Projecting Warmth and Strength As a Leader

In this intriguing Harvard Business Review article, Amy Cuddy (Harvard Business School) and Matthew Kohut and Jon Neffinger (KNP Communications) address an age-old question of leadership: Is it better to be loved or feared? The answer for leaders, say Cuddy, Kohut, and Neffinger, is to project both warmth and competence – but that doesn’t come naturally to most people. The authors recommend a one-two punch: start with warmth, closely followed by competence.

It turns out that more than 90 percent of our social judgment upon meeting someone new comes from two areas:

• The person’s warmth, communion, and trustworthiness – What are his or her intentions toward me?
• The person’s strength, agency, and competence – Is he or she capable of acting on those intentions?

Interestingly, most people think it’s important to project strength to others – but what they look for in others is warmth. “Most leaders today tend to emphasize their strength, competence, and credentials in the workplace, but that is exactly the wrong approach,” say the authors. “Leaders who project strength before establishing trust run the risk of eliciting fear, along with a host of dysfunctional behaviors. Fear can undermine cognitive potential, creativity, and problem-solving, and cause employees to get stuck and even disengage.”

“A growing body of research,” they continue, “suggests that the way to influence – and to lead – is to begin with warmth. Warmth is the conduit of influence: It facilitates trust and the communication and absorption of ideas… Prioritizing warmth helps you connect immediately with those around you, demonstrating that you hear them, understand them, and can be trusted by them… Without a foundation of trust, people in the organization may comply outwardly with a leader’s wishes, but they’re much less likely to conform privately – to adopt the values, culture, and mission of the organization in a sincere, lasting way.” 

How does a leader project warmth in a way that doesn’t seem phony? Cuddy, Kohut, and Neffinger suggest the following:

• Don’t speak too loudly. Talking at a lower pitch conveys the feeling of confiding and trusting. It’s also helpful to share an appropriate personal story.
• Validate people’s feelings. “Before people decide what they think of your message, they decide what they think of you,” say the authors.
• Smile. People can see through a false smile; it helps to think of positive things and focus on one person in the group. Genuine smiles are self-reinforcing, both for you and for others.

And how does a leader project strength?

• Feel in command. “Warmth may be harder to fake, but confidence is harder to talk yourself into,” say Cuddy, Kohut, and Neffinger. If you feel like an imposter, others will feel it. Hold your body in a way that expresses confidence, facing directly toward people you’re talking to, and avoid cutting gestures, a furrowed brow, or an elevated chin. Balance your weight primarily on one hip to avoid appearing rigid or tense. Tilt your head slightly and keep your hands open and welcoming.
• Stand up straight. “It is hard to overstate the importance of good posture in projecting authority and an intention to be taken seriously,” say the authors. This doesn’t mean standing rigidly at attention, military style. “It just means reaching your full height, using your muscles to straighten the S-curve in your spine rather than slouching.” 
• Be poised. “When you move, move deliberately and precisely to a specific spot rather than casting your limbs about loose-jointedly,” say the authors. “And when you are finished moving, be still. Twitching, fidgeting, or other visual static sends the signal that you’re not in control. Stillness demonstrates calm.” 

“Is It Better to Be Loved or Feared?” by Amy Cuddy, Matthew Kohut, and Jon Neffinger in Harvard Business Review, July/August 2013 (Vol. 91, #7/8, p. 54-61), no e-link available

From the Marshall Memo #492