Are you cultivating your executive presence?

The last couple of years have been tough for many people and Margie is no exception, there have been times when she has been knocked down, when she has questioned what on earth she is doing in this high pressure role. Yet, observing her recently, a mutual acquaintance commented that Margie has absolutely grown in stature over the last year.

So what has changed for this CFO?

Margie has been cultivating her Executive Presence, which I define as being her ability to inspire confidence in both her capabilities and her potential.

How has Margie done this?

• By carving out time for a strategic pause in her busy work schedule so that she can reflect on her vision and priorities
• Acknowledging and embodying her strengths and achievements
• Challenging the beliefs which have held her back from communicating with clarity
• Fully embracing who she is as a leader, with all her imperfections
• Learning to centre herself around her values and her purpose so that when all around is chaos she maintains her calm and her focus
• Being courageous enough to step outside her comfort zone and build a profile outside her own organisation

This is not easy work and there is no silver bullet but the rewards are great, with Margie becoming a much more influential leader, who can have the impact she hopes to achieve and feel more fulfilled whilst doing it.

I encourage you to ask yourself:

“Who is the leader I want to be?” and

“What am I doing to move myself in the right direction?”

The demands of C-suite roles are growing all the time, and we can only meet these increasing demands if we are committed to working on ourselves and making meaningful progress.

Cultivating executive presence is a critical factor in becoming an influential and inspiring leader, who can achieve great things.

If you’d like to learn more about cultivating your executive presence please download my whitepaper here and join me at a special Q&A session on 25 August.