Grow Your Confidence In Executive Interactions

Have you noticed that more and more decisions are being made by higher-ups in an organization? As a result, you may find yourself involved in executive conversations more often than before. The challenge is that if you are a seller who has never held an executive position or worked large accounts where executive interaction is more frequent, you may not have a strong executive point of view. The good news is that executives are just like you and me. They are there to do a job. In this blog, we will discuss practical tips to help you succeed in executive interactions and ultimately boost your confidence in these types of engagements.

Remember: The more you know, the more willing you are to put yourself out there, and the more you put yourself out there, the more experience you get, and the more experience you get, the more competent you become, and the more competent you become, the more confident you become, and the cycle continues.

Winning with Executives

How Do I Present Myself In an Executive Interaction?

Intention 

The first thing we are going to talk about is intention. Now, we're not talking about your intended outcomes. It's more "how am I going to carry myself to achieve that intended outcome?" Thinking of your intention as an active verb is the best way to do this.

• My intention is to convince

• My intention is to persuade  

• My intention is to motivate

• My intention is to challenge

The intention will shape and inform how you carry yourself in a conversation. Having a clear intention for your meeting helps you focus and manage any emotions or butterflies you might feel.

"I'm always going to have butterflies; I just need to get them flying in the same direction" 

-Taunya Bunte, Master Facilitator.

Be Authentic 

Let's be honest. Usually, an executive has earned their position by working their way up the ladder. For the most part, they will be really good at reading people. This means that it is incredibly important to be authentic. If you put on a show or try to trick them, they can pick up on that immediately, and you will lose credibility. Luckily, by being yourself, you can focus on your intention and not worry about keeping up the façade. This can relieve some pressure and build confidence right out of the gate.

Have a Point of View

One effective way to boost your confidence in executive engagements is to arrive with a clear point of view or provide something of value. Why does this work? It gives you a starting point. You know what you want to achieve. You can prepare your point of view or the valuable information you want to share beforehand. Practice and refine your point of view and insights ahead of time so when you enter the room, you can make a strong first impression within the first 30 seconds.

Pro Tip: Giving executives clarity quickly is key. They're often busy moving from one meeting to another. If you show them why your meeting matters right away, they'll likely stay engaged.

Lead with a Predictive Question

Starting a meeting with an executive can be challenging, especially if we don't have enough information to guide our discussion. In this case, asking a predictive question is a great way to begin the conversation. It's important to remember that the primary goal of this tactic is to gather the insights and viewpoints of the executive, regardless of whether they agree or disagree with our perspective. This approach helps open the conversation and establish a foundation for further discussion. A predictive question might sound something like:

"I've noticed in the past few years that [industry trend] has had a massive impact on companies similar to yours. Have you seen the same impact?"

This approach starts the conversation on a high note and sets the stage for a dynamic and productive executive engagement. Be prepared to follow this closed ended question with an open ended question based on their yes or no response.

Establish Clear Next Steps

Establishing clear next steps is crucial during executive engagements. Where executives are hesitant to make decisions, potentially fearing making the wrong choice, we try to identify their concerns and find ways to give them confidence in the decision-making. This may not necessarily involve our solution; it could be a general business issue. At this point, we can share a customer story highlighting how some of our more successful customers have handled similar situations. This approach allows us to suggest that their peers made the same choice and that we recommend they do the same. Then, we can proceed to take the next step together.

Remember: It is critical to have a clear call to action at the end of your meeting. This is a question, not a statement. What specifically do you need from this executive to help you move forward? 

Listen Instead of Talking

When you are feeling anxious, especially before entering a high-pressure environment like an executive interaction, there is often a temptation to fill every moment of silence with words. Instead of going down this path, take a moment to pause and ask questions that will open up the conversation. Gathering information from the other party may surprise you in the direction of the conversation. Every executive engagement is a chance to learn, influence, and inspire. 

"People will tell you who they are, you just have to listen"

-Dan Conway, CEO

Maintaining Your Executive Presence

2Win Takeaways

Developing Your Skill Set

In executive conversations, things often don't go according to plan, but that doesn't mean we should throw preparation out the window. Developing skills that can give us the confidence we need in high-pressure situations is essential. By preparing for these conversations, we can face unexpected changes in the conversation and find opportunities to steer the discussion in the direction we want it to go. Nothing speeds up a deal more than having the support of an executive. By listening attentively, asking the right questions, and being ready to adapt, we equip ourselves with the tools to handle executive engagements confidently. 

Bonus

Executive Modes

Unlike personalities that tend to stay fairly consistent, executive modes can change from meeting to meeting or from moment to moment. We need to be able to handle ourselves when this pivot happens. In our blog, How To Lead Executive Conversations, we discuss the four most common types of modes and how to approach each one. The four modes are:

• Amiable: Executives in the amiable mode tend to care most about the personal relationships within the team, and they want to make an emotional impact.

• Expressive: Executives in the expressive mode tend to be big-picture thinkers and will be frustrated if you bring them the detailed realities of today's situation.

• Analytical: These executives are all about the numbers and tend to be matter-of-fact.

• Driver: Executives in Driver mode become VERY direct. While in Driver mode, they take charge of the topic.

It is important to know and understand each mode because your executive's approach to the conversation will change depending on it. Be able to pivot to resonate with your executive's mode. This will help you build influence with that executive and move the deal forward.