Speak Up: Develop Your Executive Presence & Leadership Communication Style

Are you Director or Above Who Wants Faster Promotions, More Influence, and Stronger Executive Presence?Book a confidential Executive Presence Strategy Call to discover the communication patterns that help high performers get seen as senior leaders. 👉 Book Your Executive Strategy Call hereHave you ever walked out of an executive meeting knowing you demonstrated your expertise—yet still wondered why senior leaders don’t seem to view you as strategic?At the senior level, knowing the details and delivering great work are no longer enough. If you’re constantly explaining what happened, sharing more data, and giving extensive context while someone else turns that information into “what this means,” you may be caught in the Strategy Gap.In today’s episode you’ll discover:🔥 How to recognize when you’re communicating like an expert instead of an executive🎯 Why adding more data and detail can actually make you appear less strategic🔑 How to communicate your judgment so CEOs, boards, and senior leaders experience you as someone who can shape decisionsPlay this episode to learn how to close the Strategy Gap and turn the expertise you already have into the executive-level judgment and influence that earns you a stronger voice at the table.If you're listening to this thinking:Laura, this is exactly what happens to me.I know I'm strategic. I know I understand the business.But sometimes what comes out of my mouth doesn't reflect the level of thinking happening inside my head...That's exactly the kind of work I do with senior leaders inside Executive Presence Mastery.If this episode felt a little too familiar, go to the show notes and click here to book an EPMS Discovery Call. I’d love to show you how Executive Presence Mastery can help you close your Strategy Gap and take your influence to the next level. To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.The Speak Up Podcast helps high-performing professionals develop executive presence through strategic communication, executive confidence, and leadership influence. Each episode provides practical strategies to help you speak up in meetings, communicate with senior leaders, present ideas with clarity, build executive visibility, strengthen your leadership presence, influence without authority, stop overexplaining, answer difficult questions with confidence, and become a trusted executive leader. Whether you're preparing for your next Vice President promotion or looking to communicate with greater credibility and gravitas, you'll learn actionable executive communication skills that accelerate career growth.Topics covered in this episode:How to speak up in executive meetingsExecutive InfluenceHow to communicate with senior leadershipHow to develop executive presenceHow to be seen as VP materialHow to influence executivesHow to stop overexplaining at workHow to answer executive questions conciselyHow to handle pushback from senior leadersHow to increase visibility with leadershipDirector-to-VP transition

Are you Director or Above Who Wants Faster Promotions, More Influence, and Stronger Executive Presence?Book a confidential Executive Presence Strategy Call to discover the communication patterns that help high performers get seen as senior leaders. 👉 Book Your Executive Strategy Call hereWhat if the fastest way to become a stronger leader isn’t getting a bigger title—but becoming the kind of leader others already want to follow?You don’t need formal authority to create influence, solve meaningful problems, or demonstrate that you’re ready for greater responsibility. In this episode, Stanford basketball coach Eric Reveno shares how he stepped outside his traditional role as a coach to launch All Vote No Play—an initiative that ultimately helped change NCAA policy around civic engagement.Eric and Laura unpack what that experience taught him about finding unconventional paths to create change, building relationships with the people who can move an idea forward, and recognizing the power you already have within an organization.In this episode, you’ll discover:🔑How to build influence and create change even when you don’t have formal authority or the “right” title🪝Why being a great teammate or colleague can become the foundation for becoming a leader people genuinely want to follow🔥How to use the STORM framework—Show Up, Take Care of Relationships, Own Your Power, Raise Up Others, and Maintain Mission Focus—to increase your impact at workPlay the episode to learn how to stop waiting for permission, start using the influence you already have, and show up as the kind of teammate who’s ready to lead.To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.About our guest:Head Coach for Men’s Basketball, at Brown University (moving there from Stanford) Eric Reveno brings more than 28 years of Division I coaching experience and a reputation for transforming teams from the inside out.A Stanford alumnus, Reveno most recently served as the James C. Gaither Associate Head Men’s Basketball Coach at his alma mater. His second coaching stint at Stanford began in 2024, and he added General Manager responsibilities ahead of the 2025-26 season. In the dual role, Reveno helped lead every aspect of the Cardinal men’s basketball program. “Brown University represents a rare opportunity where academic excellence, athletic excellence, and personal development are truly aligned,” Reveno said. “My family and I are honored to join the Brown community. We will build a championship program by developing exceptional teammates, exceptional students, and exceptional competitors. Our goal is to pursue Ivy League championships while preparing young men to lead meaningful lives long after basketball. I can’t wait to get to work.”Reveno previously served on Stanford’s staff from 1997-2006, helping guide the program to national success. He was an assistant coach from 1997-04, before being elevated to Associate Head Coach in 2004. His Cardinal teams reached the 1998 NCAA Tournament Final Four, made seven NCAA Tournaments, won four Pac-10 Championships, achieved three No. 1 national rankings, and produced a number of future NBA players including Brook and Robin Lopez, Jason and Jarron Collins, and Mark Madsen. The Speak Up Podcast helps high-performing professionals develop executive presence through strategic communication, executive confidence, and leadership influence. Each episode provides practical strategies to help you speak up in meetings, communicate with senior leaders, present ideas with clarity, build executive visibility, strengthen your leadership presence, influence without authority, stop overexplaining, answer difficult questions with confidence, and become a trusted executive leader. Whether you're preparing for your next Vice President promotion or looking to communicate with greater credibility and gravitas, you'll learn actionable executive communication skills that accelerate career growth.Topics covered in this episode:How to speak up in executive meetingsExecutive InfluenceHow to communicate with senior leadershipHow to develop executive presenceHow to be seen as VP materialHow to influence executivesHow to stop overexplaining at workHow to answer executive questions conciselyHow to handle pushback from senior leadersHow to increase visibility with leadershipDirector-to-VP transition

Are you Director or Above Who Wants Faster Promotions, More Influence, and Stronger Executive Presence?Book a confidential Executive Presence Strategy Call to discover the communication patterns that help high performers get seen as senior leaders. 👉 Book Your Executive Strategy Call hereAccess your Executive Meeting Visibility Guide.Reporters tell leadership what happened. Strategic leaders explain what it means, what could happen next, and what should be done.Facts matter, but delivering facts is not the full value of an executive-level contribution. When you stop at the information, senior leaders still have to do the strategic work. When you name the implication, recommendation, decision, or next step, you help the room lead.By the end of this short episode you’ll know:🎯The questions that turn an informative update into a strategic contribution💰The phrases that make your recommendation clear5️⃣The five visible choices that help senior leaders experience more of your judgmentChoose one contribution for an upcoming meeting and write its final sentence first. If you want Laura’s help applying these tools to the personalities, politics, and pressure of a real meeting, reserve a 30-minute Executive Meeting Strategy Session using this link.Bring one important upcoming meeting and leave with a clear contribution, sharper recommendation, preparation for likely pushback, and a delivery strategy. Designed for Directors, Senior Directors, VPs, and executives. Investment: $400. Schedule your Executive Meeting Strategy Session here.To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.The Speak Up Podcast helps high-performing professionals develop executive presence through strategic communication, executive confidence, and leadership influence. Each episode provides practical strategies to help you speak up in meetings, communicate with senior leaders, present ideas with clarity, build executive visibility, strengthen your leadership presence, influence without authority, stop overexplaining, answer difficult questions with confidence, and become a trusted executive leader. Whether you're preparing for your next Vice President promotion or looking to communicate with greater credibility and gravitas, you'll learn actionable executive communication skills that accelerate career growth.Topics covered in this episode:Speaking up in executive meetingsExecutive PresenceHigh-stakes conversationsBusiness leadership communicationExecutive Presence TipsSenior Leader AdviceHow to speak up in executive meetingsHow to communicate with senior leadershipHow to develop executive presenceHow to be seen as VP materialHow to influence executivesHow to stop overexplaining at workHow to answer executive questions conciselyHow to handle pushback from senior leadersHow to increase visibility with leadershipDirector-to-VP transition

Access your Executive Meeting Visibility Guide.What to Say When You’re Challenged in an Executive MeetingYou prepare for weeks, present your recommendation, and then an executive asks the one question you did not anticipate. Within seconds, you are speaking faster, adding disclaimers, and retreating from the very recommendation you came to defend.An unexpected question is not proof that you were unprepared. Senior leaders ask questions to test risk, evaluate thinking, and participate in decisions. The real test is whether you can remain useful when the conversation moves beyond your script.By the end of this short episode you’ll know:💰The PAAB framework: Pause, Acknowledge, Answer, Bridge. This four-part response helps you slow down, address the concern directly.🎯How to distinguish what you know from what still needs verification🛑 To stop seeking omniscience. What you need is composure and judgment.Predict one difficult question you could receive in an upcoming meeting. Write a response using Pause, Acknowledge, Answer, Bridge—and say it aloud twice. Capture what happens in your Executive Meeting Visibility Guide, then continue with Day 4 to learn how to disagree with a senior leader without becoming combative, apologetic, or invisible.To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.The Speak Up Podcast helps high-performing professionals develop executive presence through strategic communication, executive confidence, and leadership influence. Each episode provides practical strategies to help you speak up in meetings, communicate with senior leaders, present ideas with clarity, build executive visibility, strengthen your leadership presence, influence without authority, stop overexplaining, answer difficult questions with confidence, and become a trusted executive leader. Whether you're preparing for your next Vice President promotion or looking to communicate with greater credibility and gravitas, you'll learn actionable executive communication skills that accelerate career growth. Topics covered in this episode:Speaking up in executive meetingsExecutive PresenceHigh-stakes conversationsBusiness leadership communicationExecutive Presence TipsSenior Leader AdviceHow to speak up in executive meetingsHow to communicate with senior leadershipHow to develop executive presenceHow to be seen as VP materialHow to influence executivesHow to stop overexplaining at workHow to answer executive questions conciselyHow to handle pushback from senior leadersHow to increase visibility with leadershipDirector-to-VP transition

Access your Executive Meeting Visibility Guide.The 7-Minute Rule That Makes You More Visible in Executive MeetingsThe executive meeting on your calendar may do more to shape your career than the presentation you spent three weeks perfecting. While everyone discusses the agenda, senior leaders are also noticing who has judgment, who can handle pressure, and who belongs in the next room.For many high-performing introvert leaders, the hardest contribution is the first one. The longer you wait, the more room you give overthinking to take control—and the greater the chance that someone else will say the idea you were still rehearsing. In this first episode of the five-day Q4 Visibility Challenge, Laura introduces the 7-Minute Rule: contribute something useful within the first seven minutes of an important meeting.By the end of today’s episode you’ll know:💰How to enter the conversation without forcing a brilliant insight🧩Use the phrase “What I like about that is…” to add value rather than empty agreement🎯Prepare one question or observation before the meeting beginsSpeaking early makes the next contribution easier and gives senior leaders visible evidence of how you think.Choose one important meeting this week. Prepare one useful contribution and deliver it within the first seven minutes. Then record what happened in your Executive Meeting Visibility Guide. Continue with Day 2 to make sure executives hear your best idea without having to dig for it.To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.The Speak Up Podcast helps high-performing professionals develop executive presence through strategic communication, executive confidence, and leadership influence. Each episode provides practical strategies to help you speak up in meetings, communicate with senior leaders, present ideas with clarity, build executive visibility, strengthen your leadership presence, influence without authority, stop overexplaining, answer difficult questions with confidence, and become a trusted executive leader. Whether you're preparing for your next Vice President promotion or looking to communicate with greater credibility and gravitas, you'll learn actionable executive communication skills that accelerate career growth.Topics covered in this episode:Speaking up in executive meetingsExecutive PresenceHigh-stakes conversationsBusiness leadership communicationExecutive Presence TipsSenior Leader AdviceHow to speak up in executive meetingsHow to communicate with senior leadershipHow to develop executive presenceHow to be seen as VP materialHow to influence executivesHow to stop overexplaining at workHow to answer executive questions conciselyHow to handle pushback from senior leadersHow to increase visibility with leadershipDirector-to-VP transition

Know Your Own Executive Presence Strengths & Opportunities:Click here to pinpoint the specific area in your executive presence that’s keeping you invisible to senior leadership and guarantees you stay working hard as a pack mule who never gets promoted. What if the secret to becoming more influential at work isn’t talking more—but learning how to listen like a hostage negotiator?Whether you’re asking for more resources, pushing back on a senior leader, dealing with an attack in a meeting, or negotiating for something you need, your ability to stay composed and understand the other person can completely change the conversation.In this episode of The Speak Up Show, former Las Vegas police officer and Black Swan communication expert Annette Mullin shares lessons from 24 years in law enforcement, including her experience in investigations and crisis negotiation. She explains how tactical empathy, curiosity, preparation, and deliberate listening can help you navigate difficult conversations without becoming aggressive—or backing down.In today’s episode with Annette Mullin you’ll discover how to:👂Listen for someone’s internal logic and emotions so you can understand what’s really driving their behavior and build greater influence.🔑 Stay calm when you’re challenged or attacked by using tactical breathing, curiosity, labeling, silence, and a controlled tone.🧲Prepare for important negotiations through low-stakes practice, crisis rehearsal, and techniques such as labels, mirrors, dynamic silence, and summaries.Play the episode to learn how to turn high-pressure conversations into opportunities to build trust, strengthen your leadership reputation, and negotiate with greater confidence.Access the Executive Presence Scorecard assessment here.About our guest:Annette Mullin retired from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) in August 2021, concluding a 24-year career in law enforcement. Throughout her tenure, Annette specialized in Violent Crimes against Persons, dedicating over 20 years to various roles including Criminal Intelligence, Sexual Assault/Abuse, Abuse/Neglect, Internal Affairs, Force Investigations, and Homicide.During her time with the LVMPD, Annette served as a Crisis Negotiator for nine years and led the Crisis Negotiation Team (CNT) for two years. In 2018, she was promoted to the rank of Director and spearheaded the Police Employee Assistance Program, providing health and wellness resources to LVMPD employees and their families.Annette has also made significant contributions to education, teaching Sexual Assault Prevention, Sex Trafficking Investigations and Domestic Violence Prevention both locally and internationally, with engagements as far-reaching as Vietnam and Budapest.To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.The Speak Up Podcast helps high-performing professionals develop executive presence through strategic communication, executive confidence, and leadership influence. Each episode provides practical strategies to help you speak up in meetings, communicate with senior leaders, present ideas with clarity, build executive visibility, strengthen your leadership presence, influence without authority, stop overexplaining, answer difficult questions with confidence, and become a trusted executive leader. Whether you're preparing for your next Vice President promotion or looking to communicate with greater credibility and gravitas, you'll learn actionable executive communication skills that accelerate career growth.Topics covered in this episode:How tactical empathy improves workplace communication and negotiationThe five levels of listening and how to practice empathetic listeningHow active listening builds trust and influence with senior leadersHow to uncover someone’s internal logic and emotional motivationsHow to push back respectfully when someone has more powerHow to make someone feel heard without agreeing with themHow to stay composed when attacked in a meetingHow tactical breathing helps leaders regulate stress in real timeHow tone, cadence, and silence de-escalate workplace conflictHow to use labels to address emotions and difficult behaviorFour essential negotiation tools: labels, mirrors, dynamic silence, and summariesHow curiosity reduces defensiveness, judgment, and assumptionsHow accusation audits prepare leaders for objectionsHow to negotiate for resources, headcount, compensation, and executive attentionHow crisis rehearsal and role-play prepare leaders for high-stakes negotiations

Know Your Own Executive Presence Strengths & Opportunities:Click here to pinpoint the specific area in your executive presence that’s keeping you invisible to senior leadership and guarantees you stay working hard as a pack mule who never gets promoted.With only 97 days remaining in 2026, working harder probably won’t change that story. You need one unmistakable piece of new evidence. Today I give you 5 options to develop that evidence and multiply your influence.In this Fun Friday episode, Laura shares five unexpected, research-supported moves that can change how senior leadership perceives you before year-end. From adopting a signature color and organizing a strategic lunch to recognizing overlooked talent, recommending what the organization should stop doing and claiming a problem nobody owns, each move communicates a different kind of leadership value.By the end of this episode you’ll know:🪝Create recognition through consistency. Learn how a distinctive visual or audio signal can make your leadership presence more memorable🎉Demonstrate leadership by creating value for others. Use purposeful gatherings and meaningful recognition to become known as someone who connects people, develops talent and strengthens collaboration💰Replace greater output with stronger judgment. Discover how eliminating low-value work or claiming an overlooked organizational problem can position you as an enterprise-minded executiveAs of the release day of this episode, You have 97 days left in 2026.That is 97 days to change how leadership sees you.Access the Executive Presence Scorecard assessment here.Studies cited in this episode:Research on enclothed cognitionWorkplace commensality studyEmployee-recognition field experimentNature study on overlooking subtractionTo learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.This episode explores how executive presence, leadership visibility, and a memorable personal brand at work shape your leadership reputation and career advancement. Discover a practical Q4 career strategy for high-performing introverts who want to strengthen their executive leadership skills, workplace influence, professional visibility, cross-functional leadership, executive decision-making, and strategic thinking. You’ll also learn how employee recognition and intentional leadership development can change leadership perception—and how to get noticed by senior leadership for the right reasons.Topics covered in this episode:How to change leadership’s perception of youFive high-ROI executive-presence movesUsing enclothed cognition and signature clothing at workHow consistent visual signals increase memorabilityOrganizing a cross-functional leadership lunchThe relationship between shared meals and team performanceUsing employee awards to make invisible contributions visibleHow specific recognition influences workplace performanceWhy leaders overlook subtractive solutionsCreating a strategic stop-doing recommendationDemonstrating executive judgment through prioritizationIdentifying problems that fall between organizational silosTaking charge without becoming the team’s permanent fixerMoving from individual contributor to enterprise leaderBuilding leadership visibility without braggingChoosing a Q4 action that changes your professional reputation

Are you Director or Above Who Wants Faster Promotions, More Influence, and Stronger Executive Presence?Book a confidential Executive Presence Strategy Call to discover the communication patterns that help high performers get seen as senior leaders.👉 Book Your Executive Strategy Call here.Have you ever been asked for your opinion in an executive meeting, only to have your brain freeze—even though you knew exactly what you wanted to say five minutes earlier?You’ve delivered the results. You know the business. Your team already sees you as a confident, capable leader. But in high-stakes executive meetings, you may find yourself second-guessing your recommendations, retreating when challenged, or thinking of the perfect response only after the meeting ends.The problem is bigger than one uncomfortable moment. Senior leaders are forming opinions about your readiness for the next level based on how they experience your leadership when the pressure is on. And if they aren’t seeing your strategic thinking, excellent work alone may not be enough to convince them you’re ready for VP.In this episode, you’ll discover:🥶Why freezing in executive meetings doesn’t mean you can’t think on your feet—and the belief that could be making the problem worse📖How to prepare for high-stakes conversations without trying to anticipate every possible question or having every answer💰How to communicate your recommendations, handle pushback, and give senior leadership consistent evidence that you can lead at the next level.Play this episode to learn how to stop disappearing when the stakes are high and start showing senior leadership the confident, strategic, VP-ready leader you already know you can be.So look, if you find yourself freezing when a senior leader puts you on the spot—even though you know your business, you’ve delivered the results, and five minutes later you know exactly what you should have said—that’s not something you want to keep hoping will fix itself.If Senior Director, VP, or C-suite is your goal, you don’t want excellent work happening behind the scenes while your executive presence is holding you back in the rooms that matter most.That’s exactly why I created Executive Presence Mastery. It gives you the one-on-one guidance you need to communicate your thinking clearly, handle pushback with confidence, and show up like a senior leader—without becoming an extrovert, dominating meetings, or trying to prepare for every possible question.If this episode felt a little too familiar, go to the show notes, click here, and book a confidential Executive Presence Strategy Call with me.To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.The Speak Up Podcast helps high-performing professionals develop executive presence through strategic communication, executive confidence, and leadership influence. Each episode provides practical strategies to help you speak up in meetings, communicate with senior leaders, present ideas with clarity, build executive visibility, strengthen your leadership presence, influence without authority, stop overexplaining, answer difficult questions with confidence, and become a trusted executive leader.Whether you're preparing for your next Vice President promotion or looking to communicate with greater credibility and gravitas, you'll learn actionable executive communication skills that accelerate career growth.Topics covered in this episode:Executive presence for introverted leadersHow to stop freezing in executive meetingsThinking on your feet under pressureCommunicating confidently with senior leadershipHow to handle pushback from executivesBuilding confidence in high-stakes meetingsShowing strategic thinking at the executive levelPreparing for executive meetings without overpreparingMoving from Director to VPHow to demonstrate VP readinessBecoming more visible to senior leadershipAvoiding the “invisible overperformer” trapSpeaking with confidence when you don’t have all the answersBuilding a reputation as a senior leaderExecutive communication skills for high-performing introvert

Know Your Own Executive Presence Strengths & Opportunities:Click here to pinpoint the specific area in your executive presence that’s keeping you invisible to senior leadership and guarantees you stay working hard as a pack mule who never gets promoted.Today you can actually learn how to know if your executive influence is where you think it is. Listen today to learn this life changing skill. Under pressure, it’s easy to slip into a reactive, defensive, or judgmental mindset. But the questions you ask yourself and others can determine how your team responds, how much information people are willing to share, and whether you make decisions from curiosity or judgment.In this episode of the Speak Up podcast, Laura welcomes Marilee Adams, CEO of the Inquiry Institute, to explore how leaders can use questions to improve their communication, executive presence, decision-making, and relationships. In today’s episode you’ll discover:💡Why powerful inquiry actually begins with the questions you silently ask yourself—and how changing those questions can change how you show up as a leader🔎How to recognize when you’ve slipped into a “judger” mindset and intentionally shift back into a curious, open-minded “learner” mindset.🎯The exact question you need to ask yourself to help you design better questions that invite conversation instead of triggering defensiveness.Play the episode to discover how asking better questions can help you stay present under pressure, empower the people around you, and become a more effective leader.Access the Executive Presence Scorecard assessment here.To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.About our guest:Meet Marilee Adams, an award-winning author, leadership expert, and pioneer of inquiry-based coaching. Through her work as founder and CEO of The Inquiry Institute, Adams has helped leaders, coaches, and organizations transform how they think, decide, and lead.To uncover her proven approach, readers can turn to her bestselling book, Change Your Questions, Change Your Life, Fifth Edition. With more than half a million copies sold in twenty-two languages, this refreshed edition shows how a simple shift in questioning can unlock clarity, confidence, and lasting results, at work and at home.The book is a powerful fable that follows Ben Knight on a transformative journey, guided by fourteen practical tools for Question Thinking. Along the way, readers learn to use the Choice Map, a powerful visual tool that reveals how everyday questions shape our mindset. The Speak Up Podcast helps high-performing professionals develop executive presence through strategic communication, executive confidence, and leadership influence. Each episode provides practical strategies to help you speak up in meetings, communicate with senior leaders, present ideas with clarity, build executive visibility, strengthen your leadership presence, influence without authority, stop overexplaining, answer difficult questions with confidence, and become a trusted executive leader. Whether you're preparing for your next Vice President promotion or looking to communicate with greater credibility and gravitas, you'll learn actionable executive communication skills that accelerate career growth.Topics covered in this episode:Executive presence and leadership communicationHow leaders can ask better questionsLearner mindset vs. judger mindsetBuilding trust and psychological safety on teamsGetting employees to tell leaders the truthEmotional self-regulation for leadersCommunicating and influencing under pressureHandling difficult questions in high-stakes meetingsUsing curiosity to improve leadership and decision-makingHow executive leaders build influence and trustPreparing for board meetings and executive presentationsActive listening and understanding othersAvoiding defensive communication as a leaderAsking questions that empower employees and teamsImproving executive decision-making through better questionsExecutive presence during conflict and tensionHow leadership behavior affects employee communicationDeveloping emotional and social intelligence as a leader

Know Your Own Executive Presence Strengths & Opportunities:Click here to pinpoint the specific area in your executive presence that’s keeping you invisible to senior leadership and guarantees you stay working hard as a pack mule who never gets promoted.Are you waiting until your performance review to make the case for a bigger 2027 raise? By then, the decision may already be taking shape.With merit raises making a comeback and average performance-based increases expected to hover around 3.5%, organizations have more reason to differentiate between their highest-value leaders and everyone else. For directors, VPs, and executive-track leaders, getting more isn't simply about working harder or compiling a longer list of accomplishments. It's about making your strategic value unmistakably clear to the people making compensation decisions.By the end of this episode, you'll know how to:🎯Shift from reporting activity to communicating enterprise-level impact that senior executives understand and remember.🧩Build a simple impact portfolio and compensation narrative that gives your manager compelling evidence to advocate for you.🧲Use your 1:1s and relationships across the organization to calibrate your value, strengthen your executive reputation, and build advocates before compensation decisions are made.Play the episode now to learn the four moves you can start making today to position yourself for more than the average 2027 merit raise—and make your strategic value impossible to overlook.Doing exceptional work and being perceived as an exceptionally valuable executive are not always the same thing. Access the Executive Presence Scorecard assessment here.To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.The Speak Up Podcast helps high-performing professionals develop executive presence through strategic communication, executive confidence, and leadership influence. Each episode provides practical strategies to help you speak up in meetings, communicate with senior leaders, present ideas with clarity, build executive visibility, strengthen your leadership presence, influence without authority, stop overexplaining, answer difficult questions with confidence, and become a trusted executive leader. Whether you're preparing for your next Vice President promotion or looking to communicate with greater credibility and gravitas, you'll learn actionable executive communication skills that accelerate career growth.Topics covered in this episode:2027 merit raise and salary increase projectionsHow to get more than the average 3.5% merit raiseHow to ask for a bigger raise at workSalary negotiation strategies for high performersHow to document your accomplishments and business impactHow executive presence affects compensation and career advancementHow to position yourself for a higher performance ratingWhat to do before annual performance and compensation reviewsHow to advocate for your value with your managerStrategies to increase your salary without changing jobs