Fundamentals of Level Three Leadership

44. Presence

Concept

Many researchers have described the importance of first impressions and the sense of what it is like in someone’s presence. Without speaking, people project a kind of aura about who they are and what they are feeling. This aura is no doubt a composite assessment of dress, grooming, posture, gestures, facial expressions, eye focus, and more. We observe from across a crowded room or within speaking distance or in conversation. One’s aura can come across even on film and on long-distance virtual meetings.

An effective leader projects a presence that signals confidence, calm, understanding, power, and control. Less effective would be signals of fear, nervousness, confusion, weakness, and lack of control. How does one develop ...