How do you become the best version of yourself? A Leader Like Me was thrilled to feature international keynote speaker and author of multiple, best-selling books, Carol Kinsey Goman for our Inaugural Master Class in November 2020. Her focus? Leadership Presence.
Carol explains, “Leadership presence is not a reflection of your intelligence, competence,technical skills or leadership title.” Leadership presence is a lot more subjective and elusive. It is not about who you are but the impression you make.Carol emphasized the need for her work with women because they are worth it and helps them realize that they can be both powerful and feminine at the same time. She draws some of her tools from legendary singer, Dolly Patron, who says “find out who you are and do it on purpose.”In the one-hour session full of incredible insights, Carol shared areas of focus and some top tips for women to utilize to achieve leadership presence:
Credibility
Carol says that credibility is evaluated by how you express your knowledge, expertise and ideas. Don’t qualify your statements, just state; avoid rambling and simply get to the point through clear and concise language and have a clear objective.
Confidence
Carol encourages you to back up your competence by looking and exuding as much confidence as you can. This is easier said than done since exuding confidence externally,you must overcome internal obstacles. That’s why she encourages you to do the inner work first.
Connection
“People will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” To highlight the importance of connection in leadership, Carol quotes poet Maya Angelou.Carol says it’s something that women do quite well by showing care, empathy and actively including others.
Leadership presence is all about impression management, which is the need to show up each day in the way you want to be perceived. This comes from really diving deep within and knowing yourself. She advises women to never dim their femininity to be more powerful. “You can be incredibly powerful and feminine and stand out,” says Carol.
The women of A Leader Like Me learned these tips and a whole lot more from Carol. We were honoured to be on the receiving end of her leadership presence.
Thank you Carol for spending time with our Nest subscribers. You can find Carol at https://carolkinseygoman.com/ and make sure you check out her book “Stand Out” here full of great practical advice on building Leadership Presence.
A Leader Like me is a community that empowers women of color to be the best version of themselves. Join Flight for skills, strategy and support through a twelve-week program to help you build courage and confidence or join our Nest Community for monthly Master Classes like this one along with a safe space and support community to help you thrive.