You Do Have Charisma
Everyone has more charisma when they let their confidence shine through, are authentically enthusiastic, and smile.
Most of us think people like Patrick Mahomes and Tom Hanks were lucky to be born with so much natural charisma. However most of us have to work at being charismatic. (And I bet they work at it too!)
Charisma is affability plus trustworthiness. It’s when other people like and trust you and want to be around you. You know it when you see it. You can almost feel it.
The truth is some of have a little natural-born charisma and others have a lot. And all of us can become more charismatic. It takes intention and practice. We can leverage our confidence, enthusiasm and a smile to exude charisma…
“Mr. Morgenstern, I ain’t got no charisma,” I heard, as I was serving as a pitch coach for a B2B team. This field supervisor was all wrapped up in how well the execs presented, and he was quite concerned he would not do well.
In front of the entire group, I asked him some direct questions.
“Will you do a great job if we get this business?” I asked. “Hell, yes,” he continued. “I’m the best darn supervisor they could get and I’ve proved it on the seven similar projects I already completed.”
“Do you really want to win this job?” I continued. “Absolutely. We need another project soon and I know how many other jobs this creates for us.”
Finally, I simply asked him to please smile. His pride and personal authenticity lit up our practice room.
“That combination is charisma,” I explained. “Your confidence is rooted to your skills as a craftsperson and a manager, not as a speech-giver. Your enthusiasm shines through your personal authenticity. And your smile brings it all home.”
He told me later how profound those two minutes were for him. And, oh yes, they won the job.
The three components to increase your own charisma are:
Confidence + Enthusiasm + Smile
Let your core confidence shine through. Simply being great at what you do is table stakes for success today. Be proud of what you have accomplished and own your excellence. Dizzy Dean (and many others have said), “It Ain’t Braggin’ If It’s True.” You are excellent at what you do.
Be authentically enthusiastic. Don’t focus on what you need to say and do to impress the audience. Share what you love about your job and the satisfaction you get when you do a job well. Your audience will be attracted to your authentic passion and dedication.
Smile! We are biologically programmed to respond positively to smiles and to be wary of people who don’t. No RBF. Simply keep smiling. It works.
Charisma helps you be more likable and trustworthy. We will all be more successful by embracing this approach.
Onward.