Visual Cues: Designing First And Lasting Impressions

Shall I address the elephant in the room? Appearance can be a very taboo and sensitive subject. In the workforce, there is an unfortunate history of discrimination based on appearance, gender, race and color. To be clear, I am an advocate for diversity in leadership. My clients come from all sorts of backgrounds, genders and nationalities. When I discuss appearance with them, I am not talking about size, skin or hair color, or anything of that sort.

Instead, my clients and I focus on posture, body language, facial expressions and clothing choices—all aspects of their appearance that can be leveraged to contribute to their executive presence as a business leader. While these visual aspects are not the most critical factors in defining a successful leader, they can be harnessed to help establish a confident demeanor and boost a team’s trust.

Like it or not, many people make snap judgments based on appearance, so once we accept that fact, why not stack the deck in our favor? Then with the knowledge of the type of leader we want to be, we can make small adjustments to make sure that the visual cues we send to others match up with the image of ourselves we wish to project.

In a recent session, my client was preparing to make a company-wide presentation at her staff’s annual conference. She wanted to make a good impression, so we discussed what type of statement she wanted to make with her appearance.

When preparing a presentation, most people focus solely on the content of their presentation—the meat and potatoes. And they 100% should. However, experience has taught me that a presentation launches from the moment you enter the room. Your appearance and demeanor speak volumes long before you begin to verbally communicate.

Together, we concocted a plan to help establish the leadership image she wished to convey, using specific visual cues. She wanted to go for a business casual look—approachable yet professional and competent. She chose a pair of dark blue boot-cut jeans, a tucked-in cream blouse and a sleet grey blazer with discreet necklace and earrings. She would wear her hair back in a sleek ponytail so that her hair would look coiffed and not get in the way of her making eye contact with those around her.

As for body language, she would walk into the room with her documents and phone tucked in a leather bag on her shoulder so she could be available to keep her head up, make eye contact with those around her and have her hands free for a handshake to those who offered it.

By making these small but intentional choices, my client is setting herself up for success in this presentation. She is leveraging posture, body language and apparel to boost her executive presence in the room.

Have you ever considered what visual cues you are sending out to others? Some leaders have created vision or mood boards to brainstorm the aesthetic and image they hope to project. Intentionally preparing your appearance in terms of body language, apparel or facial expressions can be a powerful tool in boosting your image and how others perceive you—ultimately contributing to your overall leadership presence.

This article has previously been featured on Forbes

Harnessing Conflict To Create An Ideal Company Culture

Conflict and debate are subsets of communication that we often find extremely difficult, and yet healthy debate is often the key to a thriving and innovative business. Conflict and debate are especially useful when brainstorming or problem-solving. Though leaders may find it emotionally or mentally challenging to navigate differing points of view, diversity of thought provides the ingredients for creating the ideal company culture.

Understanding power dynamics in a company hierarchy is the first step. Leaders must ask themselves if employees are openly encouraged to speak their minds or if are they worried about a public power struggle in which they might lose face. Are there cultural differences and perspectives that stop team members from expressing themselves to authority figures? Are team members clearly told where and how they can provide feedback to directors and upper management?

Assess cultural differences. Some team members may believe that compliance is preferable to participation in decision-making or problem-solving conversations.

Marie is a senior executive at an HR firm, and she realized that when she led meetings, some of the newer team members stayed quiet because they were afraid to speak up in front of the boss. She now asks junior executives to lead meetings so that her voice and opinion do not override the conversation or squash potential participation from those with differing ideas. By taking a step back and listening more, she also inherently demonstrates her willingness to absorb conflicting points of view.

While conflict and debate can be healthy for a thriving company culture, leaders can only harness them for good using clearly communicated guidelines. In the article “Into all problem-solving, a little dissent must fall,” McKinsey & Company advises leaders to “consider questions relating to team structure and rules of engagement: What does success look like when it comes to contributory dissent? What topics and behaviors are out of bounds? Who will lead the discussion, and how will comments be captured? Who has the final say on decisions, or which decisions can be delegated, and to whom?”

If done correctly, drama and conflict can revitalize your meetings and company culture. However, meetings are not always the best forum for communicating dissent or conflicting opinions.

My client Philip came from a company in which speaking out against a leader’s point of view was strongly discouraged. When he transitioned into a leadership role at a new company, he found himself in a culture where a diversity of opinions was welcomed and encouraged. As he was new to the idea of team brainstorming, public dissent in meetings seemed disrespectful to him because he viewed it as a condemnation of his leadership style. However, he also quickly recognized the benefits of brainstorming and healthy debate, so he knew that he needed to put aside his discomfort with dissent and work on adapting to this new style of leadership.

Philip decided to take small steps by establishing times and places in which team members could talk about their thoughts on initiatives. At the beginning of each meeting, he explains that he wants to hear feedback on certain topics and encourages participants to take time after the meeting to digest the information they have been provided. Once they have time to form thoughtful responses, they are welcome to come to him for a one-on-one conversation or a small, informal group chat.

The ideal work environment encourages open communication and provides psychological safety for team members to share their views and opinions in a respectful way. Cultivating this type of workplace takes time, practice and training. Effective communication is a skill that not all employees are taught, especially when it comes to expressing dissent or differing points of view.

Occasional training, coaching sessions and/or other materials may be necessary to teach team members how to communicate respectfully. Courses can walk through theoretical conversations and provide practical tips on how to thoughtfully explain one’s point of view without offense or personally attacking those who see things differently. Coaching sessions could also be a valuable resource so that teammates can have a person available to help them evaluate real-life scenarios that they may encounter. Often business coaching can include role-play in those scenarios that allow people to practice their new skills.

Successful leaders acknowledge and appreciate a diversity of voices—even the dissenters—in their company culture. Although those who speak out against a course of action in business may not ultimately sway the final decision, they can provide valuable insight and information for creating future decisions and contribute to forging the direction of the company.

This article has previously been featured on Forbes

Empowering Middle Management Superheroes

“Middle management” seems like a humdrum and antiquated term, yet these business roles are often unsung company superheroes with the power to decrease employee burnout, empower and maintain intelligent and hard-working team members, create lasting interdepartmental connections, translate and implement company-wide decisions and ultimately increase a business’s bottom line. They are the “Clark Kents” of the workplace—with a superhero suit hidden beneath their business attire.

Unfortunately, over the past few decades, the term “middle manager” has developed a negative connotation. Zahira Jaser, deputy director of the MBA at Sussex Business School, sadly reports that even MBA programs have traditionally glorified “leaders” and executive-level workers while simultaneously dismissing middle management as mere administrators. “The idea of middle managers as unexceptional, mediocre supervisors has been around for decades. …These ideas are still central to what’s taught in many MBA and executive development programs, where there’s a tendency to educate managers on how to ‘upgrade’ and become leaders,” Jaser reports (registration required).

However, this negative stereotype needs to change. The future of thriving businesses depends on these key players. Jaser’s experience and research taught her that “the division between leadership and management increasingly sounds anachronistic, even obsolete. It is time to reunite leadership and management in one concept, and recognize middle managers as connecting leaders.” Their work is of vital importance in a successful company and needs to be valued as such.

Other experts agree. More research is being poured into the power of middle management and its future. In a McKinsey and Company interview, authors Emily Field, Bryan Hancock and Bill Schaninger discuss the current model of middle management in many companies and how it needs to drastically change to support the changing needs of the workplace. Hancock explains, “Over the past 20 years, managers have increasingly been asked—and increasingly valued—not for their management but for their individual-contributor work. And given the complexities of the future of work, we need to flip that around. We need to get managers back to managing.”

He also shares the surprising statistic that “middle managers are spending less than a third of their time on people management.” They are being asked to complete mountains of administrative work and create and implement plans based on top-made decisions, which eats up their time and takes away from managing teams. However, with the Covid-19 pandemic, remote workers and the Great Attrition, people management is of greater and greater importance in decreasing burnout, identifying quiet quitting and maintaining high-functioning teams.

C-suite level execs can prepare and adapt to the changing needs in their company and set middle management up for success with soft-skills training to better manage and communicate with their teams.

Executive leadership should also check in for burnout. Middle management can encounter a lot of pressure both from above and below. Stave off burnout by asking questions such as:

• How much time are you spending on each of your tasks?

• Do you feel that you are allotted the time you need for each responsibility?

• What are your thoughts on the workload?

• How much time are you dedicating to administrative jobs?

• Do you have any suggestions for how we can support you?

• Are you receiving enough information from me to help communicate top-level decisions to your teams?

Routine check-ins with middle managers are a crucial way to show that they are valued and supported. Consistent evaluations of their responsibilities and job expectations might reveal a workload that is not feasible. Together, executive and middle management may need to redefine and update the role to reflect achievable work goals and productivity markers. Clearly defining expectations is a major win for a middle manager who probably feels pulled in many directions and is unclear on what the priorities are.

Lastly, be sure to include “people management” and “talent development” as criteria in their annual evaluations. Roles such as director and senior manager should spend a lot of time managing their people—communicating ideas, training teams, developing relationships across departments, etc.—and those crucial tasks should be treated as such in their evaluations.

It’s time to change the narrative and start empowering middle management again. Investing in employees at every level contributes to the health and growth of a company. The work can sometimes seem invisible and unappreciated, but the work they put into their people ultimately contributes positively to the long-term success of any business.

This article has previously been featured on Forbes

Grit And Resilience: Qualities Everyone Needs For Life’s Curveballs

Time to talk grit. As experience shows us, life can throw curveballs—on both a personal and professional level. When the unexpected comes our way, grit and resilience are key factors in overcoming obstacles and achieving success.

Grit: The Hidden Key To Success

Grit and resilience are trending topics for a good reason. In her revelatory book Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, Angela Duckworth, Ph.D., reveals her research findings on grit and its role in individual and professional success. She explains that grit is the combination of passion and perseverance. It seems simple on paper, but living grit can be a challenge. It means being willing to make mistakes and get back up over and over again. It means hours and hours of practice, effort, frustration, intentional goal-setting and following through despite setbacks.

In an HBR article on organizational grit, Duckworth and Thomas Lee write that grit “propels people to the highest ranks of leadership in many demanding fields.” Successful executives and other business leaders demonstrate grit. Luckily, grit is not necessarily an inherent trait. It can be taught, practiced and developed over time.

Throughout history, the people we deem geniuses were certainly intelligent, but more importantly, they also had grit.Thomas Edison failed several thousand times before creating the lightbulb. J.K. Rowling struggled to write Harry Potterand was rejected by 12 different publishing houses before finally signing with Bloomsbury. Steve Jobs founded Apple, was fired and then came back years later to lead the company to exponential growth and success.

If these smart and passionate people had not been so resilient, we never would have known about them and the world would—quite literally—be a darker place.

Why Grit Is Especially Important For Leaders

Perseverance and resilience are constant themes in my sessions with clients. High-level decision-makers face huge pressures and uncertainties on a daily basis. Fear of making mistakes can be a serious reality. However, my advice is to take fear out of the equation and make well-informed choices based on the knowledge and information at hand. And if mistakes are made, get back up and try again.

These ideas are not just buzzwords in a pep talk. They are real ingredients that create tangible results. Once leaders understand and practice these characteristics in the workplace, they can start teaching the concepts to others and create “gritty” teams. As I wrote about recently, it all starts with you.

First of all, lead by example and practice what you preach. When discussing grit with your teams and encouraging perseverance through the challenges they might face, share examples of difficulties you yourself have experienced. Consider sharing failures and the various solutions you had to try in order to get past those failures. Talk about current obstacles and even brainstorm solutions with them. Once others see your own determination, they will in turn be motivated to emulate your grit and resilience in the workplace.

In her book, Duckworth explains that the successful leaders she studied “not only had determination, [but] they [also] had direction.” For a gritty team to work toward achievable results and a common purpose, they need a clear direction. In the executive world, that means leaders must communicate team objectives and make sure goals are aligned at all levels. Aligning goals across teams and departments can be a challenge in and of itself, but it is crucial for success.

Final Thoughts

Grit is not for the faint of heart. In this era of instant gratification and the desire for quick results, perseverance and resilience can be challenging, even frustrating. However, determination, direction and practice will allow you to become a “gritty” leader who will relish the victory of overall success both in your own life and for your organization.

This article has previously been featured on Forbes

How Drama Can Revitalize Your Meetings

Be honest with yourself—when a meeting invite pops into your inbox, do you have a visceral reaction? Do you groan inside and start immediately thinking of excuses to get out of it? Or do you get excited about the topic and start planning your talking points? If your answer is the former rather than the latter, then you are most likely suffering from the all-too-prevalent “death by meeting” syndrome. In that case, it may be time to add a little drama.

In his book Death by Meeting: A Leadership Fable About Solving the Most Painful Problems in Business, business leader and author Patrick Lencioni advocates for a revolution in the way executives run meetings in the workplace. He reminds us of the vital importance of meetings and communications for the well-being and innovation of a company and advises teams to revitalize their meetings through healthy conflict. Surprising counsel, but effective.

Lencioni likens meetings to the plot of your favorite TV show or movie. Without hooking us in from the very beginning with intrigue and drama, we lose interest immediately. Likewise on a workday, if a meeting does not intrigue us from the get-go or hold our interest for very long, we zone out and lose valuable time. How can we add drama to a meeting? Lencioni talks about “illustrat[ing] the dangers of making a bad decision, or highlight[ing] a competitive threat that is looming.” To sum up, give the participants a reason to care and tune in.

Conflict in meetings is not always an easy undertaking. It helps to remind all meeting attendees beforehand of the shared goal and objective of that conversation. Also set parameters that require mutual respect and define each participant’s role in that meeting. In an article (registration required) aptly entitled “What Is an Effective Meeting?,” McKinsey and Company define four principal meeting roles: decision-makers, advisers, recommenders and execution partners. With clear roles, meeting parameters, rules and objectives—key ingredients for a successful and productive meeting—the path is cleared for healthy conversation and debate.

A bit wary of adding conflict into meetings? Worried that conflict might spill over into other aspects of the office culture? Honoring my love of Italian food, I’ll use a cooking analogy to explain how to keep the drama contained in those meetings.

Imagine you are throwing a dinner party and making spaghetti—a large amount of it. If you use your four-quart pot, the spaghetti is going to spill over the sides and make a mess that you’ll have to clean up. It will spill over the pot, drip down the sides of the stovetop, between the cracks of the counter, and fall on the floor, where the dog may step on it and track it all over the house. It may create a mess that takes hours to clean up; it may even be impossible to completely wipe up every drop of spilled tomato sauce. The same thing happens when you use your eight-quart pot. Now imagine making pasta with the extra-large 12-quart pot. The pasta does not spill over. It is contained. You still have a mess to clean up, but it is contained. All the pasta sauce and remnants of spaghetti stuck to the bottom of the pot are easily removed and cleaned so that it can be used again for the next dinner party.

Meetings with specific parameters, well-defined roles for participants and a clear goal act as that 12-quart spaghetti pot. Within the four walls of that meeting, it may get a bit messy with lively conversation and a bit of drama that will revitalize the company. And once the meeting is over, the “mess” is easily cleaned up.

In business, as in life, tough decisions need to be made. Healthy debate is the best way to make well-informed decisions and innovative choices. Try utilizing Lencioni’s drama-driven strategy paired with clear meeting parameters, and you may find renewed energy and enthusiasm when the next meeting invitation arrives in your inbox.

This article has previously been featured on Forbes