For Leaders, Enhanced Leadership Presence means enhanced leadership impact – that enables them to inspire more, and exert influence beyond what’s conferred by formal authority.
One could build and enhance one’s Leadership Presence. Being Present, Being Open, Curious, Listening actively, Simplifying things, heightened emotional intelligence, walking the talk, Being Resolute and Resilient contribute to building and enhancing one’s Leadership Presence.
Leaders with Leadership Presence are decisive and take decisions in-time. A recent survey found, among the CEOs fired over issues related to decision making, only a third lost their jobs due to bad decisions; the rest were ousted for being indecisive.
Leaders with Leadership Presence get their priorities right. Getting the priorities right requires a Leader to simplify, chase clarity, and draw insights that are relevant. Here, deciding what not to do is as important as deciding what to do.
Being curious, being open is considered one of the most desired leadership attributes of current times. Invariably this leads to eliciting diverse, complex, conflicting views and information. This calls for leaders to enhance their perception, and being able to interpret what they see and hear without any bias or prejudices - and draw relevant insights.
Leadership Presence is the hallmark of successful leaders. The good news is that we can build our Leadership Presence. We can enhance our Leadership Presence.
Am I creating the leadership impact that I can?
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best!
Thank you
As a CEO Coach, at times I get asked Why CEOs need a Coach, And how the CEOs and Founders could make use of support from a CEO Coach.
Being a CEO is a solitary space - CEOs and Founders feel lonely at the top! Rarely do they get to share their deeper thoughts, feelings and fears with someone; seldom they get a chance to express their original thoughts, out-of-the-box ideas, with anyone. Rarely they discover their blind-spots, their limiting beliefs.
At the same time, they are faced with multiple challenges on a daily basis - on varied fronts, of different types and sizes.
Trainings, peer network, books and periodicals may help the CEO understand different perspectives to some extent; but fail to address their specific concerns and the real causes on a long term basis.
The aspects that the CEO or a Founder is grappling with are often not related to any particular competency or technical skill, rather it’s one of unpacking complexity, gaining more visibility, gaining clarity, doing truthful reflections, becoming more aware and making conscious choices.
A CEO Coach comes handy here, becomes relevant in such contexts.
An experienced CEO Coach provides an environment for CEOs to explore, express, reflect, gauge, discuss, and debate their ideas, thoughts, challenges and fears. Coaching conversations are held at high levels of confidentiality.
Working with a CEO Coach, CEOs are able to:
- Unpack their complexities
- Explore their original thoughts without inhibitions
- reflect themselves, it’s like looking at the mirror
- bounce-off ideas, possibilities, without fear of being judged
- gain clarity in their thoughts
- re-frame what they see as challenges
- uncover their blind spots, their limiting beliefs
- shift their thought patterns, at times even the realm of thinking.
- see things as they are, not as what they think they are
- move the coordinates from which they operate and get into a more resourceful state
I’ve witnessed CEOs and Founders upping their game significantly, moving into a different orbit altogether, and achieving outcomes that they considered impossible!
As a CEO, the question to ask is, Do I have a Coach?
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best!
Thank you
A significant part of having Leadership Presence is being present – in whole, in every moment, wherever we are, whatever we do.
‘Wherever you are, make sure you’re there’ said Dan Sullivan.
One could consciously work on being present. Presence means involvement. Presence means being conscious in the moment.
This morning I received a WhatsApp forward that talked about the context of a Pani Puri seller:
- 6 people standing, each on their 4th or 5th or 6th puri,
- Some already demanding a second plate
- Suddenly a new customer walks in, they don’t say ‘wait’, they just weave them seamlessly into the cycle.
- The seller remembers who is at which puri, keeps track of whose turn is next, (here different customers have different pace of consumption),
- Manages fresh plates, second plate, shared plates
- Customises the taste - extra teekha, extra meeta, no aloo, and so on…
- Balances chutneys so nothing runs out mid-cycle
- Manages stocks of ingredients on the go
- Handles payments - immediate, delayed, credits.
All of this is happening real time - with no Excel sheet, CRM, apps or team members.
What the seller has though is sheer presence. Absolute presence. Total involvement.
Presence, being present, is powerful - it enables us to be more, do more, influence more, and impact more.
Am I present?
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
#ceo #scaleup #leadership #business
Great Leaders standout. They demonstrate leadership features that sets them apart. People get inspired by their thoughtsand their presence.
What makes Great Leaders tick? Research shows there are a few traits that are in common amongst them. I am sharing 4 ofthem today.
1. Leadership Presence:
Being present is the first and foremost feature of a great Leader – being there wherever they are! In whole. They are willing to listen, they Communicate clearly, and they are open and curious. They simplify things. All of these adds to enhancing one’s Leadership Presence.
2. Clarity:
Great Leaders chase Clarity relentlessly. Clarity leads to insights that are relevant. Clarity improves the quality of decisions they take. Clarity brings the needed focus, and enhances the confidence levels of the Leader and their Teams. Seeing things as they are, not as what they think they are, helps improve Clarity.
3. Walking the talk:
Great Leaders walk the talk. They are authentic and trustworthy. They make conscious effort to practice what they preach. They lead by example. They assimilate heightened levels of emotional awareness.
4. Concern for Society:
Great Leaders genuinely care for the Society, Communities, and the Environment. They always tend to leave the worldin a better way than it was.
One may wonder whether these Leadership traits could be learned, developed, improved, enhanced? The answeris Yes!
Aspiring Leaders could enhance their leadership impact by understanding the nuances, the subtle aspects that makes adisproportional impact in the way they are experienced by others. Leaders could also work with a Leadership Coach to develop, enhance their Leadership presence.
Leadership Coaching is fast becoming an effective tool for leaders to become the Leader that they want to be!
My name is PK NarayananWishing you the best, Thank you.
#ceo #scaleup #leadership #business
Managing one’s energy has assumed prominence in recent times, thanks to a few research findings, papers and books written on the topic. Studies show that effectively managing one’s energy leads to enhanced productivity, fulfilment and positive outcomes. The linkage, the inter-connectedness between the body, mind, emotions and energy is a long established aspect in Yogic sciences and practices.
Managing energy is important to enhance one’s Leadership Presence.
When energy levels are high, we focus better, think clearly, and do more. When the energy levels are low, we struggle to stay focused, feel fatigued and find it hard to think or do anything material.
While time appears linear and limited for everyone, energy seems non-linear, abundant and boundless, offering unlimited possibilities. In this context, managing one’s energy assumes greater importance, as compared to managing one’s time.
3 things contribute to managing one’s energy:
1. Cultivating awareness - of our energy levels, patterns, being conscious of internal and external factors that influence, impact our energy levels
2. Enhancing Discernment - making sound judgements with a keen sense of perception, shortlisting activities and tasks which are most important that deserve our energy, and prioritizing rest, wellness and rejuvenation.
3. Actioning Conscious Choices – that is, aligning tasks and activities with our energy rhythms, incorporating appropriate breaks and practices for mindfulness, maintaining physical, mental and emotional well-being.
Cultivating awareness, enhancing discernment, and actioning conscious choices are crucial for effectively managing one’s energy. It’s internal work.
Here are some questions to ponder over:
1. Are we paying enough attention to our energy patterns - aware of what energizes us, and monitor the energy fluctuations through the day?
2. Are we aware of our energy-draining activities - and whether they are essential or not.
3. Do we prioritise our rest and recovery - within the day, every few days, weeks and months?
4. Are we paying attention to our physical well-being - maintaining physical health and fitness?
5. Are we ensuring our emotional well-being - figuring out reflective practices to build balance, resilience and mindfulness?
Managing energy is important to enhance one’s Leadership Presence.
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
Scaling-up the business is a dream of every Entrepreneur. Yet research shows only 4% of Business Owners are able to grow and scale-up their businesses.
Working with Entrepreneurs and Business owners for the last 22 plus years, supporting them scale-up their businesses, I have observed that Scaling-up is a possibility for every business - if we execute a winning strategy. Am sharing here the 4 steps involved in a successful scale up journey:
1. Setting the Direction - It’s about setting the compass; defining where to play - in terms of products / services, customer segment, price point, ticket size, Geography. And defining how to play - the differentiator, competitive advantage, answering why us, leading to clarity on direction, the road-map and milestones.
2. Facilitating Enablements - building necessary competencies and capabilities within the business, acquiring and building required talent, creating an organisation structure, an appropriate roles & responsibility structure that would support the journey, and provide clarity to the team.
3. Carrying out the Reviews - Setting up appropriate review systems within the business at frequent intervals at multiple levels to take stock of what’s happening and make course corrections as required pro-actively.
4. Maintaining Fitness - Avoiding fat in the belly, Creating and maintaining fitness amongst the people, the functions, the processes, thus avoiding accumulation of fat at wrong places and remaining healthy as a business.
Once we consciously plan and execute these steps, Scaleup happens!
Business Owners could create a support system around them to facilitate the Scale-up journey - including working with a Scaleup Coach and building the relevant Scaleup leadership skills with the help of a Scaleup Coach.
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
#ceo #scaleup #business #leadership
Simplifying can be a game-changer.
For a leader, simplifying enhances their Leadership Presence, and thereby their leadership impact.
For a scaling-up business, simplifying is a necessity.
Simplifying can be practiced at different levels, rather at almost all levels.
For example, Simplifying the strategy provides clarity to the Teams. Simplifying the execution inspires action, inspires the teams to execute with enthusiasm, helps to execute faster and with excellence!
Simplifying communication delivers clarity to the audience.
It’s about embracing a Simplifying Mindset - that enables simplifying many aspects of Business and life.
One of the ways to get going is to think in terms of First Principles - getting the basics right before moving on, breaking things down to their elementary parts, and working forward from there.
Thinking First Principles often unravels complexity, and provides clarity on what to do and not to do and why. It even supports innovation at times, finding new and effective ways of doing things.
Another way is to minimalise things - cutting things down to their essence, rooting out extra steps, and doing only what’s truly needed.
This could be with respect to the product or services that we offer, processes we follow, the meetings, the reports, the reviews, the communication we do.
Simplifying is a game changer; Inspires Action. And enhances one’s Leadership Impact significantly!
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
Recently a Business Leader asked me how’s it different to lead a Scaling up business vis-a-vis a normal growing business?
It’s like driving in a highway vis-a-vis driving within the city.
A moment of distraction can cause havoc in the highway for self and for others, whereas in the city one may manage to get away with a few dents and bruises. Scale-up requires increasedlevels of focus, attention, and ability to manage distractions.
A drive in the highway requires higher levels of preparation, at multiple levels – the vehicle readiness, robust mechanical condition, well-lubricated joints, proper fluid levels, ability torefuel. Scale-up requires adequate and thorough preparation at multiple levels. Whereas for a drive in the city, one may manage with lesser levels of such preparations.
A drive in the highway requires higher levels of planning, strategising in terms of route, food, stay, fuel, financesand such other requirements of self and fellow travellers. Scale-up requires higher levels of planning and strategising so that the odds for success is maximised. For a drive in the city one can get away with lesser levels of such planning.
If one gets stuck in the highway for whatever reason, help and rescue may be far and few; may take time. Scale-up requires safeguards and efforts to avoid getting stuck. In a city it’s easierto find help.
A drive in the highway moves one in to a whole new place – fellow travellers too. Scale-up takes the business and the people in to a whole new level – to a different orbit altogether. In a drive in the city, one doesn’t leave the city.
A drive in the highway results in higher fuel-burn per hour as you cover a lot more distance; consumes more fueltherefore. Scale-up consumes more energy, capital and resources.
A drive in the highway takes one through unfamiliar terrains, areas, new vistas, places, even different weather conditions.Scale-up takes one through different, unfamiliar territories, experiences, and changing conditions.
Highways are relatively less crowded. Scale-up businesses are fewer in number. Whereas City roads are crowded.
A drive in the highway often takes one out of their comfort zones, makes one adapt, adjust / re-adjust their needs,affairs, and responses. Scale-up moves people out of their comfort zones, makes them adapt and embrace the new.
Preparing and Leading a Scaling up Business – It’s different! Vastly different!
My name is PK NarayananWishing you the best, Thank you.
Providing feedbacks and feed-forwards in an effective way enhances one’s Leadership Presence.
Feedbacks and feed forwards are generally offered to correct something, to improve performance, or to highlight something that could be done better.
It need not be so always.
One could catch someone doing things right, and offer a feedback. And accentuate the positive.
Someone asked a leader ‘Why would you commend someone for doing something they're supposed to do?’
The leader answered: ‘So they keep doing it.’
It’s important that in our focus on things to correct, we are not blind to the positive things people do on a daily basis.
When you catch people doing the right things and offer feedback, it provides clarity, builds trust and psychological safety.
Also it helps people to become the best version of themselves.
Providing feedbacks and feed-forwards in an effective way – it enhances one’s Leadership Impact!
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
Often Leaders catch themselves being stuck to the past and past events, finding it challenging to focus on future and move on.
Rear-view mirror is important while driving; however Windscreen holds more potential and promise.
Being aware of what happened, being alert to what’s coming from behind and the sides is important. At the same time holding a larger perspective, driving the business forward is important for a Leader, looking ahead through the windscreen.
Looking ahead more - through windscreen, than looking behind - through rear-view mirror, may serve Leaders well. This awareness - to move on and lead focusing on the way forward, the future, than being stuck to the past and past events, is pertinent for Leaders.
Great leaders are aware of the wisdom behind focusing more on the present and future, drawing learnings from the past.
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
Leading a business to perform at optimal level is a continuous challenge for CEOs and Business Leaders. The good news is that today Leaders have multiple support systems, including that of working with a Coach, to create, build, and enhance their leadership presence and leadership Impact.
I would like to share 6 significant areas where Leaders could enhance their effectiveness working with a Coach:
1. Enhancing leadership presence: to Inspire more, influence more and impact more by building and strengthening our ability to focus, listen, communicate, and be present.
2. Making better choices, taking better decisions: Leadership is about making choices and decisions that impacts many. Better leadership is about making better choices, and taking better decisions.
3. Working around the challenges: Possibilities exist to face challenges by thinking around them, working around them, than thinking about them and taking them head-on.
4. Discovering blind-spots: As humans, we all have our blind-spots. Discovering them, working on them, enhances our effectiveness.
5. Simplifying: It takes conscious efforts to simplify. When we simplify, things get clearer to us, and to the teams. When we simplify things get done.
6. Focusing, managing distractions: Focusing on the right areas also means building our ability to manage distractions.
Working with a Coach, CEOs and Business Leaders could build upon aspects that are relevant to them and their context, and enhance their leadership impact significantly.
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you
Leaders are often faced with the need to have difficult conversations - internally or externally. Being comfortable having those difficult conversations serves them well, and enhances their Leadership Impact.
Some of the ways in which one could enhance their effectiveness in difficult conversations are:
1. Choosing the space and the time to initiate and carry out the difficult conversations. Optics do matter.
2. Slowing down the pace of the conversation consciously, and separating facts from emotions help leaders carry out difficult conversations with grace.
3. Bringing the purpose, the larger perspective helps to center the conversation, and put things in perspective.
4. Being kind on people and tough on issues helps the leader in such conversations.
It’s important for leaders to practice deliberate calm in such conversations.
The adage ‘if you’re not over-prepared, you’re under prepared’ holds true for difficult conversations as well!
At times, taking a break, spending some time in the balcony helps clarify thoughts and bring about perspectives for oneself.
Ability to have difficult conversations with ease enhances one’s Leadership Presence.
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
It’s not where you look at, it’s what you see - Anonymous.
As a leader what we see is important; What we perceive influences our approach, attitude, decisions, and actions.
What we see depends on how we look at things.
For example, what’s the role of ‘brake’ in a car? Whenever I’ve asked this question to people, I’ve received responses such as ‘it helps us slow down’, ‘it helps us to stop the car’, ‘it helps us avoid accidents’, and so on. These responses are true.
But, when we look at it as ‘brake helps us go faster’, or ‘we are able to speed up (only) because we have the brake’, it opens up a whole new dimension, a new perspective! And provides fresh new energy and a set of possibilities.
How we look at things therefore assumes significance. Often it functions as the keyhole for finding appropriate solutions, and choosing our actions and responses.
The good news is that we have the ability to look at things the way we want, perceive things the way we choose to! And it impacts the outcomes significantly!
Let’s harness that!
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
Fitness is important for businesses too. The business needs to be fit enough to achieve its purpose.
For example, People fitness would mean right people are in right roles.
Product - market fitness would ensure the business strategy and execution are aligned to the market needs and dynamics.
Process fitness ensures appropriate systems and processes are in place.
Functional fitness would mean all key business functions are properly resourced and functional.
Cultural fitness would ensure a healthy, enabling culture is in practice.
Building, sustaining and improving the business fitness therefore is a leader’s priority. It enhances one’s Leadership Impact.
Is our business fit enough to achieve the business goals that we have set?
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
#ceo #scaleup #leadership #business
We always are in search for getting the right answers. But often the right answers don’t come and present themselves in front of us.
When we ask the ‘right questions’, the chances of getting the ‘right answers’ are high.
During the early days of space exploration it was a challenge with ink pens, as normal ink-pens didn’t work in space due to zero gravity.
Teams were formed to invent a special ink-pen that would work in space. After months of research and spending thousands of dollars, the attempt remained unsuccessful.
Another leader joined the team at this juncture and asked the team ‘how we could write in space’? One of the team members answered ‘we could use pencils’.
When we ask the ‘right questions’, the chances of getting ‘right answers’ are high!
Are we asking the right questions?
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
#ceo #scaleup #leadership #business
What we focus on, expands.
Whatever we focus on, expands. It’s therefore important what we focus on.
For example if we focus on challenges, challenges seem expanding. If we focus on solutions, solutions keep emerging!
What we focus on, expands.
Focus drives actions and outcomes.
As a leader, what should I focus on?
A single answer that fits-all may not exist for this question. Also an answer may not hold good for all the times. Yet, the awareness ‘what we focus on, expands’ could lead us to choose the right areas to focus on.
In a way, our priorities drive our focus. In that sense it’s important to get our priorities right!
What we focus on, expands. Being conscious of where to focus on, making conscious choices on what to focus on, could significantly enhance one’s presence, and open up possibilities that are exceptional.
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
#ceo #scaleup #leadership #business
Does every team member in our business know what’s expected of them? Are their individual roles clear?
Not knowing what’s expected causes hesitation, indecisiveness, anxiety, insecurity and stress to the team members. For the business, it causes uncertainty, chaos, gaps, under-utilisation of resources, and below-par performance.
Globally only one in two employees know what is expected of them at work, says a recent Gallup report. This means half the employees worldwide are unsure about their roles. These employees, the authors of the survey note, are anxious and stressed - even losing their sleep - because they don't know what their Managers want from them. And these employees don't know whether they're succeeding or failing.
Lack of clarity on roles causes damage at multiple levels - for the employees, and to the business.
Providing clarity on each one’s role, and how it rolls-up and fits into the overall business objectives, and setting clear expectations from each role, contribute immensely for improved business outcomes and well-being of team members. This is essential and fundamental for enhanced business performance and business growth.
Does every team member in our business, know what’s expected of them? Are their individual roles clear?
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
#ceo #scaleup #leadership #business
Shaping organisation culture is considered one of the most important things a Business Owner does - consciously or otherwise.
Organisation culture is invisible, yet felt by all - every moment. It takes time to set-in. Once set, normally outlives the leader who has been instrumental in creating it; Often playing an empowering role in theorganisation reaching its goals.
The good news is that as Business Owners we have the possibility to create a healthy, constructive organisation culture!
3 things to keep in mind while shaping an empowering organisation culture are:
1. Leadership is about inspiring high performance; It’s also about making people feel safe and secure. For eg: adversity is something usual to businesses. A leader remaining composed while facing the storm puts those being led also at ease - where one doesn’t feel threatened or panicky - leading to creation of a safe and secure workplace culture.
2. Often feedback is given to people in an accrued, cumulative way. It’s given, rather the need is felt, only when something significant happens, or is done or not done. Alternatively one could encourage a culture of offering feedback more often, in small doses, for the so called 'lesser significant things' as well; for, those little things add up to becoming a significant thing. Such a culture also prepares everyone to start giving and accepting feedback and feed-forward.
3. As a leader, one is visible - always. Actions, and inactions are seen, felt and discussed by people. This means the Leader needs to model the culture that they want to create. For eg: being on-time for meetings oneself consistently, before insisting and telling the team members to do so.
An organisation culture created and curated consciously goes a long way in achieving the purposes of the organisation.
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
#ceo #scaleup #leadership #business
The best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing - said Theodore Roosevelt.
It’s the actions that change the world - not the ideas, not the thoughts. Not even decisions.
People become who they are, because of what they do.
It’s interesting that, though many may have similar ideas, thoughts, and many may decide to do chosen things, only those who act upon them move.
There exists a gap between the thoughts and actions, the decisions and the doing. And it’s pertinent.
The question therefore is - Am I actioning enough on the things that I decide to do, things that I want to do, things that I need to do, to reach where I want to reach?
My name is PK Narayanan
Wishing you the best, Thank you.
#ceo #scaleup #leadership #business
Creating and Keeping Business Fitness is a Key Enabler for Scaling-up. This would mean creating and maintaining People Fitness, Functional Fitness, Market Fitness and avoiding Fat in the belly!
People Fitness happens when we have the Right People in Right Roles. Businesses need to manage the current and emerging role requirements pro-actively, nurturing, developing and acquiring talent in a conscious way.
Functional fitness is making sure that each function in the Business are fit-enough to meet and fulfil Scaling-up objectives. For example, the Marketing function is fit enough in terms of its capabilities, processes, and resources to execute the promotional strategies; The Operations function is fit-enough in terms of its competencies, technologies and processes to manage the volume, quality, costs, defects and so on.
Market fitness is ensuring a proper Product - Market fit for our Products or Services on an ongoing basis.
Often, alongside the Scaling-up - which leads to processing increased volumes across the business - also arises a tendency to accumulate fat, in the form of redundancies, inefficiencies, wastage, and duplication; usually in all wrong places. It’s important that the business keeps a constant vigil to avoid them, and maintain agility, efficiency and effectiveness in all its business operations.
Business Fitness leads to Excellence in Execution.
Creating and keeping ‘Business Fitness’ is thus a key enabler in a scaling-up process.
Is my business fit enough?
My name is PK Narayanan, wishing you the best! Thank you
#ceo #leadership #scaleup