In our recent Tips, we have been focused on the topic of Executive Presence. Over the past months, we’ve looked at four key elements that contribute to executive presence – appearance, communication, comportment, and confidence. 

There are several fatal flaws to consider when it comes to executive presence:

• Appearance – Sloppiness is a deal killer. That does not mean you have to be formal all the time, but being appropriate and put together in various settings is key. 
• Communication – People with strong executive presence do not commonly communicate with sarcasm and self-deprecating language. In addition, these do not translate well in an international setting. 
• Comportment – Distracted behavior can affect how people feel about another person’s executive presence. Being truly present is a powerful tactic. 
• Confidence – Of course, nervousness and other signs of insecurity can erode the appearance of confidence. Nervousness and insecurity can come across both visibly and audibly, and people with strong executive presence are able to eliminate these telltale signs outwardly (even if they still feel nervous inwardly). 

There are also things you can do to positively affect all four of these elements. Two of the most critical include smiling (appropriately) and making strong eye contact. These actions make an immediate and lasting impression on a person or audience, and affect how you appear, how you communicate, how you handle yourself, and the confidence you portray.

At the beginning of this series of Tips on executive presence, we mentioned the idea of finding a role model – someone you know who exhibits a high level of executive presence. Now the challenge is to take action, implement some of these ideas, and work to become that role model for others!