Practise the updates, hard conversations and talks that define how people follow you, and see exactly how you come across.

Try ExpreaHear the difference

Before and after

“Announcing a hard decision to the team.”

The same voice answers twice. Press play and follow along.

Illustrative voices

The first answer

So, um, I just wanted to, like, share that we’re kind of going to pause the project for now, I think, just for a while, and, uh, I know it’s maybe not ideal, sorry.

Pace
before 192, words a minute.
Fillers
before 3, marked words.
Hedges
before 5, marked phrases.
Pauses
before 1, 0.35 s or longer.

Measured on these two clips. Pace is words over the clip’s length; pauses are silences of 0.35 seconds or longer. Fillers are marked, hedges underlined. One synthesised voice reads both takes.

Where it goes wrong

Three things to practise, each with its instrument.

  1. 01 / 03

    Say it like you mean it.

    Hedging is the fastest way to lose a room.

    • Every "I think", "just" and "kind of" highlighted in your own sentences
    • Practise the decision, the feedback, the no
    • Sound as certain as the call you made

    Hedged and firm

    Move across Sample

    I just think we might possibly need to maybe look at pausing the project for now.

    We are pausing the project.

    Words
    16
    Hedges
    5

    Every hedge you cut makes the decision land harder.

  2. 02 / 03

    Slow down when it matters.

    Leaders who pause are heard. Leaders who rush are managed.

    • See your pace in the moments that count
    • Find the pause before the point
    • Keep your voice steady when the news is hard

    Pace through the announcement

    Move across Sample

    0:40
    104 wpm
    Decision
    You are in it

    Slower exactly where it matters.

  3. 03 / 03

    Lead the room, not just the meeting.

    Presence is built over hundreds of moments.

    • A path that ends at Level 5, Lead
    • Practise town halls, board updates and one-to-ones
    • Mentorship from experienced members

    Who holds the floor

    Move across Sample

    39%your share

    Five people, one meeting.

Your place on the Path

Start at Level 5: Lead.

Five levels, one question each. Open any of them to see what it asks of you.

Level 5 · Start here

Lead

Can I hold a room I do not control?

A room that disagrees with you is still a room you can run.

Holding a room you do not control. Interruptions, hard questions, a plan that falls apart, and you still land it.

See the whole Path

Free, about three minutes

Hear yourself the way they will.

A free 3-minute Communication Analysis shows where you stand today.

Start the free analysis

Speech thirds

  • Opening

    0.22

  • Body

    0.55

  • Close

    0.23

Vocabulary diversity

  • Ideal
  • You
  • Average

  • Narrow

  • Varied

Questions

It is how others experience you when you speak: calm, clear and certain. Much of it is delivery, which means it can be practised.

The report shows the parts of presence you can hear: hedging, pace, pauses, pitch range and filler words, take by take.

Yes. Record the update, the difficult feedback or the town hall opening, and get notes on each.

Yes. Mentorship connects you with experienced members, and live sessions put you in a real room. Your first session is included.

Individuals can start today. For teams, write to [email protected].

Something else? Every question we get asked, or write to us.

From the blog

Read before the moment.

The CraftWhat? So What? Now What? The update people can act onRita OkonkwoWrites on delivery, stage craft and presenceRead more
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