Ep. 53: Digital Executive Presence

We explore how to craft your own executive presence in the age of remote work and video calls. How you present yourself influences how you are perceived. Being intentional allows you to control your own narrative. 

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Have you thought about how you present yourself in virtual environments? Today we're going to dig into the topic and hopefully give you some food for thought. Welcome to the Talk to Me PDD Podcast. I'm your host, PDD. This is the podcast where we talk about all things knowledge work, leadership, people management, AI, tech and society, whatever exciting is top of mind. So today is episode 53, digital executive presence. So what does that mean? Let's start to un unpack all that, a lot of different terms there uh going on. So first of all, we'll leave out the digital, we'll come back to it. So what is executive presence? Um what do you communicate without without saying it? What are the the signals that people are are picking up from you that you're conveying um without literally saying it? Um now we should all judge each other by our content, our thoughts, our character, things like that. But the reality is we often don't. We form impressions from from what we see and other things that are not necessarily related to the quality of the content that somebody is producing. Um that's just the reality of the situation. We can pretend it doesn't exist, um, but that's not going to change the way that others may perceive us and um the value that they may perceive that we bring based on things besides the actual work that we're doing. This is of course not to say that our actual work is not important, but how it's perceived can be influenced by by other areas. And this can be uncomfortable to talk about. Um I'm not really going to dig into all of that today, and I think I've talked about this this book before, but Executive Presence 2.0 by Sylvia Ann Hewlett is a great book on this. I think she's really fearless in some of the things and topics that that she talks about, um, which can be a little bit taboo, I think, at times. Um and I think the good part of it is there's lots of things that we can can do to influence how others see us, and it's going to be different depending on who you are and what type of uh values and meaning you want to project. There are certainly some things we can't change, you know. I think the majority of CEOs are are very tall. So if you're not tall, probably not something that that you can easily change. Um, but a lot of the things that she talks about are really um just being intentional and showing some care in how we present ourselves and the the image that we're portraying. So that's that's kind of it in a in an overview. Um to check out her book if you want to deep dive sort of into the the core executive presence itself. Um so one of the things that was was interesting, maybe five years or so ago in the world of knowledge work and work, you started kind of hearing this um, you know, bring your whole self to work type type deal. Um, and how do we sort of reconcile that with this idea of executive presence, trying to present yourself a certain way? I think some people uh took that bring your whole self to work maybe too literally in a way that it may not have necessarily helped um the way that others perceive them or the things that they share. There's a really interesting uh podcast that I just heard recently um on McKinsey Talks Talent. They had their their guest, Thomas uh Chamorro Presumusic. Sorry if I butchered the name there, but he just has a book out called Don't Be Yourself and talking about sort of the the myths of bring your your full self to work. Um, as you know, I probably don't need another book. I wasn't gonna pick up his, but it was something like$4 on Amazon, so maybe it'll still be there if you if you want to check it out. Um but this idea of bringing your whole self to work doesn't literally mean that. It means bring your most pro-social, best for the work environment self to work. So realizing that um, you know, there are many aspects to ourselves, our true authentic selves, but that doesn't necessarily mean that's how we want to present ourselves in in work or in digital interactions. Um so kind of stepping back a little further in that era as well, thinking about the digital work and and life pre-pandemic in that in that era. Well, there was still a lot of um you know remote work and calls and things like that, it wasn't, I think, as common both with the the technology and the practice to be on video for those calls. Um, so you didn't necessarily have to think all that much about how you were showing up and presenting yourself in remote work because you couldn't you couldn't really see anything. Um so but as things went remote during the pandemic, technology rapidly evolved to have more video, people got more comfortable doing that. Um, that became much more of a norm where you could be expected to be to be showing up there. And a lot of people were were scrambling to figure out their workspaces and things like that. So early on, it was, I think, kind of more common that you would be a little bit more disheveled or in a makeshift workspace. Um, but as things did not resolve themselves so quickly, um, and even as we carry on with with remote work today, um it makes sense to be more intentional about the space and the presentation that you're making in this sort of you know digital work world, interacting on video conferences and all that sort of things. And that's sort of that's where the digital executive presence comes in, how you're intentionally presenting yourself in that world. Um, so this is an opportunity, and it's a way that you can choose to craft what your own pro-social best work self looks like, and that's entirely up to you. This wasn't really something that I had thought about early on, um, and I was not somebody that was particularly comfortable being on video on video calls. I sort of had to force my way through that and get used to it. Um, and around that time, um, the work group that I was in, we all read a book that had just come out at the time called Love and Work by Marcus Buckingham. And as part of that, we had all pre-ordered the book, which gave us access to a series that he did with Harvard Business School. And one of the things that I noticed, and this was really was an inspiration for me, is the way that he presented. Instead of just sort of being in a makeshift, bland home office, he's got this really bright orange wall, he's got kind of a cozy reading light, he's got a bunch of albums up on the wall. And you know, that really for me was really different at the time, and it really felt much more of a connection and a sort of analog feel, even though we were in this digital environment. So that was something that was very inspirational to me. And you know, he had things, you know, like The Smiths and some jazz albums on the wall, and I was like, okay, well, maybe that's not those aren't necessarily the albums that I would pick, but that idea um of kind of putting the art that that speaks with you there um really resonated with me. Obviously, you can see kind of my background here, and I'll talk about that in a little bit. But that was that was one of my early inspirations, the kind of thinking about, okay, what's what's possible and how can we bring this idea of executive presence into our digital work and and life and video conferencing and remote work and all of that. Um, another good example that I think you can look at is a lot of the um sports talk shows. You'll often see, you know, various school affiliations, helmets, things like that, books, that sort of thing. And I actually didn't, you know, I sort of noticed that around the same time, and I think um those sports news anchors continue to do it well. Um apparently ESPN, one of the major sports network, actually went into the homes when their people were forced to work remote and helped them build out their their own sort of home studio sets with those backgrounds. Um so you can see they're recognizing the importance of of that and having an intentional space and one that speaks to the person that's there. And obviously it's a little bit different than you know a video conference for work, they're you know presenting a show, but there's really not all that much difference. Um and you thinking about how you create that that presence, and even in the workspace, even though it's work and not entertainment, we are still, you know, having an image that that we show, and that's something that we can craft to our benefit or our detriment, depending on you know what we choose to do. So now I'll get into a little bit of sort of my own uh digital executive presence or how I've thought about it or what I what I've done here. Um a lot of it came about because I was in this workspace, similar, similar spot to where I am right now, or same spot, um, but much much plainer. And one of my colleagues told me that I looked like Harry Potter working in under the staircase in the cover that he's in, or something. It's like, all right, this is um this is not the the executive presence that that I want to portray in in my world of work. So it's like okay, like how can I take some of this inspiration that I've seen and adapt it in a way that's that's authentic to myself. Um before I get into kind of the the specifics of the decoration, I will just say I'll touch on some some basics which you might not really think about as digital executive presence, but just things like having a decent decent lighting so people can see you well, having a good camera, having a microphone where people can hear you beyond sort of just what comes within your system. Um these there is some cost to these investments, but they will make you show up in a way that is more clear and will project a more professional image, which is only going to be beneficial. And it may seem like a small thing, you know, we all deal with technical troubles, but if you've had somebody who's been on a team and they're, you know, their machine is constantly slow or they're they're dropping, their network's not good, they're always muting themselves. Um of course this happens to all of us, but if it's a habitual thing, then that becomes sort of part of the image that you're projecting, which people may read into it and ascribe other negative attributes to that you may not want. So it's just something that I want to point out, and something that, again, it's worth that investment. Um and it doesn't take that much to resolve those issues, but you should prioritize them, even though it's not, you know, quote unquote the work, but it's going to impact how you're able to show up and to be an effective worker in your role. Um so then, you know, another thing, there's lots of digital backgrounds you can just slap on, you know, an office or uh a beautiful nature scene. Those are fine, and those those are great in certain uh scenarios if you're traveling or things like that. Um but I don't feel that it has the same sort of analog connection and authenticity and uniqueness and feel that you can get if you take some of your own time and invest in in the space. So I'd encourage you not just to default to those, but think about how you can make your space a way that is a um you know authentic representation of you and we'll add to your digital executive presence. Um so I started with some bright color here, you know, inspired a bit by by Marcus as well. So I didn't go with the bright orange, but I picked a you know pretty loud blue, which if it was just the blue by itself would probably be a bit bit overwhelming. Um one of the things that I enjoy about this is the the name of the color itself is Lazy Sunday, which um, you know, I find uh ironic in a way that I enjoy because this is my workspace. Even if it wasn't my workspace, I'm not really a lazy Sunday kind of person. Um so to steal a little bit from a word that I I heard Frances Frey use recently on a coaching session that I was fortunate to be a part of with her, uh she uses the word delicious a lot. So I find the name of the color a delicious irony as well. So that makes me enjoy the space. I know that's not something that is obvious, but it's something that I get to enjoy and appreciate when I work in this space as well as the color. Um I think books are always good. You can see I've got a bunch behind me. That's something that I've seen the you know the sports anchors do a lot as well. It you know gives people something to look at. I think it's um, you know, it's always interesting if you're a reader to kind of say, oh, you know, what's what's back there? Can I like buy a book that I know or something that I want to read? And what does that tell me about that person? I just think it it's it's interesting and nice to look at. Um, you know, it's something that I identify with as a as a reader. So um and many of the things here are are related to to the work that I'm doing. So that was a central point for me. Um and then just bringing in some art and music, and I try to have a variety of different things that um you know people can connect with, variety of different genres, you know, all things that I like and resonate with, and hopefully, um, you know, within the people that I'm chatting with, they can find at least one thing within this menagerie of of different art and um books and things that they they can connect with. Um yeah, so you know, if I think about it, what do I want this presence to say? What I what do I want to um say without saying it literally is that you know, I'm here, some someone who's seeking knowledge both in the books that I'm reading and the art that I'm consuming, music that I'm listening to. Um I appreciate diversity and in all different forms, um, and just trying to be authentic, taking pieces that you maybe you wouldn't think are, you know, quote unquote in a professional environment, but trying to do that in a way that aligns with the the work that I do and sort of my my life outside of work and trying to weave the the two together. So that's kind of what I'm trying to say without saying it here. And then for you is just gonna be whatever is authentic and resonates uh for you. Um, you know, one of the things that I would say is that you know, things like personal branding, executive presence, digital executive presence, sometimes these can feel a little bit icky for us that aren't in the marketing space or kind of kind of lame. Um so one of the things that that helped me or has helped me think about that and try and be more intentional about crafting my executive presence or my image or whatever that means, um is thinking about the late great Johnny Cash and how he was intentional about that as well. Um, you know, he dressed in black for a long time in his career, and he had had a long and successful career before he put out the song, uh The Man in Black. And within it, when one of the first lines he's saying is that there's a reason for the things that I have on. There's a reason why I'm wearing black and why I'm projecting this image, and then he goes to to lay out all those things. So um if Johnny Cash can do it, then I think all of us can do it and um and not be a lame marketing person. No offense to the marketing people, but if you're not in that camp, it may take a little uh adjusting. So if you haven't listened to The Man in Black or Johnny Johnny Cash, you you you should. If that's the one takeaway you take from this, uh then you'll be well served. So um yeah, I hope this inspires you to invest a little bit in your own presence, in your own workspace. I think one of the benefits for me too is not just you know how I like to project, but then this becomes a space that when I go into, um I'm ready to work, this is where I go to work, um, it's different than other spaces. So I find that helps bring out my my best work as well, where I'm not just under the stairs in a cabinet in any old place, I'm in my workspace and my in my work office, and it's it's different than other places, so that's another benefit as well. So, anyway, I hope you enjoyed. I hope you'll uh go and get creative with your own workspaces. Love to see that. So uh hopefully you enjoyed the show. Uh, please like and subscribe, follow the podcast, leave me a comment if you enjoyed, and until next time, uh good luck with your digital executive presence.