Boost Your Presence
- July 26, 2010
- Posted by: Rochelle
- Category: Brand + Design, Client Relationships
Presence. That indefinable but immediately recognizable quality that compels you to pay attention.
It’s not about being loud or self-centered, but about quiet confidence. Clarity. And knowing your value without having to convince everyone you meet.
Increasing your presence is actually easier than it sounds. Master these simple habits to boost your presence:
Speak thoughtfully. Instead of–live or online–jumping into every conversation with your point of view, choose wisely. “A fool may talk, but a wise man speaks”. Being thoughtful is good, perhaps more so with so many channels now surrounding us with noise.
Engage. When you do speak, make your primary goal to understand the other person. Even if they never ask you a question, they will remember you as “that brilliant conversationalist”. That’s how rare and valuable it is to have someone listen to and understand us.
Align your outside with your inside. Quiet, studious, technical professional? Wear sober, great-fitting clothes (no wrinkles, spills or tatters) appropriate to your industry. Add one unusual detail as your signature. An eye-catching pair of glasses. The perfect pair of statement shoes. A bold pocket square. Just be sure it truly fits you.
Boost your presence, boost your impact, boost your audience.
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And I thought you were going to say we needed to look like George
Ah yes, George. Thank goodness we don't have to be devilishly handsome or bombshell beautiful to have presence. But it was fun using his picture to make a point 🙂
The fact that seeing George made my day definitely made your point! Seriously, the hardest and the most important thing is to just listen…. as a recovering shy-geek it becomes too easy to talk to fill the space and my old discomfort. I'm going to tape 'listen, don't talk!' to my phone!
I thought I looked better than George… :?)
I would add; make sure you understand what you're speaking about. If you're going to speak with anyone about anything more than small talk, then don't use the phrase, "I think" or similar because there's no credibility and it tunes people out. To speak with authority, you must first know your topic.
Cheers,
Tom Napier
Rebecca and Tom,
Thanks for adding to the conversation! "Recovering shy-geek" gives a great visual. And avoiding "I think" in conversation is a good rule of thumb. Somehow it sounds either too wishy-washy or too self-centered….
Great thoughts, Rochelle.
When we are fully present with the client, we get to tune into *all* of our problem solving and creative resources. This brings even more value to the client.
Best, Robin 🙂
"Fully present". Excellent addition Robin–a great reminder to bring everything we have to the moment. Thanks for adding your thoughts!