Three strategies to develop greater impact and presence | WIG Article
‘Breathe the space’
I first became interested in impact and presence when I worked at the theatre as a voice coach. It was fascinating to observe actors who had that magical quality of ‘presence’ and those who did not. There is a direct correlation between confidence and presence. Anxiety about our own performance makes us feel less confident and impacts our presence.
There is a simple technique that performers learn that can boost both confidence and presence – breathe the space you are in!
Actors experience stage fright when they walk onto stage (a big space) and think small space (the voice in their heads or maybe becoming hyper aware of self). Most of us have experienced this at some point; we walk into a room and feel all eyes on us (small space thinking) or stand in front of a group and notice our hands are shaking (small space thinking).
Not a pleasant experience, is it?
You can change this by noticing the size of the room and breathing that space; when we breathe a bigger space we feel more present and more relaxed.
By holding a finger in front of your face and looking at it, you will notice you are breathing – but not very much! If you look at a point in the distance that is slightly above your eyeline you will notice that you breathe a little deeper. This simple technique alone will help you feel relaxed, confident and present.
Have a clear outcome
Presence and impact are not just about a physical state. You can be calm and confident but not actually do anything. People who make a positive impact in the world have a purpose or an outcome. They know why they are there doing what they do and what they want to achieve.
Keeping your own outcome at the front of your mind helps alleviate pressure because it’s not about you, it’s about achieving this outcome. It can help, before a meeting, to think about your outcome and write it down. Therefore, you stay aware of what you are there to do, rather than thinking about how you come across.
Know you can deal with challenge and respond differently
Experience plays a big part in this. The more we speak in public, make presentations and talk in meetings, the more experienced we become. One crucial thing about experience is that it teaches us we have done this before and not died in the process. Always good to know! So, experience helps, take opportunities that come your way and practice. However, there is a shortcut to experience. It helps to be a quick learner in these situations; have a back-up plan if it goes wrong. A vital element of presence is flexibility, my colleague once said – ‘surprise is the enemy of competence’. When we are surprised, we lose impact and presence. So be flexible, think about difficult questions you might be asked and be able to change your delivery if it isn’t going well.
Blog author David Willis is the facilitator of our Future Leaders Programme for individuals at the beginning of their career.
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David Willis is a professional voice coach and body language expert, he has worked with major public and private sector organisations and coached actors at both the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Globe Theatre. He helps individuals and organisations to develop effective communication, influencing and relationship skills.
He has taught in many of London’s leading drama schools as well as in Europe the United States and South East Asia. David is an accredited NLP Master Practitioner, an NLP Coach, he is a qualified Master in Group Dynamics and is a Cardiac Coherence Trainer. David won a top speaker award by Vistage, an International Chief Executives' organisation, for being inspiring and motivational. He is also one of the few people in the UK licenced to evaluate Benziger profiles.
David Willis is a partner with Cmt and has regularly worked with WIG on a variety of programmes (including the Future Leaders Programme and Enhancing Your Leadership Presence) as well as a range of Masterclasses over many years.
Originally published: 23 August 2019