Speak Up: Develop Your Executive Presence & Leadership Communication Style

Epizody

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  639: The One Thing That Makes You Sound More Strategic in Executive Meetings (DAY 5) 09.10.2026 7min

  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
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  638: How to Disagree With a Senior Leader Without Losing Your Nerve (DAY 4) 08.10.2026 6min

  Access your Executive Meeting Visibility Guide.How to Disagree With a Senior Leader Without Losing Your NerveSome leaders disagree so diplomatically that everyone leaves the meeting believing they agreed. Their real opinion appears later in a private conversation—after the opportunity to improve the decision has passed.Trust is not built by agreeing with the most powerful person in every meeting. It is built by helping the group make a better decision. Yet many conscientious leaders either soften their point until it disappears or wait so long that frustration makes them sound more defensive than they intended.By the end of this short episode you’ll know: 🇨🇭The Swiss-Army knife question answering framework of Affirm and Add🔑How to preserve both respect and candor—without weakening your contribution with disclaimers that invite the room to discount you🔥The right mindset for approaching questions, even when they feel aggressiveIdentify one issue on which you hold a different view from a senior stakeholder. Write one genuine point of agreement and one addition the room needs from you, then practice saying both in a calm, neutral voice. Record the outcome in your Executive Meeting Visibility Guide and continue with Day 5 to make your contribution sound more strategic.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
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  637: What to Say When You’re Challenged in an Executive Meeting (DAY 3) 07.10.2026 6min

  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
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  636: Stop Making Executives Dig for Your Best Idea (DAY 2) 06.10.2026 5min

  Access your Executive Meeting Visibility Guide.Stop Making Executives Dig for Your Best IdeaIf a senior leader has to excavate your recommendation from three minutes of context, your idea may be excellent—but it is not yet executive-ready.Conscientious leaders often begin at the beginning because they want others to understand the analysis, history, and nuance behind their thinking. But executives are listening first for the destination: What should we know? Why does it matter? What do you recommend? What decision is needed? Context is not the enemy. Unprioritized context is.By the end of this short episode you’ll know:3️⃣ A simple three-part structure starting with lead with the headline🧩How to sound concise without becoming simplistic—and how to make your judgment easier for senior leaders to recognize and use🪝 What to do with all the context in your headChoose one update you expect to give this week and write the first sentence senior leaders need to hear. Test it by asking: If I were interrupted after this sentence, would the room still know my essential point? Record the result in your Executive Meeting Visibility Guide, then continue with Day 3 to prepare for unexpected pushback.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
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  635: The 7-Minute Rule That Makes You More Visible in Executive Meetings (DAY 1) 05.10.2026 5min

  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
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  634: Why Being Afraid to Be Wrong Is Hurting Your Executive Presence and the Way You Come Back from a Mistake is Your STRONGEST Asset Is Hurting Your Executive Presence Exhibit A: Chamath Palihapitiya 02.10.2026 13min

  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 trying to always be right is actually weakening your executive presence?For high-performing leaders, admitting you made the wrong call can feel risky. You may worry that reversing a recommendation, acknowledging a flawed assumption, or admitting someone else saw the situation more clearly will cause people to question your judgment. But executive presence isn’t about being infallible—it’s about how you respond when reality proves you wrong.In this episode, Laura examines Chamath Palihapitiya’s public reflections on his mistakes during the SPAC boom to reveal what owning a mistake can teach us about authority, trust, and leadership.By the end of this episode you’ll know:🎯How to separate a bad decision from your identity so you stop hiding behind explanations and excuses.🔥How to transform admitting a mistake into top value for your company.4️⃣A simple four-part framework for communicating a changed recommendation.Play the episode to learn how to admit when you’re wrong, revise your thinking with confidence, and turn mistakes into evidence of stronger executive leadership.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.Sources and production notes:Chamath’s statements about his SPAC incentives, insecurity and redesigned incentive structure: OfficeChai’s coverage of his June 2026 Axios interview.The original interview and its framing of the SPAC chapter as the biggest “blemish” on his record: The Axios Show.Leadership research: Jia Hu, Shuxia Zhang, Robert B. Lount Jr. and Bennett J. Tepper, “When leaders heed the lessons of mistakes,” Personnel Psychology (2024): research paper.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 admit you’re wrong without losing authorityExecutive presence when making mistakesHow admitting mistakes can strengthen leadership credibilityHow to change your mind without appearing indecisiveHow to reverse a recommendation with confidenceWhy defensiveness can damage leadership trustHow leaders can take ownership of bad decisionsHow to explain why a decision failed without making excusesThe difference between confidence and executive presenceHow to communicate a change in strategy to your teamHow leader humility encourages team voice and learningHow to create a culture where employees speak up about problemsHow to demonstrate intellectual flexibility as a leaderThe relationship between executive presence, trust, and accountabilityWhat leaders can learn from Chamath Palihapitiya’s SPAC experience
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  633: Stop Trying to Win the Argument and What to Do Instead to Build Real Influence 30.09.2026 26min

  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
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  632: How To Make Yourself INDISPENSABLE At Executive Tables Rather Than Trying to Get Invited 28.09.2026 8min

  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 hereYou can be the person doing the most important work in the room—and still be the person leadership forgets to invite into it.And if that's happening to you, doing even better work probably isn't going to fix it.You can be highly respected, trusted for your expertise, and responsible for strategically important work while still being excluded from the executive conversations that shape your next career opportunity. The problem may not be that you need to work harder or become more visible. It may be that senior leaders are experiencing you as the expert who executes the work rather than the executive-level resource they want helping them make the decision.In this episode, you'll discover:🧩Why being respected for your expertise does not automatically make senior leaders see you as executive material🚫Why “I just need more visibility” is probably the wrong diagnosis🪝What has to change if you want executives to start thinking, “We need her/him in this conversation.”Play the episode to learn how to shift from being the expert executives know about to the strategic resource they believe they need in the room.👉 Book Your Executive Strategy Call 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:How to develop executive presenceHow to communicate with senior executivesHow to communicate like an executiveHow to get noticed by senior leadershipHow to get invited to executive meetingsHow to move from Director to VPWhy high performers get overlooked for promotionHow to demonstrate executive readinessHow to be seen as a strategic leaderHow to stop being seen as only the technical expertHow to transition from technical expert to strategic leaderHow to build executive visibilityHow to communicate business impact to executivesHow to build influence with senior stakeholdersHow to become a trusted advisor to executives
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  631: Create Influence By The End of 2026 With These 5 High ROI Moves To Change How Leadership Sees You 25.09.2026 14min

  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
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  630: 3 Essential Moves to Build Executive Influence and Get Promoted WITHOUT Playing Corporate Politics 23.09.2026 25min

  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 working hard, delivering results, and doing everything expected of you—yet still struggling to get recognized, influence senior leaders, or move to the next level?Being great at your job is important, but results alone may not be enough to move from director to VP or become a more influential executive. The way you communicate, build relationships, contribute in meetings, and make your impact visible can dramatically change how others experience your leadership.In this episode, Laura sits down with Tracy Nolan, Senior Vice President at Humana and an experienced board member, to unpack what effective communication and influence actually look like at the highest levels of an organization.Tracy shares lessons from her own career—including being passed over for an opportunity despite being a high performer—and explains what she learned about looking beyond her immediate responsibilities. From presenting to a board and building relationships with busy executives to speaking up during uncertainty, this conversation reveals how leaders can create influence without bragging, pretending to have all the answers, or playing corporate politics.By the end of this episode you'll know how to:🔎Communicate more effectively with boards and senior executives by starting with the headline and using other techniques📈Increase your visibility and position yourself for advancement by demonstrating an enterprise-level perspective🏗️Build greater trust and influence as a leader by bringing meaningful questions and challenges into meetings, seeking input before controversial decisions, and communicating honestly.Play the episode to learn how to communicate, build relationships, and show up more strategically so your hard work translates into greater influence, visibility, and leadership opportunities.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:From being the youngest executive and only woman on a retail board to leading 24,000 employees through the historic Sprint/T-Mobile merger during COVID-19, Tracy Nolan brings powerful insights on transformative leadership and breaking glass ceilings. As the current SVP at Humana and a board member for Dress for Success Worldwide, she offers a unique perspective on balancing strength with compassion in leadership.Some highlights of Tracy's career include:Managing $31B in revenue with a $6B operating budgetLeading through multiple crises, including 9/11 and natural disastersMentoring women from office managers to executive leadership rolesLed transformative initiatives at Fortune 100 companies (Humana, T-Mobile, Sprint, Verizon)First female Regional President at Verizon (Upstate NY) and Silver Stevie Award winner (Female Executive of the Year, 2022)Harvard Business School Women on Boards graduate and NACD Directorship Certification holderTracy combines practical leadership strategies with inspiring personal stories, showing that impactful leadership isn’t about choosing between strength and empathy—it’s about leveraging both.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 include:How to get promoted from director to VPWhy high performers get passed over for promotionsHow to communicate with senior executivesHow to build executive presenceHow to build influence without playing office politicsHow to become more visible to senior leadershipHow to get recognized at work without braggingHow to influence senior leadersHow to get executive buy-inHow to present to a board of directorsHow to demonstrate strategic leadershipHow to think like an executiveHow to speak confidently in executive meetingsHow to build relationships with senior leadersHow leaders should communicate when they don’t have all the answers
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  629: You’re Ready for VP. So Why Do You Keep Freezing in Executive Meetings? 21.09.2026 10min

  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
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  628: Why Spencer Pratt Is Better at Storytelling and Executive Presence While Most Polished Leaders Bore Their Audiences 18.09.2026 15min

  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.Many accomplished leaders tell the kind of story that leaves the audience checking their latest Slack message or maybe their upcoming Amazon delivery.What if your story doesn't need more polish?What if they need to feel less finished?In this episode of Speak Up: Develop Your Executive Presence, Laura Camacho reveals an unexpected storytelling lesson from Spencer Pratt: the most influential stories invite people into what happens next.Using Spencer and Heidi Montag’s experience after losing their home in the 2025 Pacific Palisades fire, Laura breaks down how leaders can create more compelling stories without manufacturing drama, oversharing, or sacrificing executive presence.In today's episode you’ll learn the following from a legit reality tv star:🔥How to identify the exact moment of change that creates tension and immediately pulls people into your story.1️⃣Why one concrete, memorable detail can communicate the stakes more powerfully than polished corporate language.🧩How to leave the right part of your story unresolved so your audience understands the role they can play in moving the outcome forward.Play the episode to learn how to turn your leadership stories from polished summaries into compelling narratives that give people a reason to listen, believe, and act.An unfinished story with a meaningful role for the audience can create action.And action is where storytelling becomes influence.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:Why polished leadership stories can feel boringHow to create stakes and suspense in business storytellingUsing moments of change to begin a compelling storyConcrete details that make leadership stories memorableTurning audiences from passive listeners into participantsUsing unfinished stories to motivate actionExecutive storytelling for influence and engagementHow to tell concise, memorable stories at workExecutive presence for introvert leaders
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  627: Why Your Team Stops Telling You What You Need to Know—and What It Means for Your Executive Presence 16.09.2026 27min

  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
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  626: When You’re a Highly Respected Leader at Work but Nothing Is Ever Good Enough for Your Difficult Boss 14.09.2026 12min

  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 hereIf you’re highly respected everywhere else, but one relationship at work has you second-guessing everything you say and do, your expertise may not be the problem.You can have decades of experience, a strong track record, and complete confidence in your expertise—and still find yourself struggling with a boss whose expectations and communication style seem impossible to read.You give more context, and they think you're overexplaining. You ask for guidance, and they question your independence. You make a recommendation, and it barely seems to land.In this episode, you'll discover:🧩Why trying harder to prove your competence can unintentionally decrease your boss's confidence in your leadership.🔬How to identify what your boss actually needs to experience from you to build trust, from greater autonomy and speed to clearer, more concise recommendations.🤸🏿‍♂️How to adapt your communication without shrinking yourself, abandoning your expertise, or becoming a more cautious version of the leader you were hired to be.Play the episode to learn how to stop managing your boss's reactions and start communicating your expertise in a way that builds trust, confidence, and stronger leadership relationships.If you find yourself stuck in that one leadership relationship you just can't seem to get right—your boss, a senior executive, or a critical stakeholder—and it's gotten to the point where you're replaying meetings, second-guessing emails, and wondering why 20 years of experience suddenly don't seem to be enough, you don't have to spend the next six months walking on eggshells.Because the harder you try to prove your competence by explaining more, checking more, or preparing more, the more you can accidentally reinforce the very perception you're trying to change.That's exactly why I created the Executive Presence Mastery System. We help accomplished leaders understand what's really happening in these high-stakes relationships, identify what the other person needs to experience in order to trust their leadership, and communicate their expertise with greater clarity, confidence, and authority—without becoming a smaller version of themselves.If this episode felt a little too familiar, click here and book a discovery call with me. We'll talk about what's happening in your specific situation and whether the Executive Presence Mastery System can help you become the trusted, influential leader you know you're capable of being.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 include:Navigating difficult relationships with your boss or senior leadersWhy highly experienced executives can suddenly lose confidence at workHow communication style affects executive presence and leadership perceptionBalancing independence with asking for guidance in a new roleHow overexplaining can unintentionally undermine leadership credibilityAdapting to a boss who wants concise, recommendation-first communicationBuilding trust with senior executives and critical stakeholdersManaging conflicting or confusing leadership feedbackCommunicating expertise with clarity, confidence, and authorityAvoiding the cycle of overthinking, second-guessing, and walking on eggshellsUnderstanding what senior leaders need to experience to trust your leadershipProtecting your professional reputation when a key relationship breaks downKnowing when to adapt your leadership style—and when a workplace relationship may be unsalvageableUsing executive presence to increase influence, visibility, and strategic credibility
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  625: Why Exceptional Work Without Executive Presence Won’t Earn You More Than the Average 2027 Merit Raise 11.09.2026 13min

  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
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  624: Stop Fighting Imposter Syndrome When It Can Multiply Your Executive Presence and Get You Promoted 09.09.2026 36min

  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 self-doubt you’ve been trying to eliminate is actually one of your greatest advantages in high-stakes meetings?When you’re presenting to the C-suite, defending a proposal, or answering an unexpected question, it’s easy to become consumed by how you’re being perceived. But Avi Liran offers a different approach: stop trying to perform confidence and start focusing on contribution, preparation, curiosity, and trust. In this episode, you’ll discover how to reframe imposter syndrome, prepare for challenging questions, and stay grounded when the stakes—and your nerves—are high. By the end of Laura’s conversation with the delightful Avi Liran you’ll know how to:🎉Turn imposter syndrome into something productive instead of letting it undermine your confidence🧲Handle difficult C-suite questions with curiosity, humility, and the powerful phrase you can rinse and repeat to build rapport with anyone🧩Build the mindset that helps you stay grounded when presentations, meetings, and workplace relationships don’t go as plannedPlay the episode to learn how to transform self-doubt, tough questions, and high-pressure leadership moments into opportunities to build trust, credibility, and confidence.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:Avi Liran (CSP) is Global Chief Delighting Officer and an energetic motivational speaker who goes above and beyond to deliver tangible results to organizations. As the embodiment of Contagious Positivity, he’s celebrated for leading businesses toward profitability with a smile. Avi’s approach is a masterclass in how to reshape the very core of a business with delightful mindsets, particularly through joy and appreciation in the workplace. This transformation creates the contagious positivity that leads to significant improvements in performance, employee well-being, and customer satisfaction.Having helped many Fortune 500 companies achieve profound transformations, Avi’s philosophy is simple: delight your people, and they will delight your customers. This contagious wave of positivity is the secret ingredient to a thriving business environment, one that Avi has successfully instilled in organizations worldwide. Through his engaging, heartfelt, and dynamic speaking style, Avi ignites long-lasting change, one keynote, one workshop at a time.With Avi, you don’t just gain a motivational speaker; you gain a transformational leader and partner in building a business that champions employee and customer delight as the pathway to greater profits and sustained growth. Engage Avi and spark Contagious Positivity in your organization today.Develop your 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 influence in high-stakes leadership situationsBuilding trust through contribution, kindness, and appreciationUsing imposter syndrome to improve preparation and performanceHandling difficult questions and challenges from senior leadersUsing “Tell me more” to demonstrate curiosity and confidencePreparing for C-suite presentations and executive Q&AStaying composed and credible when you don’t know the answerLeading with humility without diminishing your authorityTurning your inner critic into a “Chief Risk Officer”Using gratitude and positive reframing to manage stress and self-doubtCreating engagement and buy-in by inviting challengeWhy appreciation and positivity can strengthen leadership influence
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  623: You Did the Work. Your Boss Got the Executive Credit. Is That a Bad Thing? 07.09.2026 11min

  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 hereAre you doing executive-level thinking behind the scenes—only to watch your boss get recognized as the strategic leader in the room?If you’re a Director, Senior Director, VP, partner, or executive, doing excellent work isn’t always enough to move your career forward. You may already be filtering complexity, anticipating executive concerns, identifying risks, and making strategic recommendations—but if senior leadership only experiences you as the person who knows the details and gets the work done, they may never see the judgment you’re already capable of bringing to the next level.In this episode, Laura Camacho, PhD, reveals how high performers can accidentally train leadership to see them as brilliant operators rather than strategic executives—and what to pay attention to if you want your executive presence to match your actual capabilities.In this episode, you’ll discover:💡Why giving your boss the executive version of your thinking while giving senior leadership all the details can quietly undermine your executive presence.🔬How to recognize the difference between being known as a dependable expert and being trusted as someone leadership wants in the room for important decisions.🔑 THE question to ask before your next senior-level meeting so you communicate your judgment instead of simply proving how prepared you are.Play this episode to learn how to stop giving away your best executive thinking and start helping senior leadership experience the judgment that can position you for your next level. 👉 Book Your Executive Strategy Call hereTo learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.If you’re already a director, senior director, VP, partner, or executive and this episode made you slightly uncomfortable because you’re thinking, “Oh my gosh. I do this,” good.It probably means the capability is already there.The problem is that the way senior leadership experiences you hasn’t caught up with the level at which you’re capable of operating.That’s exactly the kind of gap we close inside the Executive Presence Mastery System.We work with your real meetings, actual executive stakeholders, and high-stakes presentations. We strengthen how you position your ideas, answer questions, communicate your judgment, and become known as someone senior leadership wants in the room when important decisions are being made.If you’re interested in exploring the Executive Presence Mastery System, you’ll find the application link here.And I’ll leave you with this:You did the work.You developed the judgment.Make sure you’re not giving someone else all the opportunities to demonstrate it.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 senior leadersExecutive communication skillsHow to demonstrate executive judgmentStrategic thinking vs. executionHow to communicate with senior leadershipCareer advancement for Directors and VPsWhy high performers get overlooked for promotionsBuilding visibility with executive leadershipHow to communicate strategically at workMoving from subject matter expert to executiveHow overexplaining hurts executive presenceCommunicating recommendations to executivesHow to be seen as a strategic leaderLeadership perception and career growthMaking your executive thinking visible
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  622: To Rescue Your Executive Presence from the Dumpster Fire Stop Doing These 5 Things (from the 2026 Executive Influence Index) 04.09.2026 15min

  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 behaviors you think make you look hardworking, prepared, and smart are actually making you look less executive? It happens more often than you think. High performers are often rewarded for knowing more, doing more, explaining more, and working harder. But as you move into senior leadership, those same habits can start working against you. Executive influence isn't about producing the most output—it’s about knowing what matters, communicating it clearly, and creating better thinking and decisions around you.In this episode of Speak Up, Dr. Laura Camacho reveals seven things you can stop doing at work to strengthen your executive presence and make the transition from expert to interpreter, advisor, and executive.By the end of this episode you’ll know how to:🏆Communicate with greater authority by saying less, prioritizing what matters, and eliminating unnecessary information🏹Strengthen your influence by asking sharper questions, creating productive friction, and focusing less on proving you’re the smartest person in the room🪝Increase your executive presence by replacing busyness, overwork, and boring communication with better judgment, clarity, and memorable ideasPlay the episode to discover what you can stop doing this week to create more influence, clearer decisions, and stronger executive presence—without simply working harder.If you know you’re ready for the next level in your career—but you’re not sure whether your executive presence is helping you get there or quietly holding you back—start with the Executive Presence Scorecard.This quick self-assessment will help you pinpoint where you’re already showing up as a confident, credible leader and where there may be gaps in how you communicate, influence, and lead.Go to the show notes, click the link for the Executive Presence Scorecard, and take the assessment today. Your next level of leadership starts with knowing exactly where you stand.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 strengthen executive presence by communicating lessWhy overexplaining can weaken your executive influenceHow senior leaders prioritize information for better decision-makingAsking strategic questions instead of always having the answerHow productive disagreement builds leadership influenceUsing storytelling to make executive communication more memorableMoving from subject-matter expert to trusted executive advisorCommon high-performer habits that hurt executive presence
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  621: Everything You Thought You Needed To Do To Demonstrate Executive Presence Is Actually Making You Less Effective 02.09.2026 26min

  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 everything you thought you needed to do to demonstrate executive presence was actually making you less effective?Executive presence isn't about dominating the conversation, knowing every answer, or burying senior leaders in data. For high-performing professionals who want to move into the C-suite, the real differentiators are often quieter: understanding what your audience cares about, turning information into meaning, demonstrating knowledge beyond your functional expertise, and remaining calm when everyone else feels the pressure.In this episode, finance and FinTech executive Rishi Oberoi shares lessons from more than two decades in business about what actually earns trust at the executive level.By the end of Laura’s conversation with Rishi Oberoi you'll know:🧩Why quiet confidence can create more executive presence than being the loudest voice in the room—and how to speak up when your contribution matters🔑How to stop overwhelming executives with data and start telling a compelling story by answering the all-important question, “So what?”🎯Why staying calm under pressure, understanding perspectives beyond your own, and developing broader business knowledge can make you the leader people trustIf you've ever been in a meeting where the person talking the most clearly knew the least, Rishi has some very validating news for you.Play this episode to learn how to communicate with quiet confidence, turn your expertise into executive-level influence, and become the steady leader people trust when it matters most.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:Rishi Oberoi is a leadership advisor and trusted partner to CEOs, boards, and high-performance teams. With more than two decades of experience, Rishi has guided organizations through moments of complexity, pressure, and transformation.Finance Leader, advisor, and mentor with more than two decades of experience turning financial complexity into clarity. Over the years, Rishi built a reputation for helping CEOs, boards, and high-growth teams navigate transformation, strengthen financial systems, and scale with confidence.From preparing banks and fintechs for IPOs to helping launch the first nationally chartered digital bank in the U.S., his career has been defined by bridging financial discipline with forward-looking strategy. For Rishi, numbers are only part of the story; real impact comes from trust, credibility, and resilience.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 PresenceQuiet Confidence Calm Under PressureExecutive StorytellingAudience AwarenessSignal vs. Noise · Business AcumenEnterprise ThinkingExecutive TrustC-Suite ReadinessData StorytellingRespect vs. Likability
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  620: You Know What Needs to Change. Why Can't You Get Executive Buy-In? 31.08.2026 12min

  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 hereThis episode is for those of you who can see exactly what needs to change in your organization but somehow, you cannot get everyone else to see it, especially the top executives. Learn what to do, that does NOT involve day drinking….At the director, VP, and executive level, having the right answer is only the beginning. If your ideas aren't gaining traction, adding more data, context, and explanation may actually be working against you. In this episode, you’ll discover how to translate your expertise into the priorities, pressures, risks, and outcomes senior decision-makers already care about—so your ideas have a better chance of turning into action.By the end of this episode you’ll know how to:🛑Stop over-explaining your expertise and start communicating in a way that resonates with executives.🧲Connect your recommendations to actual business priorities like growth, risk, retention, speed, and revenue.🏗️Build allies before the meeting so executive buy-in starts forming before you ever make your pitch.Play this episode to learn how to turn valuable ideas into executive influence—and become the leader whose recommendations get understood, supported, and acted on.If you’re already a senior leader but find yourself walking out of important meetings knowing your ideas didn’t land with the authority or influence they should have, pay attention to that.Because the higher you rise, the less your success is determined by how much you know—and the more it’s determined by your ability to influence decisions, build confidence, and create alignment when the stakes are high.That’s why we created the Executive Presence Mastery System: to give accomplished leaders the one-on-one guidance they need to sharpen their presence, increase their influence, and communicate with greater clarity and conviction.If you recognized yourself in today’s episode, go to the show notes, 👉 book your Executive Strategy Call 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:Executive presence for senior leadersHow to build executive presenceLeadership presence at the executive levelCommunicating with confidence and authorityIncreasing influence in high-stakes meetingsHow senior leaders command the roomExecutive communication skillsBuilding credibility with senior leadershipLeadership visibility and career advancementBeing perceived as ready for the next levelDeveloping C-suite presenceExecutive Presence Mastery for senior leaders