{"id":83233,"date":"2014-10-23T07:30:24","date_gmt":"2014-10-23T12:30:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=83233"},"modified":"2014-10-22T22:49:45","modified_gmt":"2014-10-23T03:49:45","slug":"are-you-cultivating-executive-presence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=83233","title":{"rendered":"Are You Cultivating Executive Presence?"},"content":{"rendered":"

by\u00a0Jennifer Reisch, Senior Assistant, INALJ NYC<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Are You Cultivating Executive Presence?<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"2013-11-30<\/a>Have you ever been passed over for a promotion you know you should have gotten? Ever\u00a0had a great idea or important feedback that was discounted without any consideration\u00a0whatsoever? Been in a competition where you performed flawlessly but still were passed\u00a0over for top awards? You may be suffering from inadequate executive presence.<\/p>\n

In her book of that very title, Executive Presence: The Missing Link between Merit and\u00a0Success<\/em>, Sylvia Anne Hewlett argues that professionals are judged on their presence as\u00a0well as their performance. Executive presence (EP) is based on three things: gravitas\u00a0(how you act,) communication (how you speak) and appearance (how you look.) It is not\u00a0a measure of performance or merit. It is a measure of image. If you want to be successful,\u00a0you must project a polished image to those around you as well as working hard and doing\u00a0your job well.<\/p>\n

According to Hewlett, gravitas is by far the most important facet of EP. To demonstrate\u00a0that you have gravitas, you need to know the material of your work cold and be able to\u00a0answer any question that comes your way. In addition to being able to demonstrate your\u00a0smarts, you must also exude confidence and credibility. Gravitas blunders include lack of\u00a0integrity, sexual impropriety and off-color or racially insensitive jokes.<\/p>\n

It is through your communication that people learn whether or not you have gravitas.\u00a0She says the two most important communication skills are speaking skills and the ability\u00a0to command a room. Eye contact is very important, so keeping your eyes on your notes\u00a0or your PowerPoint when making a presentation will detract from your EP. Accent,\u00a0grammar, and voice timbre and pitch can all affect how well you communicate as well.\u00a0Communication blunders include constantly checking electronic devices, rambling and\u00a0repeating yourself, and appearing bored or detached, whether you actually are or not.<\/p>\n

While appearance is the least important of the three aspects of EP, it\u2019s the first thing\u00a0people notice, and if they can\u2019t get past your appearance they won\u2019t notice how you act\u00a0or what you say. Grooming and polish are the most important aspects of appearance,\u00a0and what is appropriate beyond grooming and polish will vary widely from workplace to\u00a0workplace. Appearance blunders include flashy jewelry and bitten or broken fingernails.<\/p>\n

Hewlett promises that looking the part for your job and workplace does not mean you\u00a0must be just like everyone else. While keeping your appearance polished, you can still\u00a0develop a look that is authentic for you and appropriate for your work environment.<\/p>\n

If you are worried that you don\u2019t have the EP to get ahead, there is hope! The good news\u00a0is EP can be cultivated and practiced. If you can\u2019t figure out how to improve your EP\u00a0yourself, ask for feedback from your boss or coworkers. If needed you can hire a coach to\u00a0help. It may involve hard work: you will need to prepare thoroughly for all presentations,\u00a0take time to find the perfect clothes for your body and work environment, and pick up\u00a0skills to help you read your audience and communicate effectively. But Hewlett promises\u00a0the hours of work are worth it: Developing EP will be transformative for you and for your\u00a0career.<\/p>\n

Hewlett, Sylvia Ann. Executive Presence: The Missing Link between Merit and Success<\/em>.
\nNew York: HarperCollins, 2014. Print.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by\u00a0Jennifer Reisch, Senior Assistant, INALJ NYC Are You Cultivating Executive Presence? Have you ever been passed over for a promotion you know you should have gotten? Ever\u00a0had a great idea or important feedback that was discounted without any consideration\u00a0whatsoever? Been in a competition where you performed flawlessly but still were passed\u00a0over for top awards? You…<\/p>\n

Read more \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":73026,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[145],"tags":[146,69,3592,6630,6628,3655,6299,6629],"class_list":["post-83233","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","tag-advice","tag-article","tag-blog","tag-executive-presence","tag-executive-presence-the-missing-link-between-merit-and-success","tag-inalj-nyc","tag-jennifer-reisch","tag-sylvia-ann-hewlett"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/2013-11-30-15.31.58.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1WoMK-lEt","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83233","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=83233"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83233\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/73026"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=83233"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=83233"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=83233"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}