When Executive Presence Backfires

Senior leaders often rely on the very behaviors that got them promoted—having the answers, projecting confidence, and jumping in to improve ideas—but at the top, those instincts can backfire. As your role gets bigger, those habits can shut people down, limit what you hear, and quietly weaken decisions. The shift you need to make is from proving you’re right to helping others do their best thinking. This article outlines the three common traps above and explains how to avoid them.