Become the Real Deal: The Proven Path to Influence and Executive Presence

12

Too Much

The Pretender

His aura bowled people over

Antonio was anything but invisible. When he walked into a room, his aura almost bowled people over. He was super-smart, and he definitely wasn't shy about letting you know it. In fact, he told me during our first coaching session that his personal motto was, “I have a beautiful mind.”

Antonio was an aggressive, ambitious senior vice president—but his ambition had recently taken a hit. He should have been a leading candidate to succeed his global company's CEO, who planned to retire in a few years—but instead he'd just been passed over for a promotion to president that would have put him in line for the coveted corner office with the seven-figure annual salary.

Antonio was miffed about being overlooked. He didn't understand why he hadn't gotten the job, especially since he considered himself to be more qualified than anyone else for the position.

I, on the other hand, understood the reason for this perfectly—thanks to his latest 360-degree performance review. And I had to find a way to convey this to Antonio.

“Let's talk about your personal brand,” I said to him in our first meeting. “How would you define yourself?”

“I'm direct,” he said proudly.

“OK,” I said, “let's take a look at your review and see if that's how your colleagues define you.”

It wasn't. Instead of direct, they described him as cutting.

“Let's try again,” I said. ...