Building Leadership Presence

I got fired twice because I had poor soft skills. Then, I became VP at Amazon, where my job was more than 80% based on soft skills. This was possible because I stopped being an outspoken, judgmental critic of other people and improved my soft skills. Here are 4 areas you can improve: Soft skills are one of the main things I discuss with my coaching clients, as they are often the barrier between being a competent manager and being ready to be a true executive. Technical skills are important, but soft skills are the deciding factor between executive candidates a lot more than technical skills are. Four “soft skill” areas in which we can constantly improve are: 1) Storytelling skills Jeff Bezos said, “You can have the best technology, you can have the best business model, but if the storytelling isn’t amazing, it won’t matter.” The same is true for you as a leader. You can have the best skills or best ideas, but if you can’t communicate through powerful storytelling, no one will pay attention. 2) Writing Writing is the foundation of clear communication and clear thinking. It is the main tool for demonstrating your thinking and influencing others. The way you write will impact your influence, and therefore will impact your opportunities to grow as a leader. 3) Executive Presence Executive presence is your ability to present as someone who should be taken seriously. This includes your ability to speak, to act under pressure, and to relate to your team informally, but it goes far beyond any individual skill. Improving executive presence requires consistently evaluating where we have space to grow in our image as leaders and then addressing it. 4) Public Speaking As a leader, public speaking is inevitable. In order the get the support you need to become an executive, you must inspire confidence in your abilities and ideas through the way you speak to large, important groups of people. No one wants to give more responsibility to someone who looks uncomfortable with the amount they already have. I am writing about these 4 areas because today’s newsletter is centered around how exactly to improve these soft skills. The newsletter comes from member questions in our Level Up Newsletter community, and I answer each of them at length. I'm joined in the newsletter by my good friend, Richard Hua, a world class expert in emotional intelligence (EQ). Rich created a program at Amazon that has taught EQ to more than 500,000 people! The 4 specific questions I answer are: 1. “How do I improve my storytelling skills?” 2. “What resources or tools would you recommend to get better in writing?” 3. “What are the top 3 ways to improve my executive presence?” 4. “I am uncomfortable talking in front of large crowds and unknown people, but as I move up, I need to do this more. How do I get comfortable with this?” See the newsletter here: https://lnkd.in/gg6JXqF4 How have you improved your soft skills?

To every leader who has ever wondered... "Am I too quiet to lead?" This is for you. You enjoy solitude. You don't chase attention. You don't speak just to fill the silence. You would rather have one conversation that matters than a hundred that don't. And yet, somewhere along your leadership journey, you may have felt the pressure to become more extroverted. More visible. More outspoken. More "dynamic." I want to tell you something I have seen after coaching hundreds of senior leaders. Your quietness is not the problem. Trying to be someone you are not is. Some of the most respected leaders I have worked with are deeply authentic. Their gravitas doesn't come from raising their voice. It comes from their calm presence. Their composure under pressure. Their ability to listen without rushing to respond. Their thoughtful decisions. Their consistency. Their authenticity. People don't trust them because they are the loudest person in the room. People trust them because they are the most grounded. Executive Presence has never been about becoming an extrovert. It is about becoming the most authentic version of yourself. When authenticity is combined with gravitas, composure, warmth, and genuine curiosity, people naturally lean in. That is influence. So if you see yourself in this post, don't spend your energy trying to become louder. Invest it in becoming more authentic. Your calm can reassure a room. Your composure can steady a team. Your presence can inspire confidence without demanding attention. Sometimes the quietest leader creates the loudest impact. Have you ever felt pressure to change your personality to succeed as a leader? Or did embracing your authenticity become your greatest strength? #ExecutivePresence #Leadership #Authenticity #Influence

We’ve coached thousands of speakers on building confidence. Most of them weren’t missing natural-born ability or charisma. But they were missing a clear understanding of their unique perspective. Confidence isn’t about knowing you’ll perform perfectly in a presentation. It’s about knowing you have something valuable to offer before you ever say a word. So my experts started asking our clients 4 simple questions: 1. How do you see this situation differently? Different from your peers. Your managers. Your customers. You don’t have to be loud, but you do have to know what angle is uniquely yours. 2. What experience do you have that no one else has? No one else grew up exactly like you, worked the jobs you did, or made the mistakes you’ve made. Your path matters. 3. What’s your expertise? Yes, you have some. If you’ve been invited to a meeting to share or someone asked you to speak on a stage, it wasn’t random. There’s a reason. Find it. Name it. Own it. 4. What part of your personality shows up when you’re at your best? Are you warm? Funny? Analytical? Direct? Good. Bring that. Don’t leave your personality at the door. It’s part of your power. Most people have enough confidence buried somewhere deep inside them. Crystallizing your perspective is what helps bring it out. #PresentationSkills #ExecutivePresence #ImposterSyndrome #PublicSpeaking

I remember I was heading into a board meeting when our office janitor, Mr. Ellis, stopped me. He said, "Your name tag's upside down." My first instinct? → Brush it off. → Pretend I didn't need help. → Protect my pride. Instead, I paused and said, "Thanks for looking out for me." He smiled and replied, "Doesn't matter your title. You represent all of us when you walk into that room." That single moment with Mr. Ellis's big brown eyes shifted how I viewed leadership forever. Six months later, I stood in that same boardroom, presenting a critical strategy. Not because I knew everything. But because I walked in carrying the quiet confidence that comes from respecting everyone who makes our work possible, from the janitor to the CEO. And respect carries more weight than any title ever could, regardless of the room you're in. Here's what most professionals get wrong: They think career growth is about impressing those above them. They forget that everyone, from the janitor to the CEO, sees how you really show up. They underestimate the wisdom in people that society often overlooks. But the highest-impact leaders I've coached share one trait. They lead with respect. → They treat every person like they matter. → They know trust isn't reserved for titles. → They understand influence starts with how you make people feel. That's how careers grow, not just in skill but in humanity. The C.H.O.I.C.E.® Framework makes this real: Courage: Stand for dignity, even when no one's watching. Humility: Know you're not above anyone. Openness: Learn from every voice. Integration: Turn respect into everyday actions. Curiosity: Ask people about their stories. Empathy: See the person behind the role. Here's how to start leading with respect and grow your career: ✅ Start small. → Thank someone whose work often goes unseen. → Respect is built in micro-moments that matter. ✅ Listen deeply. → Instead of dismissing someone's input, ask: → "What do you see that I might be missing?" ✅ Model humanity. → Show others how to treat people well, no matter their title. → Respect shapes culture and careers. The more senior you become, the more your treatment of junior staff defines you. Your peers judge your character not by how you handle power but by how you treat those without it. 💭 Who's someone "behind the scenes" who taught you about leadership? ♻️ Tag someone who leads with humanity. ➕ Follow Loren Rosario - Maldonado, PCC, for career coaching that's human to the core.

𝘙𝘦𝘱𝘶𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 (𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘯): your opinion about someone or something, or how much respect or admiration someone or something receives, based on past behaviour or character. I recently interviewed someone who shared an example of overcoming a significant early career setback. Their mistake in their twenties damaged their reputation and became a handbrake on their career. I was impressed by their honesty in owning this error of judgement, yet more so by the efforts they had undertaken in the two decades since to address the issue and lead differently. The mistake itself isn't all that important. But it did get me thinking about reputation. I've often said reputations are hard-earned and yet so easily lost. For many of us, it's the most essential professional currency we own and can positively or negatively influence. So, do we spend enough time managing our reputations? Reputations are built over time. It is a gradual process that requires consistent effort, thought and focus. So, how do you set about building or improving your reputation? Here are nine ways you can enhance your reputation. 1. Assess your current reputation: Understand how others perceive you. Seek feedback from trusted friends, colleagues, or mentors. 2. Define your values: Determine the principles guiding your behaviour and decisions. This will allow you to project a consistent and authentic image. 3. Build effective relationships: Invest in building positive relationships. Be genuine, supportive, and dependable. Networking and maintaining connections with diverse individuals is a proven way to enhance your reputation. 4. Develop your expertise: Improve your skills and knowledge in your area of expertise. Become a reliable resource by staying current with industry trends and sharing valuable insights. 5. Deliver quality work: Strive for excellence in everything you do. Delivering results will add to your reputation. 6. Seek feedback and learn from it: Listen, accept constructive criticism, and use it to grow. Demonstrating a willingness to learn and adapt shows humility and a commitment to self-improvement. 7. Engage in positive communication: Communicate respectfully and diplomatically. Avoid gossip, rumours, and negative discussions. Ensure you are known for your discretion. Rise above negativity. 8. Pay it forward: Contributing, paying it forward, and giving back will enhance your reputation, and you will also feel good for doing it. 9. Act with integrity: Demonstrate honesty, transparency, and ethical behaviour in your personal and professional life. Keep your promises, admit mistakes, and treat others with respect. And lastly, you cannot cultivate a reputation for being trustworthy and reliable if you are neither. Accept that mistakes will happen, but that does not need to define you as a person. Be patient, consistent, and genuine in your actions. Over time, your efforts will contribute to a stronger and more favourable reputation.

If there is one trend I believe leaders need to take seriously in 2026, it is the evolution of reputation. Your reputation is no longer something that shifts slowly. It updates in real time. I have watched leaders make one small decision or delay one simple response and suddenly find themselves managing a narrative they never expected. Reputation today reacts much more quickly to public sentiment, cultural shifts, and even internal dynamics. It is not a static asset. Managing it well requires consistent communication, empathy driven choices, real time listening, and alignment between your stated values and your actual behavior. Reputation is not just what you say you are. It is how people experience you in motion.

Most leaders don't have a delegation problem. They have a trust problem. Here's the 3-Tier Delegation Matrix that helped me scale teams from 5 to 70: 1. Comfort Zone Tasks The Trap: You're hoarding quick wins, stunting your team's growth. Reality Check: Those tasks you do in your sleep? They're holding you back. Action: List 3 tasks you excel at but need to let go. Today. 2. Growth Zone Tasks The Gap: Your team's potential is bottlenecked by your hesitation. The Truth: Controlled failure builds stronger teams than constant success. Action: Assign one ambitious project this week. Be their safety net, not their ceiling. 3. High-Stakes Tasks The Fear: "Nobody can handle this but me." The Irony: You learned through trial by fire. Why deny others the same growth? Action: Pick your most guarded responsibility. Transfer complete ownership. The Simple Framework: • Routine tasks → Delegate immediately • Growth tasks → Support actively • Critical tasks → Trust completely This isn't theory. This matrix helped me run autonomous vehicle operations across 5 countries. When ex-nurses crushed PR roles and engineers became operations leads, I learned: Trust doesn't just delegate work. It unlocks potential. Your team is more capable than you think. The question is: are you brave enough to prove it? (P.S. What's the hardest task you've delegated, and how did it go?)

You've hired the voice coach. Practiced the power pose. Bought the executive wardrobe. You look the part. You sound the part. But in executive rooms, you still feel like you are proving you belong. Here’s the real issue: You can look polished and sound prepared. But if you do not trust yourself, the room will feel it. • • • Most executive presence advice focuses on the cosmetics of leadership. → Stand taller → Lower your pitch → Use more pauses → Wear the right outfit All useful. But still incomplete. Because you cannot technique your way to true presence. • • • The real test of executive presence is what happens to you when the room pushes back. Do you go silent? Over-explain? Rush to defend yourself? Or can you stay clear, grounded, and confident? The leaders who turn heads when they speak have built that capacity. When pressure mounts, they do not perform calm. They are calm. • • • Let's see this in practice. A Sr. Director at a tech giant came to me after two promotions in five years. She was on the fast track. But now the stakes were higher than ever before. She was being challenged on strategy. Questioned on tradeoffs. Expected to influence people who were several levels above her. She would walk into the room prepared. But leave a little shaken, wondering if she'd said too much or landed it right. She had tried everything: Executive presence workshops. Voice training. Meditation apps. Even a stylist. All of that had value. But it was still operating at the surface. The deeper work was missing: building inner and strategic capacity to stay steady, clear, and influential under pressure. 𝗦𝗼 𝘄𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝘀. 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: How to stay grounded in rooms where the stakes felt high. How to stop interpreting pushback as personal rejection. How to regulate the instinct to over-explain, defend, or soften her message. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗻, 𝘄𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼𝗽: How to speak with executive-level brevity. How to respond to senior leaders with clarity, not performance energy. How to influence the room without diluting her message to stay liked. • • • Within a few weeks, she started noticing the shift. She was no longer preparing just to survive senior meetings. She was preparing to influence them. And the C-suite started responding differently. They invited her into strategy conversations. They asked her to lead high-stakes client meetings. They brought her into decisions she used to be briefed on after the fact. Four months later, she was promoted to VP. • • • Because at senior levels, promotions do not come from looking polished. They come from being trusted with bigger decisions and bigger consequences. If you are ready to be respected as a strategic voice in senior rooms and positioned for your next VP or CXO role, DM me to work together.

Every leadership development programme I've come across has a module on executive presence. And almost all of them get it wrong. They teach you to project confidence. To speak more slowly. To hold eye contact. To dress better. To take up physical space. These things aren't wrong. But they're surface. Real executive presence, the kind that makes a room recalibrate when you walk in, isn't a set of behaviours you layer on. It comes from three deeper things: Clarity of conviction. People with genuine presence aren't hedging. They have a view. They hold it. They're willing to be challenged. The gravitas you feel in a room isn't body language. It's the signal that this person has done the thinking and stands behind it. Absence of approval-seeking. The most compelling senior leaders I've worked with are not performing. They're not scanning the room for validation. They've separated their sense of self from the reaction in the moment. That freedom reads as authority. Investment in the other person. Counterintuitively, the leaders with the strongest presence are often the ones making you feel most seen. They listen without agenda. They ask questions that matter. Presence isn't about projecting outward. It's about being genuinely inward-focused on the person in front of you. You can't workshop your way to this. But you can work toward it.

Delegation is often described as a sign of trust. In practice, it’s something more deliberate: a decision to pass execution to others while remaining accountable for the outcome. Leaders don’t step away when they delegate, they stay responsible, just in a different way. This is also where delegation tends to break down, especially as organizations grow. Effective delegation means letting go of how the work gets done. Micromanaging slows teams and weakens ownership. But leaders can’t let go of why decisions are made, what success looks like, or who is ultimately accountable. Problems arise when responsibility is handed over without clear expectations, boundaries, or decision rights. Good delegation relies on structure. Clear objectives, and regular check-ins give teams room to operate while keeping leaders informed. Trust doesn’t come from disappearing, it’s built through clarity, visibility, and feedback. When leaders step too far back, risk quietly builds. In fast-scaling organizations, roles often evolve faster than processes. Delegation becomes informal, assumptions replace alignment, and accountability starts to blur. When results dip, leaders sometimes pull the work back instead of fixing how delegation is set up. That doesn’t restore control, it creates more confusion. Strong leaders recognize the balance: execution can be shared, but accountability always stays with them!