In today's episode, you'll discover some ways to be perceived as a charismatic, iconic leader without having to make a massive effort or take a huge risk.
You will have to drop the perfectionism though.
Welcome back to Speak Up, the podcast for high-performing introverts, including you, social introverts where we reveal the charisma and communication secrets of A-listers so that you get the recognition and the opportunities you have earned.
I am your host, Laura Camacho, your magical executive presence coach, godmother, and strategist.
And by the end of today's short episode you will know the low effort 3 rule that made Virgil Abloh a global style icon and how that applies to your communication.
You'll see how to ditch perfectionism, build sustainable charisma through innovation and you will walk away with real life tweaks.
You can apply to email meetings, presentations that will make you more magnetic without burning out.
And today we're getting inspiration from the late Virgil Abloh.
He's a definite A-lister.
He was the genius behind the Off-White label and Louis Vuitton.
His 3% rule is going to be our low energy hack for standing out without burning out.
And it also works for replacing any lingering perfectionism you have and replace that with innovation.
How cool is that?
Now, you may not know who Virgil Abloh was.
Here's the quick backstory.
He was born in Chicago 1980 to Ghanaian parents.
He studied civil engineering, got a master's in architecture and then ended up becoming a global style icon.
He was creative director for Kanye West for a while.
He ended up as head of menswear at Louis Vuitton.
One early example of his creative genius is that he bought some dead stock Ralph Lauren shirts.
That's like getting them at TJ Maxx instead of Ralph Lauren.
He bought these flannel shirts for 40, had them screen printed with the word Pyrex, because that was the name of his company, and the number 23, which was a nod to his hero, Michael Jordan, and he sold them for 550 each.
So you finance people.
What's the ROI on that?
You know, $40 to 550.
I think that's pretty cool.
And I love that we can get inspiration and even practical ideas from people in other industries.
And that is bolstering our persuasion through creativity, which we're good at, believe it or not.
Yes, you're analytical, but you also have creativity.
Now, this guy gave a talk at Harvard in 2017.
And one of the outstanding quotes from that was if you really want to do what you say, you do leave this conversation and go do it.
Classic introvert thinking likely.
Leave the blah, blah, blah.
But it's also not being perfectionistic.
It's just taking action.
So for you that means sending that imperfect email, starting that conversation before it's perfectly worded.
Do not spend all weekend on that presentation.
I'm going to tell you what to do.
That's going to be the 3% rule.
And remember that good communication is not a monologue.
It's a remix.
It is back and forth.
So obviously Virgil Abloh got that dominating the meeting or the conversation.
That's for amateurs.
It's not to say losers.
So here's the life-changing part.
Abloh's 3% rule.
So listen carefully.
A creative only has to add a 3 tweak to a pre-existing concept to generate a cultural contribution deemed innovative.
I'm going to say that again.
A creative only has to add a 3 tweak to a pre-existing concept to generate a cultural contribution deemed innovative.
And I think that is what Apple has been doing for I don't know how long.
They're still going blazes without a major new product.
But boy, they're doing that 3% pretty well.
So this guy, he would do things like... punch holes in Nike sneakers.
He would add zippers to luxury bags.
He made these tiny tweaks to these products.
If you want to look up Nike and Abloh, which is spelled A-B-L-O-H, you'll see what I'm talking about.
He didn't redesign the sneaker, but he just tweaked it and it looks really cool.
Keep this in mind.
Inspiration is a transfer of energy.
And the purpose of having charisma is to inspire others and to be remembered in a positive light because of that impact.
So you don't have to be planning to punch holes in your Gucci suitcase, but you can create energy and that spark of excitement about your thing, whether it's financial updates or cybersecurity.
Bring that spark of originality to your messaging.
That is what people crave.
I want you to be that person.
So for introverted, high-performing leaders like we are, this is titanium for us.
We thrive on prep, right?
Not the performance, we do it, but we really like the preparation.
So here, take something that already works pretty well.
It could be a presentation template, an email script.
It could be your elevator pitch and tweak it by just 3.
That's a low bar, guys, so you can play with it.
It's not like you're investing your life savings.
It's a 3% change.
So maybe you replace one word synergy, for something that actually sounds like you, or one word that i'm loving these days i can't figure out how to use it more often is the word buffoon.
But anyway, like find out, you know, if you have a hundred words, you change three words in a message.
Here's a quotation from virgil blow that expresses a very ordinary idea of taking action.
This is how he put it The world produces waves.
Surf or drown.
You decide.
Now, was that something that you've never heard before?
Absolutely not.
But was that an original way of putting it?
Yes.
Was it something like so bizarre?
No, it was just a surfing analogy, folks.
You can do that.
I'm just throwing these out there for you to spark your thinking. what a 3% might look like for you.
So it could be following up a key email, say to investors, or this is for a VIP audience.
Maybe you send the email and a handwritten note on recycled paper or hand printed paper, giving it that 3 human touch.
Maybe you replace the opening of your next team meeting with something different.
You know, what's your favorite song?
What's something you're proud of this week?
Just to shift the tone from transactional to personal.
Let's say you have a performance review.
Maybe you start with some sincere appreciation for the person.
Maybe you tell a story about where you bombed when you were younger and then recovered.
Or maybe you wear a pink tie.
Maybe you replace your standard slide deck with something unexpected, a story-driven visual that will you know?
Some kind of crazy photograph.
Unsplash.com is a great place for those.
Maybe you can come up with a phrase that captures your leadership point of view and you start that as your signature.
So here's the thing.
Stop going for perfect.
Stop hitting your head against the wall, because perfect communication does not exist, because humans are not perfect.
But 3% better?
Absolutely.
That is sustainable charisma, the kind that we can actually live by.
Another quote from Virgil Abloh.
The whole point is that you give and take.
And that's how you create something totally new.
Which isn't actually totally new.
He's saying if it's 3% new, that's a win.
Another tip from him was to say yes more often.
And we've talked about that before.
So yes, I am affirmed.
Saying yes to more invitations, new ideas, even to your doubts.
As a DJ, he would sell himself to fashion shows to try to get a gig back in the day.
And it shows that brands are people, right?
They're not pedestals.
And he wasn't faking extroversion.
He was just pitching the fashion people a new idea.
So your yes can be as simple as a 30-second voice note.
You know, we had a recent podcast about findings with research.
And I'll post that in the show notes.
It just came out last week, I believe.
The audio file is an underrated communication medium.
So you can start leaving more voice notes, but make it interesting.
Maybe have your own quote that you add to it.
Something that's really you.
So wrapping it up.
Virgil Abloh was not like a likely fashion icon.
I mean, a civil engineer for crying out loud, masters in architecture.
But he started where he was.
He has a multidisciplinary background, as do many of you.
And you know, I'm always saying that's an asset, not a liability. but tweaking the 3%.
What is your 3%?
Is it a new metaphor, a story, a way of addressing people, a way of dressing?
Like that is a low energy path to magnetic presence. just 3% different.
So if you're stuck in perfectionism, if that's keeping you from nailing that promotion or that presentation, are you prepping too much?
I want you to stop losing your weekends to preparation.
That's why I created the Executive Presence Mastery System, which is a coaching intensive designed to help high-performing introverts stand out with magnetic charisma, but without burning out.
You want to replace overthinking with innovative communication and sustainable presence.
There is a link in the show notes or visit my website at www.speakupwithlaura.com.
If you go to slash, speak up, there's a place to book a strategy call and we can see what your next step should be.
Have a lovely day and I will catch you on the next episode.
