Early in my leadership career, one of my mentors suggested that I read Sylvia Ann Hewlett’s book on executive presence. I was a shy, young executive saddled with lots of culturally embedded behaviors that did not help me in becoming an effective leader. For instance, I was very uncomfortable looking at people in the eyes, especially those older than me. (I know many Asian-American and Caribbean friends who also had to overcome that). Sure, I was a great performer. I worked hard and got glowing reviews in my evaluations, but I lacked executive presence.
I grew up in a culture where I was expected to be submissive, never to stand up for myself, and to take care of others. I had little to no sense of humor. I dressed like a man. My typical outfit was a button-down shirt and dark colored pants with a belt. I wanted no one to get the wrong impression about me. I was also bookish and spoke like an academic. In my Ph.D. program in measurement/statistics, we practiced parsimony. In other words, make your point as succinctly as possible. The art of storytelling, which every leader needs, was not one in which I had much practice. Needless to say, I needed to work on my executive presence.
The book was super helpful. I read it voraciously and immediately began implementing its recommendations. I also worked with an executive coach. To think that I coach others, given where I came from, is so magical. In fact, few other activities give me greater professional joy than watching others grow as I work with them and after our work. I also watched a lot of videos by my favorite orators. I watched leaders I admire work their magic in real-time. I also watched to learn what not to do.
I enlisted my cousin in upgrading my wardrobe and helping me embrace my feminine side. I began shopping at Talbots, Ann Taylor, and Lord and Taylor for a more sophisticated look. When I developed plantar fasciitis, I put my fancy shoes in my trunk for the occasions when I couldn’t wear my orthopedic shoes.
Authenticity was perhaps the more difficult aspect of my growth that I embraced. I did not like to talk about myself. I had grown up in a household and culture where modesty was prized. However, as I began to share my story with my students and with women leaders and leaders of color, as well as other marginalized leaders and immigrants, I realized that telling my story inspired others. I also started very intentionally to invest time in getting to know people who were different from me, to understand their stories, their roots, what inspired them, how they use their gifts to uplift others, what obstacles they have overcome, and the traditions that influenced them.
There is so much more to my growth as a leader and to cultivating and refining my executive presence. Sylvia Ann Hewlett’s updated research on executive presence shows how others perceive executive presence in the post-pandemic, more inclusive, social media, remote work environment. Executive Presence 2.0 is a great read and while you wait to get your hard copy, you can read the Harvard Business Review Summary or simply get the Audible version. The author starts off with sharing her early executive presence story as a young woman from the working class in Scotland vying for admission at Oxford and Cambridge universities and later as a junior faculty member at Columbia. She weaves in her personal anecdotes with the research in a very authentic manner that makes it even more relatable.
Below, I share some of her tables comparing current perceptions of executive presence with those from a little more than a decade ago. This is just the tip of the iceberg. I highly recommend her book for all genders, especially for those in dominant groups and in positions of power. It is illuminating!
