This One Quality Signals That You're Leadership Material
Getty Images
Having gravitas - a serious manner that commands respect - communicates that you have what it takes, says economist Sylvia Ann Hewlett. "You need to be seen as someone who knows their stuff cold and can go three to four questions deep in the their domain."
Hewlett came to this finding as part of researching her new book "Executive Presence." She and her team at the Center for Talent Innovation surveyed 4,000 American professionals looking for the signals people need to send in order to be tapped for a leadership opportunity.
But it's not all about your accomplishments.
"(Gravitas) is about what you signal, the impressions you give," Hewlett says. "It's not about performance. It's about when you're given the chance at the next opportunity, and of course that's a big part of whether you'll succeed or not."
To that end, projecting gravitas to your boss, colleagues, and clients is a matter of "embodying your intellectual horsepower," she says.
Of course, in a workplace setting, not everybody is going to be directly familiar with your work beyond your boss and your most immediate colleagues. The key, Hewlett says, is to project capability to the far reaches of the organization, even if people don't necessarily know what it is you're doing.
To send those signals, do the following:
1. Look polished. If you look unkempt, you don't look capable.
2. Know what you're going to say before you say it. If you don't speak with clarity, people simply won't listen to you.
3. Show some cultural fluency. Adapt your speaking style to your environment, whether Wall Street, Silicon Valley, or points in between.
For the full list of suggestions for showing you have gravitas, go here.
"You don't get a shot at showing your actual skills unless you're given an opportunity," Hewlett says. "It's incredibly linked to your career journey."
- A couple accidentally shipped their cat in an Amazon return package. It arrived safely 6 days later, hundreds of miles away.
- A centenarian who starts her day with gentle exercise and loves walks shares 5 longevity tips, including staying single
- 2 states where home prices are falling because there are too many houses and not enough buyers
- "To sit and talk in the box...!" Kohli's message to critics as RCB wrecks GT in IPL Match 45
- 7 Nutritious and flavourful tiffin ideas to pack for school
- India's e-commerce market set to skyrocket as the country's digital economy surges to USD 1 Trillion by 2030
- Top 5 places to visit near Rishikesh
- Indian economy remains in bright spot: Ministry of Finance
- JNK India IPO allotment date
- JioCinema New Plans
- Realme Narzo 70 Launched
- Apple Let Loose event
- Elon Musk Apology
- RIL cash flows
- Charlie Munger
- Feedbank IPO allotment
- Tata IPO allotment
- Most generous retirement plans
- Broadcom lays off
- Cibil Score vs Cibil Report
- Birla and Bajaj in top Richest
- Nestle Sept 2023 report
- India Equity Market