At Amazon, meetings start in silence. For the first 30 minutes, everyone reads what is famously known as the Amazon Memo. The premise is simple: weeks prior to a meeting, the meeting leaders create a narrative memo to plan, prepare, flesh out ideas, and organize their thinking. The Amazon Memo is distributed at the beginning of the meeting and no one speaks until everyone has finished reading it. That quiet, reflective time sets up an informed, productive discussion because everyone starts on the same page, with the same information.
Amazon CEO, Jeff Bezos, pioneered this concept to ensure ideas are focused and meetings are efficient. In doing this, he shows strong executive presence. Executive presence centers on authority, knowledge and confidence; it’s how you make a powerful impression that gains trust and confidence from other leaders.
You may associate this as the trait of an extrovert, but in my 20 years of working with executives as a leadership performance coach, I’ve found the opposite to be true. The traits that make Bezos successful, and increase his executive presence, are all characteristic of introverts. Typically, he’s known for being laser-focused, a gifted visionary, uncomfortable in the spotlight, reflective, introspective, an excellent listener, and takes a long-view business strategy…does this sound like you?
Turns out, the unintended benefit of the Amazon Memo is that it’s the perfect strategy for introverts to use to up-level their self-confidence and increase their executive presence.
I’ve designed “The 6-Step Guide for Introverts to Increase Executive Presence in Meetings” so that you can be the best prepared and self-confident every time you are in a high-stakes meeting.
After following this guide, you will:
- Participate in meetings with confidence
- Speak with greater authority
- Influence your ideas into action