People who are introverted are typically not bothered about being in the limelight. By not being so, they may not be visible and may miss out on opportunities. Or they may not have the influence and impact needed as a senior leader.
You may find that being visible requires activities that are overstimulating on your brain, too much of which can leave you with what I call introvert drain. Namely, a lack of physical and mental energy and wanting to retreat and recharge. Which, you will not be able to do if you are in the middle of a demanding board meeting.
Introvert drain can affect your decision making, your mood, and your confidence, make you feel anxious, and leave you feeling physically and mentally depleted.
Don't let a lack of visibility undermine your presence and effectiveness as a leader.
A lack of visibility can undermine your presence and effectiveness as a leader. I often have coaching clients who want to get promoted to an executive role, or who are senior leaders and executives but lack influence and impact, for whom this is the case. They get feedback such as ‘needs to exhibit more substantial leadership impact’, ‘needs to be more visible to the board’, ‘needs to do more to increase their visibility’, and other related feedback.
Leadership is often associated with the ‘extravert ideal’ (a term coined by Susan Cain author of Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking), which is an omnipresent belief that the ideal self is gregarious and comfortable being in the spotlight. Research has shown that extraverted employees get more opportunities in the workplace because their performance is more visible.
Due to misconceptions about introversion, where an introverted leader does not exhibit these behaviours, if a person does not know them well, it can often be misconstrued. I experienced this during my time as a senior leader when my group was going through a particularly challenging time.
Because I remained calm and collected throughout, someone told my line manager that I did not care about what was going on. However, my line manager knew me well. She knew how passionate I was about my work and the teams that I led and knew that this could not be further from the truth.
People who are introverted should not have to change to fit the environment. However, if you are in an organisation that does not recognise the qualities that introverted leaders bring to the table and you are not in a position to influence change, it may require you to make the effort to be more visible (if you don’t want to leave and find an environment that does). Otherwise, you will have to play the long game which may not get you the results that you want when you want.
As a side note, if the culture of your work environment goes against your values and does not allow you to be your authentic self, do you really want to work there?
Being visible is not just beneficial to you and your progression as a leader, it is also beneficial to those that you lead as well as stakeholders. When leaders are visible and approachable, employees are more likely to be engaged and feel connected to the organisation.
Engaged employees are more motivated, more productive, and happier. Studies show a correlation between engaged employees and customer satisfaction, staff retention, and reduced absenteeism.
Stakeholders want assurances from the leaders of the organisations that they have an interest in and want to feel that there is a connection. Being visible to your stakeholders (in the right ways) can help to provide those assurances and develop meaningful connections.
In times of crisis, people want to see that leaders are responding well and steering their organisations in the right direction. Being visible and leading from the front is essential in difficult times.
Not all leaders find it comfortable being visible, and for some, it can be fearful, bringing on a fear of rejection, self-doubt, or imposter syndrome. Or they can feel inauthentic and that they can’t be themselves, and constantly being visible can be draining.
Being visible as a leader does not mean that you have to be loud and gregarious. You can be quietly visible.
There are many ways to be visible as a leader so find ways to be visible that work for you. It does not mean you have to be loud and gregarious, but it may require you to put yourself more in the spotlight. If you find it draining, make sure you build in time to recharge. Being quietly visible means, you have presence and make an impact, and are visible in your own authentic way.
So, whether you want to increase your influence and impact in your existing role, go for promotion, or make a career transition, make visibility part of your strategy to achieve this.
First published on LinkedIn.
If you are an introverted woman and a senior leader and want to increase your confidence, influence and impact, take my free assessment and get a report identifying areas to develop. You can take the assessment here.