be able to sell to them. Think about framing like:

• Why should this excite your audience?

• Why does this change things?

• Why is this a win?

• Why is this a risk?

And make the connection obvious.

First impressions matter for energy, so pay attention to your opening (and closing). You need to compel interest in the very first moments, or your audience is lost. The very last moments are important too - it is what they walk away remembering. Was it engaging and magnetic, or dull and flat?

Confident

Clear and compelling are mostly about the content (words) that you say. Confidence, in contrast, is an internal state that manifests externally.

Get curious about the internal state first:

• What’s the story you are telling yourself?

• What are you afraid will happen? (What if it does?)

• What’s at stake?

And then shift your perspective:

• How would the most confident version of you handle this?

• What does the future version of you want you to know about this?

Confidence is going to be personal to you. But, it is commonly built via repeated exposure. The first time you present at the company-wide all hands, you might be a hot, stressed mess. The 100th time… probably not.

Your confidence (or lack of) is a felt sense for others, visible through your body. Once you’ve tended to the internal state, external manifestations will follow:

• Solid, stable, relaxed posture

• Not rushing

• Making eye contact

Composed

Composure is another external manifestation of an internal state. Composure is being calm in the face of pressure, when times are challenging, when the stakes are really high. It is holding the line when everyone else is panicking.

It can be really hard to access that calm and embody it in trying times. To do this well, you’ll need to figure out what your own triggers are and how to manage them when they show up.

In the meanwhile, here are some tricks to put in your back pocket:

• Before you “enter,” move through any open stress cycles by moving (shake out your hands and arms, jump around, go for a brisk walk)

• Add in friction to purposefully slow you down from coming in hot (pause for a few seconds, take a sip of water)

• Practice, “I don’t know, let me get back to you on that by <day/time>”

In conclusion

Executive presence doesn’t have to come naturally. Work at it over time, rep after rep, and you’ll build trust and alignment.

---

PS - This was written by me, not AI, in collaboration with my husband-slash-editor, Jake.

Connect with Theresa

• Are you new to my newsletter? Subscribe for free

• Follow me on LinkedIn for more insights

• Work with me for 1:1 coaching