Well looky here, there’s a whole new vibe up in this missive!

While I’ll still be noticing and noting things, they will now be focused on your leadership presence and the impact it creates.

Presence is one of those ambiguous words.

“You know it when you see it!”

“You need to work on your executive presence!”

“They just have this presence about them…”

Cool but what does any of that mean? That’s exactly what we’re going to be exploring. What it looks like, how you can practice it, and the possibilities and opportunities owning your presence and impact open up for you as leaders.

One moment of ambiguous feedback drives the work I’m doing today.

“Erin, your emotions are the best part of you…and the worst part of you.”

Talk about what the hell am I supposed to do with that feedback?!

He never clarified. He never explained. He never told me how to handle or channel those emotions or which were the best and which were the worst.

Not knowing what else to do, I decided my solution was to go in even keeled. No emotion. Bland. Basic. Baseline.

Those even keeled weeks were some of the most exhausting of my life.

I was trying to be someone I wasn’t. I muted the “worst” parts of me, and also the best parts of me.

My team was confused. So was I.

Then, when said boss came back and told me he missed my energy, my enthusiasm, my getting fired up…I asked which is it? Yes emotions, or no emotions? Which emotions, specifically, fit into who and what you want me to be?

The question was rhetorical at that point, because I no longer cared what he thought. I was aware enough to do some self-reflecting and realize there was a thing called emotional regulation that I might want to look into. That I could take on myself to practice, to regulate, to learn how to deal with stress and pressure and the stupidity that got me all fired up to begin with. FYI all of that is called learning and growing as a leader.

Sometimes you have mentors to help you figure it out. Sometimes you have huge jerks who give you shitty feedback and you learn how to figure it out yourself.

The thing was, after a few weeks of flatline feelings, I was done. It wasn’t me. It’s NOT me. I have a lot of energy. I have a lot of emotions. I have a lot of general enthusiasm for life!!

That, in a nutshell, is my presence.

No nonsense. Straight talking. Caring. Compassionate. Empathetic. Excitable. Encouraging. Loud. Hand-talking.

All of that is part of my presence, when I am aligned. When I am aware. When I show up full on.

What are your words? How do you describe your presence? How do others describe your presence?

For real, hit reply and let me know.

I’d love to read all of the different answers, because to me that’s what presence is. It’s no one strict set of characteristics. It’s no checklist. It’s a vibe.

You DO know it when you see it, because those that have presence that leaves a positive impact are aligned, aware, and showing up fully–as their true selves.

Excited to be in all of your presences…and to explore this vibe so you can bring it and create the impact you want to create as leaders.