I recently spent a month interviewing the
group heads of a large financial services company in order to understand
how their direct reports need to communicate as they move into leadership
positions. Again and again, I heard the same comment: “If you are in
the room for a meeting, we expect you to speak up. Don’t wait
for someone to ask you.”
In many organizations, our leadership
readiness is measured in part by our willingness to speak up in meetings. How
we speak off the cuff can have a bigger impact on our career trajectory than
our presentations or speeches, because every single day we have an opportunity
to make an impact.
While much of my work focuses on women in
leadership, everyone can use meetings as an opportunity to move up in their
careers — and bring others with them.
Here are three strategies for speaking up
effectively, followed by three warnings for when you should hold back.
Strategies
for Speaking Up Effectively
·
Prepare a few bullets in advance. One
senior executive I worked with was deathly afraid of public speaking early
in her career. In order to overcome that fear, she challenged herself to speak
up at every single meeting and prepared comments or questions in advance. That
executive is now a role model within her organization and is considered one of
the most confident and authentic speakers in her industry. Don’t wait for
inspiration to hit in the meeting; prepare in advance.
·
Ask, “why you?” This is
a question I recommend people ask before they craft a presentation,
walk into a meeting, or even prepare for a networking event.
It means, why do you care about what you do, about your organization,
or about your role? Answering this question helps you connect with a sense
of purpose and builds your confidence. It reminds you that you’re speaking up
not to show off but because you truly care about the subject. It reminds you
that your credibility doesn’t come solely from your title or years of experience
but can also comes from your commitment and passion.
·
Pause and breathe to build your
confidence. Speaking up in a meeting takes courage. You have the
ability to affect the trajectory of the conversation, potentially guiding
your client towards saying yes to a deal when your colleagues have taken the
meeting off track. Pausing and breathing helps center you and
strengthens your voice so that when you do speak up, you speak with
the full weight of your conviction. While you pause, ask yourself, “If one
other person in this room has the same question, am I willing to ask on behalf
of that person?” The answer should build your confidence. A client
recently shared that she had used this technique to ask a question — in public
— at a large conference, and her question changed the direction of the
entire panel discussion, shedding light on a critical issue that the panel
had been avoiding.
With that being said, sometimes it’s the
person who says the least in a meeting who has the most power. Your executive
presence comes from being strategic about when you speak up in
addition to what you say. Here are three warnings for
when you should hold back.
Warnings
for When to Hold Back
·
If you’re only trying to show
off. We’ve all had the experience of sitting in
a meeting or on a conference call that runs late, where everyone is
trying to wrap up, and someone is rambling about a topic the group had
already moved on from 30 minutes ago. Right before you speak up, ask yourself
why you are speaking. If you are speaking up just to show how much you
know, it’s better to let someone else talk or let the meeting run its natural
course.
·
If you are trying to empower others on your
team. I had a pivotal moment in graduate school where I received
feedback that I spoke up too much in class. Why was that a problem? A classmate
said, “You become a crutch for others. We can’t wrestle with the
question being asked because you jump in with the answer. Sometimes
leadership is about letting others find their own solution.” Ten years later,
that comment has stayed with me and has deeply influenced my leadership
style. In the meeting, let members of your team speak up in order to build
their own relationships of trust with your clients. Giving others an
opportunity to speak in a meeting is one of the most powerful ways we can build
their leadership skills, raise their visibility — both internally and
externally — and give the client a more comprehensive sense of support from
your whole team.
·
If your comment would be better left for a
one-on-one conversation. Senior executives consistently offer
feedback on their direct reports in my training programs by
saying, “They need to learn when to leave something to a one-on-one
conversation.” So many difficult conversations within an organization
can be mitigated by talking privately to someone — in person whenever
possible — rather than addressing the issue in a group where the person
will feel defensive. This applies to email as well as spoken conversation.
Before speaking up or hitting “reply all,” ask yourself, “Would
this be better said privately?”
Speaking up in a meeting is one of the
single-most effective ways to raise your visibility and build a
relationship of trust with your clients and colleagues. Practice it
strategically every single day and you will have a powerful impact on your
career and in your business.
By: Allison Shapira
