[00:00:00] Welcome back to another episode of the Style Strategy podcast. this episode here is picking up from last week. So this is part two, of the executive presence versus leadership presence, debate. So if you missed out on listening into last week's episode, go back and have a listen to that and then tune into this one.
Enjoy.
Sonya | Leadership Presence Coach: Leadership presence equals. Presence plus positioning, plus perception. Write it down or just remember it because even if one of these three is off, something will feel wrong even if you can't name it.
So let me walk you through each one. Presence is really about that internal clarity. It's an understanding of who you actually are, not who you think you should be. It's actually about how you're designed to lead awareness [00:01:00] of what I call your human design layers, the aspect of you that are consistent to your core identity. Your leadership identity and the aspects where you are influenced by the context of being around other people. When you can really understand this, you can stop trying to be something you are not.
You can stop acting or putting on that mask. And here's some research that shows what happens internally when you bring those two worlds together.
Sonya | Leadership Presence Coach: I honestly believe that leadership presence is the way forward, and it starts with who you are, not what tactics do I need to deploy? Because when change in your environments is constant and resilience is critical. [00:02:00] Being exhausted through those isn't going to be the way forward.
The old model said, project confidence, perform authority. But I'm saying, well, if you've got emotional clarity and regulation and you're grounded from that, and you are steady and real, this is where real change can happen. research from Princeton shows that we form first impressions in one 10th of a second, right?
Based on those visual cues. So if you are putting on an act, if there's this. Disconnect between who you are internally and how you are projecting externally. People will sense it. you know it. When you are, in a meeting and you are seeing someone do and say something, which is very different to the way that they might be behind closed doors.[00:03:00]
That starts to show up as a lack of trust as inauthenticity. As that something's off, but I just can't quite name it. So what actually does Internal Clarity require? It's an understanding of your natural design, how you are actually wired to lead, not how you think you should lead, how the person over there leads.
It's actually about how you're designed to lead awareness of what I call your human design layers, the aspect of you that are consistent to your core identity. Your leadership identity aspects where you are influenced by the context of being around other people. When you can really understand this, you can stop trying to be something you are [00:04:00] not.
You can stop acting or putting on that mask. And here's some research that shows what happens internally when you bring those two worlds together. There's the study on include the cognition. Researchers had participants wear the white lab coat. Half were told it was a doctor's coat.
The other half told it was a painter's coat. Those who thought they were wearing a doctor's coat made fewer errors on attention demanding tasks. So what you wear, how you present yourself, doesn't just signal to others. What I find most important, it changes how you show up cognitively and behaviorally.
Because when your external expression, or I'm gonna say your visual expression aligns with your internal identity, you'll naturally perform better. [00:05:00] You know it, when you've got something on that feels aligned, you feel like all the pieces of the puzzle have come together. You're more focused, your decisions are sharper.
You show up grounded instead of feeling depleted or disconnected, and that is presence, internal clarity that shows up externally. So,
let's talk a little bit about positioning. Positioning is how you're known, what you are known for, the rooms you're in, the conversations that you are a part of. The old model said, visibility equals being seen. Show up. Speak equals visible. The new model says strategic visibility equals being remembered for what actually matters.
You are not trying to be visible everywhere, exhausting bucket, right? You're trying to be positioned for [00:06:00] the right rooms that you want for the right reasons, and this requires a skill that I call reflective visibility. It's the practice of choosing how and when to show up with intention. It's not about being in the same room, it's about reading the room and choosing what aspects of your leadership to amplify.
In a boardroom presentation, you might dial up strategic thinking and dial down warmth because we all have it . In a team offsite, it might be dialing up connection and dialing down formality. This is being flexible in the way in which you use your presence and positioning. You're not hiding who you are.
You are amplifying different aspects, depending on the context. And I think this is really important because the things that I am seeing online at the moment feels a little bit generic, feels a bit old school. [00:07:00] Feels like we are saying, you've gotta wear the power suit, you've gotta wear this. You've gotta show up as with authority.
But no one's taking into consideration that there's elements of the individual that you dial up and you dial down depending on their context. And it's not about putting on a mask, and I'm tired of hearing it.
Think about it this way. You have multiple facets to your leadership. You can be strategic in one room, warmth in another. You might have analytical precision. You might be really collaborative as well, and you can do the vision and the execution. All of these are you, but not every context requires them all to be pumped up at full volume.
Reading the room and choosing which to amplify. That is leadership presence. That is a sophisticated way of looking at [00:08:00] how you create impact. And what this requires is connecting your work to the outcome. Not just what you deliver, but what it means for the business, what it means for you. More broader understanding what organisation, actually values.
Is it revenue, culture, risk management, innovation, a combination, and positioning yourself accordingly. Not everywhere. When your positioning is strategic, you're not just present in that room. You're remembered and you're remembered for what you want to be known for.
And I think so many women that I talk to, one of the number one goals is they want to create an impact. They want to create change for their clients. This is not self-centered value, right? This is actually wanting to do better.
And then finally, perception how others experience you. And here's the tricky part, [00:09:00] right? You don't always fully control perception, but you've got the ability to influence it. So the old model said, appearance equals polish and grooming. Dress for success. Look the part, oh, honestly, I cannot. That is not what I'm about.
So if somewhere along the way you've picked up that, that is what I've been saying means. Let me be crystal clear here. This is not about dressing for success and looking the part. This is about finding visual alignment to who you are and how you wanna bring that through on the outside.
Yes, there are strategies to create more structure to create certain influences in a room by using clothes. However, I wanna be clear polish and grooming and all that talk that I'm starting to see come through the feet. That's not the answer. Not in this new world.
Because the new model [00:10:00] says being aligned, your external expression matches your internal identity because it's too hard to hold multiple identities. I have been there where I was one, I was Sonya at work and a different Sonya version two at home. And until I brought those two worlds together, I never felt whole.
So remember, even though appearance is only 5% of what they classify executive presence according to that original research, 5% sounds small, but it's the first 5%
if it doesn't match who you actually are. They may never experience the gravitas, the communication, because there's a filter, a disconnect, or where the research calls it, a cognitive dissonance. Not sure I'm keen on those words, but I like to call it where the visual friction shows up. Visual friction happens when your internal identity [00:11:00] and external identity are off, right?
Sonya | Leadership Presence Coach: You're wearing clothes that look right. But feel wrong and that will drain
Sonya | Leadership Presence Coach (2): your
cognitive
Sonya | Leadership Presence Coach: energy when you need it most in the room, why don't utilise it to actually help propel you forward? So if you are trying to project executive presence the old way, so
the ,
Sonya | Leadership Presence Coach: the corporate armor, but internally, your leadership style is warm, collaborative, grounded.
The outfit
is gonna create that cognitive dissonance.
Sonya | Leadership Presence Coach: It doesn't match who you are. You don't feel a hundred percent comfortable in it. So you spend the whole meeting managing that disconnect. You're distracted by the physical discomfort. You're second guessing whether you look too formal, too stiff, not approachable enough.
That is visual friction and it's costing you more than you think.
Research on embodied cognition shows us that physical discomfort of wearing something that doesn't feel right directly impacts your [00:12:00] cognitive function. I am sure you have been and seen. Or you've been in those moments where your whole mind is pulling that shirt down or that button that keeps popping open or whatever it might be.
and so when you're managing that visual friction, you're actually adding to that load and that can even slightly reduce your performance in the moment. So leadership presence requires internal and external connection. So when your wardrobe aligns with your leadership identity, not the trends, not the rules, not what's latest in there, but your identity, that visual friction disappears.
You stop thinking about what you are wearing and you start focusing on what you are saying. And style is the bridge between your internal identity and how you are experienced externally.
This is why this work matters, and so that is what I call the visibility equation. Presence, [00:13:00] internal clarity, positioning, strategic visibility, perception, external alignment. When the three are working together, that is leadership presence. When one is off, something will feel wrong. You show up. It's not landing your visible but not remembered.
You're dressed professionally, but it doesn't feel like you, and even in the world of smart casual. That throws us into a spin. How do I look professional, but still smart, casual. It's a question I get all the time. That's the gap most women in leadership are navigating. Outside all the challenges that they've gotta deal with in their day to day, and that's the work.
If you're listening to this and thinking, I wanna know which component is off for me. That is exactly why I built the Leadership Presence Impact Profile to help you take what I've talked about here today and help you identify it. It's a free assessment. Takes a few minutes and it [00:14:00] really shows you which component of the visibility equation needs your attention.
And it tells you whether you need a light calibration or a deeper evolution. So have a look in the show notes below if you wanna jump on and, take that. If you've worked on executive presence, but something still fills off. You are showing up but not being experienced at the level you lead, or you are absolutely over it from performing a version of yourself and you're ready to make that shift.
I would jump on and give it a go. Many try to fix all three at once, or they may focus on the wrong one entirely. This profile shows you where to start. Because I know you are already respected for what you deliver. That is foundational and a no brainer, right? You are ready to be remembered for where you are going.
And leadership presence is how you close that gap.
When you get those results, if you need more than just [00:15:00] a recalibration or you are ready for the deeper work. I am running a session called Communication by Design. It's a one-on-one intensive where we'll map your natural design and build your strategic roadmap. It's two weeks, two deep dive sessions, and it's for women in leadership who are ready to start to make some changes.
So coming back, executive presence in the old way if it wasn't aligned to who you were, asked you to act, put on a mask. One is exhausting and the other is sustainable. And in 2026,
leadership presence is what is going to actually build trust, drive innovation, and position you for what's next. The old model wasn't broken when it was created. It was built for a different era, but we are not in that era anymore
and the leaders who really understand this, who make the shift from executive presence [00:16:00] to a more expansive leadership presence, those leaders aren't just surviving change, they're thriving in it. I hope you've enjoyed this week's episode of the Style and Strategy Podcast.
If you've dove through this and you've got Q and A on them, please drop them below. Drop me a dm. Let me know your thoughts. I'd love to hear from you.
Thank you for tuning into style and strategy. I hope today's episode gave you a spark of clarity, a boost your confidence, or a new way to approach your personal brand and style. If you found it valuable, share it with someone or leave me a review or drop me a note and let me know what resonated most for you.
Remember, every small shift brings you closer to your next level. Until next time, keep confidence. And of course, ownable.
