Being in the Moment – Breath & Meditation

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It’s hard to promote, write about and coach presence, executive or otherwise, without talking about meditation. In fact it’s probably been present (pun intended), when I’ve discussed breathing, calming nerves, pausing and connecting in the moment, but it goes deeper than that. Throughout my acting career, my whole career in fact, I had never practiced any meditation or yoga, and like many, thought it was a bit ‘out there’, sitting on a mountain top with too much time on your hands. Sure I’d done stretching and breathing to warm up before a show but I couldn’t see how moments of doing nothing could have any benefit and surely action is where it’s at. Until last year, when the fast paced world, stress, anxiety got on top of me and I decided to give it a go.

I signed up for yoga meditation classes and what I liked straight away was the mix of and link between yoga and meditation. Concentrating and being focussed on practicing the postures, combined with breath, followed by breathing techniques, meditation and even chanting. Just having that hour and a half session, or half an hour at home to close off the rest of the world and be in that room, in that moment. And you have to admit that in itself is pretty rare. In essence what we do is listen to and focus on the breath in the back of the throat, in and out, letting thoughts come and go, in fact ‘stepping back’ and observing them. It’s not always easy or relaxing but being able to stop for that time works for me and its only with practice benefits will come. So what are the benefits? For me its reducing anxiety, negative thoughts, being able to focus on what I’m doing, dealing better with stress and anxiety and changes in how I react to situations. It’s turning me into a deeper breather (I’ve always been short and shallow, a fast paced person in general) which helps with nerve management (useful for acting and training) and also with being present and more focussed on the moment, instead of a mind that’s firing off in all directions. This to me is the key; whether an actor, a presenter or executive, those that have the ability to be completely present and connected in the moment and to the people they are with, have presence.

But don’t just believe me. Andy Puddicombe in his Ted Talk ’10 Mindful Minutes’ talks about refreshing your mind for 10 minutes a day “simply by being mindful and experiencing the present moment” and that this can be a preventative for stress. He says we spend so much time outside the present moment that we miss out. In fact he references a Harvard study that says our minds are lost in thought 47% of the time. His approach is to step back and see thoughts clearly, witness the thoughts and emotions without judgement, rather than getting anxious about feeling anxious. He too says this gives us a different perspective and though we can’t change all of the things that happen to us we can change the way we experience them. So, 10 minutes a day to “refresh”, reboot if you like, step back, focus on the present moment and experience calmness and clarity.

Sure but where’s the science I hear some of you cry! I’m glad you asked. Bloomberg recently published an article ‘Harvard Yoga Scientists Find Proof of Meditation Benefits’. In a five year study they are finding a “True biological effect…The kinds of things that happen when you meditate do have effects throughout the body, not just the brain”. The research focuses on stress and how the mind body techniques of yoga meditation “can switch on and off genes linked to stress and immune function”. Interestingly the lead researcher emphasises the importance of breath and inhabiting the present moment and while a daily regimen is best, “simply knowing breath management techniques and having a better understanding of stress can help build resilience”.

So how does this help you, where can you use it? Well regular practice appears to have some strong ongoing benefits, as illustrated above, but there are certainly situational uses as well. Breathing really is the key to managing nerves and this is a fundamental technique I teach for those anxious about giving presentations or even those that find their presentations undermined by what’s going on in their body and mind. These techniques also give you the appearance of calmness which elevates your presence and most importantly it grounds you, connects you to the present moment and assists you to focus fully on the situation and person or people that require your undivided presence.

So, find time to stop, breath, connect with yourself first of all and bring this presence into all of your interactions. Try it, adapt it, apply it and you be the judge of the results.

Vulnerable Self – The Power of You

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As an actor, exercises in acting class or standing in front of an audience involve and invokes a huge sense of vulnerability. Letting go and trying something completely new or at least uncomfortable is scary and also exhilarating. I remember a ‘risk night’ exercise we had to prepare for an acting class. I was asked to present a classical ballet piece! Now I’m no mover, and I’m sure I looked ridiculous (I even bought long Johns to wear) but once I committed to it and let go I felt liberated and strangely, more confident. Not about dancing per se but within myself. I came face to face with vulnerability and felt courageous as I confronted it.

When we stand on stage in front of an audience it is daunting and we tend to focus on questions like “will the audience like me?” This translates to presentations, pitches, meetings and boardrooms, where the focus is often on ourselves. The question we need to be asking is “Do I really like or believe in myself?” My first acting teaching used to say “if you do not believe in yourself then it is doubtful anyone else will”. He would also add that doubts are normal, healthy even, though somewhere along the line the actor must grow and have faith in their own abilities. So, you need to know your abilities, you need to like yourself but also and fundamentally you must know and confront your flaws.

A famous acting teacher Uta Hagen wrote, “First you must learn who you are. You must find your own sense of identity, enlarge this sense of self, and learn to see how that knowledge can be put to use in the characters you will play on stage”. Of course in the ‘real’ world the character is you, your character, though I would argue that we do portray different versions of ourselves depending on the ‘stage’ we are standing on and the audience we are with.

We all have flaws or things we don’t like about ourselves and it is inevitable that at times we compare ourselves to others. It may be that we wish we had their charm, charisma, and way with people, presence. To achieve presence we need to achieve comfort in our own skin, that quiet confidence people exude when they are solid and secure in who they are and what they offer. It is not the “look at me” people who have a presence about them; in fact it is the opposite. What we are working towards then is to accept yourself with pride, the things that make you different, unique and special. It is how you feel about yourself that is important. Sometime actors with a powerful stage presence are said to bare their soul to the audience, which is the true essence of vulnerability and creates a powerful connection to the audience. We are not watching a character, we are seeing and feeling a human being, complete with emotions and flaws, and that vulnerability is the very thing that seems to attract an audience. Am I suggesting that you bare your soul and express your emotions at every possible opportunity? No, I am making the point that you have something to offer, flaws and all and it the combination of self acceptance and being your true self that gives you presence and the ability to connect with others. Wearing a mask is tiring, often or eventually obvious and on some level a barrier to connection.

Yakim Moni, in ‘Creating a Character’ says “Society has also set up psychological portraits of the ideal person and citizen whom you are encouraged to emulate. If you have been scolded as a child for being overly aggressive, overly withdrawn, overly emotional, overly trusting, then you may feel you are different, imperfect. Perhaps you retreated or covered up to prevent society from knowing your weakness and to protect yourself from feeling pain. As an actor you must look at yourself and into yourself. The work on the vulnerable self will help you uncover and dispose of layer after layer of concealing shrouds…without coming to terms with your flaws, real or imagined, the best in your talent is immobilised. Your ability to express yourself is blocked”.

The journey to building presence, then, starts with awareness of your faults and qualities, your ‘character’ if you like. The next step is how this character interacts with the rest of the world. This means working on your body, speech, mind, emotions and importantly, your behaviour. In the words of acclaimed acting teacher Stella Adler, you must say aloud “I am myself and I have my own standards”.

 

Special thanks to my Actors Showcase teacher Peter Stephenson Jones.

Why bother with (Executive,Leadership) Presence?

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Presence is important. We want it, we admire those who have it and intuitively we realise it’s a damn useful quality for success, in life and career. But why and how and who says? Isn’t hard work and ability enough? That’s certainly part of the success equation and I’ve come across some research recently which puts presence firmly in the formula for success. The Center for Talent and Innovation ran a survey and 268 senior executives identified executive presence as essential to getting ahead. “In fact, executive presence accounted for, on average, 25% of what it takes to get promoted. The study’s revelations were gleaned from 18 focus groups, nearly 4,000 college-graduate professionals and 50+ one-on-one interviews with high-level executives”. The Key findings were:

  • Executive presence accounts for 26% of what it takes to get the next promotion, according to senior executives
  • Gravitas — confidence, poise under pressure and decisiveness — is the core characteristic of EP, according to 67% of the 268 senior executives surveyed
  • Communication telegraphs you’re leadership material, according to 28% of senior executives
  • While only five percent of leaders consider appearance to be a key factor in EP, all of them recognize its potential for curtailing or derailing talented up-and-comers. Notable appearance blunders, not surprisingly, are unkempt attire (83% say it detracts from a woman’s EP, 76% say it detracts from a man’s) and, for women, too-tight or provocative clothing (73% say it detracts from a woman’s EP).
  • Sounding uneducated proves a tripwire (59% say it detracts from a woman’s EP and 58% say it detracts from a man’s)
  • Women and multicultural professionals tend to struggle with EP due to intrinsic tension between conforming to corporate culture and remaining true to oneself. 56% of people of color feel they are held to a stricter code around EP, compared with 31% of caucasians; 36% deliberately recast the way they tell their stories, compared with 29% of caucasians.
  • For both women and people of color, feedback on EP can be hopelessly contradictory—which may be why 81% say they’re unclear as to how to act on it.

 

So it’s worth working on your presence and there are certainly clear components to focus on which have been further explored in my other articles. Importantly, presence can be developed and there is a strong case for doing so.

Whats so good about role play?

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Working with actors in role plays and simulations gives people the opportunity to practice a skill, situation or scenario which is as close as possible to what they are dealing with in the ‘real’ world. They are an excellent tool to put models and theories into practice, trying them out in a safe environment and getting self insight and feedback as to what works and what needs to be adapted. It also takes the fear out of facing potential difficult situations, as they are played out first in a simulated environment. To get the best out of role plays the actors need to be briefed on the learning outcomes and also any background information relevant to the case, as this adds realism and credibility.  The extent to which this is required flexes depending on the scenario and can be minimal if the focus is on represented behaviours. The key is for the actors to be able to improvise in the moment, taking on the information and behaviours assigned to the ‘character’ and situation they are playing out then flexing in the moment depending on how the simulation is playing out and being driven by the participant. Scenarios can also be acted out between the actors to demonstrate effective or ineffective behaviours, with the participants giving input into what they would do differently. Forum theatre takes this to the next level as participants jump into the ‘hot seat’ and taking over from one of the actors and dealing with the scenario themselves. The actors are trained to give feedback, particularly in terms of the impact the participants behaviour or approach is having on them. The most effective role plays are facilitated by the person running the workshop to ensure program specific feedback and outcomes. Small groups better enhance comfort levels amongst participants and allow for more practice and feedback from the role player, facilitator and group.

From Gallipoli to Shortland Street

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Press

Release

From Gallipoli to Shortland Street?

NZ Actor Glen Hancox plays forgotten

Kiwi journo in ‘Gallipoli’, sets sights on a Shorty role

 

Melbourne, January 19, 2015:  Melbourne based

Kiwi actor Glen Hancox is set to appear in Channel

Nine’s ‘Gallipoli’, a series to commemorate the

100th anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign. He plays

little known and forgotten journalist Malcolm Ross, the official NZ war correspondent in World War I. Glen hopes to raise the profile of Ross and of himself in his native NZ and create an opening in the NZ entertainment industry, moving from the beaches of Gallipoli to the also legendary Shortland Street.

Glen has been acting for 15 years, mostly in Australia and while he is often cast as a Kiwi character, he has never worked as a screen actor in New Zealand. That, he says, is about to change.

“I’ve been looking for an opportunity to come home for years.” Glen says. “New Zealand is always home and I’d love to play Kiwi characters and tell local stories. It was a special experience playing Malcolm Ross and I was shocked to find so little was known about him in NZ and what has been written was largely critical of his work in WWI. He was hamstrung in so many ways and he left little of his life behind for posterity. In a lot of ways, my role in Gallipoli is also small, but I did my best as an actor to bring him alive and at least represent his presence in history”.

Glen anticipates that the production will be well received in New Zealand, as it has a number of Kiwi characters. He is hopeful the name of Malcolm Ross will also be revived in the minds of New Zealanders. As for Glen the actor he is keen to appear on New Zealand’s most famous street and is approaching the task with ANZAC determination. “I’ve been trying for a gig on Shortland Street and in NZ for a while. Now is the time and I won’t give up the fight”.

Glen can be contacted through his NZ agent Gail Cowan Management, gail@gcm.co.nz
Tel +64 9 360 2654 Mb+64 (0)274 444 296

Showcast Page http://www.showcast.com.au/showcast/View/ViewActorProfile?actorId=20540&d=9McNf8Qgd3BIiFjehvmR4w

Showree l – http://vimeo.com/35614460

Characteristics of Presence

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In my previous article on Presence, we explored what presence actually means and whether it can be learned and developed. Now we’ll look at the characteristics of presence and then why these need to be developed.

Executive or Leadership presence is often vaguely referred to as gravitas, someone that can hold the room, or has a certain ‘something’. It’s also often confused with charisma. In my article ‘Presence’, we broke it down into skills, character and behaviour and the difference between short and long term presence. In simple terms the three pillars of presence are:

  • How you act ( gravitas)
  • How you speak (communication)
  • How you look (appearance)

The Executive Presence Group sums this up beautifully – “The core characteristics of Executive Presence are: the ability to project confidence, to have poise under pressure and be decisive, to be authentic, to be competent in your expertise and always show integrity in your actions. Also, communication — including speaking skills and the ability to read an audience or situation — is key, as is appearance.  Executive presence also means having a clear vision and the courage to pursue what’s important. And lastly, being able to connect with people, read the room and be intelligent with your emotions — all of these contribute to a person’s perceived executive presence”.

Based on my own experience and research, I have broken Presence or ‘EP’ (Executive Presence) into four areas. There are of course crossovers between them. They are:

  • Values, character & personal brand
  • Interpersonal behavioural patterns
  • Presentation skills
  • Physiology & fundamentals of communication

Essentially the key to EP is knowing who you are, being that person and communicating this effectively to the rest of the world. Those that drop the masks and are comfortable in their own skin have confidence, integrity and the ability to connect with others.

 

What is Presence

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We’ve all experienced someone who has ‘presence’, a certain something that draws you to them and that commands attention and respect. Strong leaders are often referred to as having this intangible aura that commands respect and causes others to listen to and want to follow their lead. While we recognise this ‘presence’ and may wish we had it, we don’t necessarily understand it. We see it and feel it but the concept can seem fuzzy rather than tangible.  And often we assume you either have it or you don’t. So what is presence and can it be learned and developed?

Presence is a combination of skills and character – it is about values, personality, behaviours, performance, influence, inspiration, articulation, presentation, connection, drive and congruence between all of those factors. It is being authentic and comfortable in your own skin; secure and confident.  Presence goes beyond first impressions or physical attributes; it is your personal brand, the traits and values that define you and, importantly, how you communicate these to others. Presence is also the ability to be ‘in the moment’ and totally focussed, being ‘in the flow’ and having complete clarity. So, it is holistic, present in all of us and it can be enhanced.

Research also finds that presence changes over time and there are impression based characteristics that drive early impressions and evaluation based characteristics that determine presence in long term relationships. Clearly there is benefit in developing characteristics over both areas and it is crucial to develop sustainable presence in order to develop trust and relationships. It doesn’t take long for someone’s presence to shift if they look the part, or play the role yet this isn’t underpinned by substance and a strong set of values.

So why bother developing our personal presence? For a start it is often considered to be a key contributor to leadership effectiveness, along with the ability to deliver results and to shape and communicate purpose and direction. Fundamentally it enables us to exert influence beyond authority, causing people to listen as well as act. Relationships are strengthened, engagement raised, trust built and results achieved. Importantly though, it’s not about others, it’s about you, how you feel, your sense of self and comfort in your own skin. And this is what gives you strength, assuredness and the presence which others are reading.

Developing your personal or executive presence is certainly not ‘one size fits all’ or a magic formula; its unique to the individual and made up of a range of factors. Because it is innate in all of us, it can be learned by drawing out what makes us ‘us’ and exploring how we communicate and have contact with the world. It’s not about being flashy or having charisma, or having to be an extravert, or just making strong impressions; we’re talking about sustained presence which is about substance, self confidence and authenticity.

When actors develop a character they look at the physical, emotional, intellectual and psychological parts of the person and the corresponding behaviour. As a director assists the actor in developing these parts and making it authentic to the audience, so too can coaches when we work on our own ‘parts’, behaviours and interactions with our ‘audience’. We each have a fundamental character based on our personality and values. But we also adapt and change, put on different hats, different ‘characters’ depending on who we are interacting with and the situation we are in and behave in different ways. These require adjustments to the parts of character. When an actor plays a character it is still the person, the actor playing the role. In fact actors bring themselves to a role to make it authentic and real, otherwise it just comes across as fake, put on. There needs to be congruence between the lines (words) and the parts of the character given the script, scene and entire play. And this rings true for ‘real life’ as well.

Working on your executive presence shows a commitment to personal and professional development and to stronger outcomes with your interactions with others. That in itself attracts people and followers. Whether it is gravitas, confidence, poise under pressure, demeanour, communication, behaviour, speaking skills, assertiveness, ability to read an audience or situation or even appearance, take the time to be present with yourself, revisit leadership and presence through a deeply personal lens and most importantly to ACT REAL.