Discover why your biggest career win can quietly become your greatest source of stress.
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 episode, you'll know why your biggest career win may be quietly draining your energy.
How to shift from over-functioning to leading, with clarity and calm, and a mindset change required to sustain your influence and protect your executive presence.
So you guys are the winners, right?
You worked your way to the top.
You're CTO, CFO, EVP, SVP, or something along those lines.
You've got the title, the comp, a seat at the table, and yet you feel this super heavy burden.
Or maybe you feel like there's a black cloud.
Is something that people don't talk about when it comes to executive leadership, that you may feel like that you're not up to it, or that they're expecting too much, or that they are expecting something and you're not sure what it is.
And especially if you look ahead to the next three to five years, you're wondering what am I supposed to do to make this a successful move and a successful transition?
Of course, I know that you're doing fine with your team.
They worship the ground you walk on.
The company loves you.
Your boss thinks you're amazing.
I mean, that's why you got the position, right?
What I want to mention is that sometimes it can feel more like a lot of pressure than it feels like you've got the power, because it is a lot of pressure.
It's not that you're doing more work, because I feel like you've probably been working at capacity for a long time.
But you are carrying more weight because it's more responsibility.
This is the high stakes strategic emotional leader that people often are not prepared for.
And this is what we normally tend to do in response to that over prepare.
We overthink.
We look calm and composed.
But you know, your stomach may be hurting or you may be wondering, questioning yourself if you are actually operating effectively at the right level or if you're leading or surviving.
And you may even be questioning yourself more now than when you were trying to get to that role.
Because the thing is that we look at the people that are above us in the hierarchy and it looks like they have it all together, right?
But now that you're one of them, you may realize, well, they didn't get a roadmap either.
So here's the shift I want you to notice.
A lot of newly promoted senior leaders are still operating in what I call carrying the weight mode.
Carrying the weight sounds like if something goes wrong, it's all on me.
I need to stay on top of everything.
I cannot afford to drop a single ball.
All of this, I have to control it, right?
And executive presence begins when you move from carrying the weight to setting the frame.
Setting the frame is a key communication concept.
You must understand and learn to master.
It takes time, you know.
But setting the frame means your job is no longer just to absorb the pressure.
It's to define the direction.
And I'm sure you're performing well, but you can still just feel that pressure or that stress.
And that's what I want you to stop feeling so much pressure, because it affects the way you show up in meetings.
It inhibits, you can keep you from speaking up, or it can get you into over explanation mode and you just start rambling too much.
You can become hyper aware of others' perceptions of you.
You can feel like that you're in the spotlight and you know you're just worrying too much about it.
Leadership is about growth.
Not just the performance so much, but it's about preserving your brain, your mind, your ability to think, to develop people, to drive good decisions and to move the company forward.
That's really what it's about.
It's not about working harder.
You don't need to do more.
You just need to think differently.
Here's a simple question I want you to start using this week, especially before any high stakes meeting or decision.
Am I carrying this or am I setting the frame?
A lot of that is developing your people.
It's not about grinding the hardest.
It's about shifting your model of thinking.
You just like me.
Those new employees who are trying so hard to prove that you made the right decision in hiring them.
You may be subconsciously trying to prove that you deserve a seat in the senior leadership conference room.
And you don't need to be proving that.
I want you to think about protecting your energy, listening to your intuition and sharpening your presence.
You want to be embodying what you believe in.
You want to think about what do I need to do?
Because whatever you need to do to preserve your energy and your peace of mind and your clarity, that is what needs to come first.
And if you feel that you're carrying this pressure and it's about to explode, or that you're just not working.
Well, that's the whole point of today's message is that Stop overanalyzing if you're doing it right and figure out how to preserve your energy.
I want you to focus on that.
I want you to embody the leadership that you believe in, because whatever preserves your clarity, your calm, your capacity to think, that is what comes first.
And if you want help, I've got my executive presence mastery system.
I work exclusively with people who are either in senior leadership or about to be promoted to senior leadership, who want to be ready for that.
In this program, we work on building your personal brand.
We sharpen your voice.
We teach you how to influence at the highest levels while protecting your most valuable resource, which is not your time.
It is your energy.
So I want you to stop overfunctioning and lead with ease.
There's a link in the show notes.
We can have a conversation.
You can set an appointment there or on the website at speakupwithlaura.com slash speak up.
In any case, have a fantastic week.
We've got some great content for this new year.
The Christmas special was an overwhelming success.
And I hope that this 10-minute episode doesn't feel too long in comparison.
I will catch you on the next episode.
