The Highflier Handbook E-Book

Allen N. Weiner

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 331

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2025

Beschreibung

Master the skills to be recognized as a leader in any professional setting

In The Highflier Handbook, renowned executive coach and advisor, Allen N. Weiner, guides readers through the essential qualities and behaviors that distinguish outstanding performers in the workplace. The book addresses the common challenge of being overlooked for leadership roles despite competence and hard work. Through practical advice and insights drawn from nearly 50 years of experience and interviews with CEOs, Weiner provides a roadmap for professionals to enhance their communication, behavior, and overall presence to be seen as potential leaders.

The author offers invaluable strategies for standing out in crowded professional environments. You'll learn how to project composure, competence, and charisma, communicate effectively, and exhibit the non-verbal cues that signal leadership potential. The book is structured around interviews with top executives, providing real-world examples of how successful leaders behave and communicate. Each chapter covers a specific trait or skill essential for leadership, from maintaining composure under pressure to demonstrating strategic thinking and providing impactful feedback.

Inside the book:

• Learn key behaviors and communication techniques that signal leadership potential
• Discover practical tips from interviews with CEOs and industry leaders
• Understand the importance of non-verbal cues in conveying confidence and competence
• Gain insights into how to provide and receive feedback most effectively

The Highflier Handbook is an essential resource for professionals at all stages of their careers who aspire to leadership roles. Whether you're a new employee aiming to make a strong impression, a mid-level manager looking to advance, or an executive seeking to refine your leadership skills, this book provides the tools and insights needed to be recognized as a highflyer.

Leseprobe

Table of Contents

Cover

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Foreword

Preface (and a Personal Note to the Reader)

Introduction

Chapter 1: Incredibly Talented

Why Me? Why Allen Weiner?

Why Now? Why Should You Care?

Logos, Pathos, Ethos

From Ethos to Credibility

Competence, Trustworthiness, and Caring

Breadth, Depth, Height, and Sight

Competence Is at the Head of the List

Chapter 2: Executive Presence

Being a Presence in the Room

What Executive Presence Is All About: Control

Delving into Decisiveness

The Delivery of a Message

In Just a Few Words

Showing Multidimensional Personality

The Power of Charisma

Chapter 3: Your Strategic Mind

Be Strategic

and

Tactical in Meetings

Adding Tactical Tips to Your Strategic Messaging

A Balancing Act: Avoiding Too Much Time on Tactics

Title, Agenda, Result

“Traditional” Versus Strategic Thinking

First Do, Then Become

Purpose, Curiosity, and Tenacity

Let Yourself Fly

They Never Say No

Chapter 4: Character

Studies on Character as a Part of Credibility

Character and Work Ethic

The Heart of Authenticity

Adhering to Deadlines and Time Commitments

Courage Shown in Speaking and Acting

Optimism's Role in Character

A Few Words About Words

Chapter 5: Composure Under Pressure

Pressure Can Change Your Normal Style

Research on Nonverbal Communication

Pausing, Pressure Control, and Exuding Calm

Composure Measured by Your Manner of Listening

Taking a Challenge and Running with It

Control When the Unexpected Occurs

Chapter 6: Listening

It All Began with Carl Rogers

Respecting Others' Opinions Shows Humility

Taking the Temperature of the Room

Facial Expression, Intended or Not, Conveys Your Attitude

Encouraging the Speaker to Say More

A Skilled Talker Can Make Listening a Pleasure

Chapter 7: Personality

What Drives Your Behavior?

Helping to Develop People

Enthusiasm and Passion

Showing Authentic Interest in Others

Connecting with People in Admirable Ways

Attracting the Smiles of Others

Chapter 8: Unlimited Effort

Energy Translates to Effort

Passion Appreciates Passion

Passion Implies Higher Performance Ratings

Styles That Complement Each Other

Adjusting Energy Level to the Setting

Perpetual Restlessness

Off and Running

Chapter 9: Born or Made Leaders: “Organic” or “Preservatives Added”

Born with, or Developed with Experience?

Talking About Highfliers with a Highflier

Verbal Skill Builds Trust

The Obvious Desire to Gain Broad Understanding Through Question Asking

Chapter 10: Influence Skills Absolutely Necessary

Some Research on Influence Skills

The Risks of Complex Words Related to Sounding Like a “Consultant Type”

Successful Influence Requires Storytelling

Know What You're Talking About, and Be Poised While Talking About It

Chapter 11: For All Generations: Making Your Mark and Being a Mentor

A Passion, an Obsession, to Help Humanity

“I Love Your Idea”

The Good Ones “Just Figure It Out”

A Few Final Thoughts About Strategic Thinking

References

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Index

End User License Agreement

List of Illustrations

Chapter 3

Figure 3.1 Your ideas could be added at any point during this process.

Guide

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Foreword

Preface (and a Personal Note to the Reader)

Introduction

Table of Contents

Begin Reading

References

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Index

End User License Agreement

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Praise for The Highflier Handbook

The book by Dr. Allen Weiner is incredibly inspiring and insightful. Allen's ability to blend anecdotes with research findings creates a compelling narrative that emphasizes the importance of strategic thinking. The numerous practical examples and stories make the concepts relatable and easy to understand. The emphasis on effective communication and the balance between strategic and tactical thinking is particularly valuable for professionals aiming to enhance their careers. Overall, Allen's work is a testament to the power of strategic thinking and its impact on the leader's personal and organizational success. This book is a must-read for anyone looking to develop their strategic mindset and improve their professional communication skills—and personal brand!

—Shola Oyewole, MBAVice President, Digital Innovation, UTHR

Allen Weiner is a coach's coach. I was privileged to learn from him early in my career and I'm delighted that he continues to share his wisdom so generously. He taught me that anyone can be a highflier with the right Staff Officer to teach them how—and in this book Allen does just that. His wisdom and experience are precisely what you need to elevate your career.

—Lois P. Frankel, PhDAuthor of Nice Girls Don't Get the Corner Office

Allen Weiner is a living legend among executive coaches to the world's CEOs. The Highflier Handbook translates his wisdom into concrete tips and examples you can put into practice immediately. The book is packed with time-tested research on communication and leadership. More importantly, the tips Weiner offers have been road-tested with thousands of highflier clients over the decades and are illustrated in the book with the help of interviews with top industry leaders. Weiner teaches you much more than improving mere appearances or adding polish through superficial behaviors. Weiner shows you how to think more strategically, speak with authentic substance, and make your point with credibility. In short, this book will help you establish a genuine leadership presence and become the highflier you were meant to be.

—Alex LyonProfessor, Author, Executive Coach, and YouTube Creator

I cannot think of anyone better to write a book on highfliers than the ultimate highflier himself, Allen Weiner. And quite literally: from his days in the U.S. Navy serving on destroyers and cruisers, Allen has worked alongside some of the world's highest fliers, and his real-world experience makes him peerless in the world of executive coaching. As a leader, there is no more vital differentiator between good and great than the ability to communicate effectively. It's why Allen's first book, So Smart But …, has become mandatory reading for any new hire in my organization. In that book, Allen gifts us with the strategies and tools required to ace any engagement, and The Highflier Handbook will take readers from the skies to the stratosphere.

—Ali MohamadiVice President, Medical Affairs North America, Vertex Pharmaceuticals

I've worked with Allen for more than 25 years in helping me develop strong executives into truly great ones. He knows leadership communications like no one else. In this book, he really brings to life what distinguishes the best of the best. Buy this book, read it, then read it again and again.

—Curt RobertsPresident, SonderMind

THE HIGHFLIER HANDBOOK

HOW TO BE SEEN AND BECOME A LEADER AT WORK

ALLEN N. WEINER

Foreword by DON ROBERT Chairman, London Stock Exchange Group

Copyright © 2025 by Allen Weiner. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.Published simultaneously in Canada.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, [phone], fax [phone], or on the web at www.copyright.com. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, [phone], fax [phone], or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permission.

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Family First

To Carol

To Matt and Sarah

The only direction Hitchcock gave the actress Eva Marie Saint was to “do three things: lower your voice; don't use your hands; and look into Cary's eyes at all times.” If Saint had considered the techniques she learned at the Actor's Studio sacrosanct, she might have mocked such simple suggestions. The techniques worked magically, in part because they were far more revealing of character than they might appear.

—Hitchcock's Blondes by Laurence Leamer

Foreword

Over the course of my career as a manager, CEO, chairman, board member, executive coach, and technology investor I've seen dozens of promising colleagues come and go. Nearly all of them have enviable qualities that are evident right from the start. Impressive intellect, big capacity for work, and polished communication skills are a few that come to mind. In a world of fast-paced, competitive, tech-enabled business, these qualities are now regarded as the price of admission.

Occasionally someone will stand out from the crowd, clearly exhibiting these qualities and many more, making me want to nurture them, promote them, back them, and catch their energy. These are the highfliers, and they are the subject of this groundbreaking book.

So, what's the difference between a talented professional and a highflier? A comparative discussion about two interns with Harry, my first tough-love manager, has stayed with me to this day. Ron was bright, personable, hardworking, and very capable. Darryl showed the same qualities, but was also polished, forward-thinking, and able to solve complex operational problems. In summing up the difference between the two Harry said to me, “Ron might get there first, but Darryl will go a lot farther.” Without using the label, he was describing the essence of a highflier. Who's the flash in the pan, and who's the future CEO? Understanding what a highflier looks like is the first step in the journey to becoming one.

Allen Weiner is the maestro of understanding and teaching the essential components of winning leadership behaviors. His life work has focused on the scientific and practical applications of communications effectiveness as the flywheel of career success. Allen's seminal work, So Smart But…, now stands alone in the crowded field of leadership teaching. His insights and “tips & tricks” have helped thousands of talented people find shortcuts to achieving their true potential. I'm one of the grateful beneficiaries of Allen's wisdom.

Allen Weiner has had a significant impact on my own career success and on many of the people I've worked with along the way. Many years ago, he was parachuted in to help improve my communication skills. Left untreated, this issue could have derailed my early career success. I was teetering on the edge of being a highflier and I credit Allen with pushing me over the top. Since then, I have brought Allen in to most of the companies I've been involved with to work with promising colleagues in need of that final push.

Allen has now turned his attention to this previously unexplored area of career potential … the highflier. This book answers the big questions: How do you spot a highflier? How does a highflier behave? Why are highflier behaviors important? And how does the highflier attract the attention of their CEO? In my experience, the rewards that come to the highflier more than justify the small investment in buying and studying this book: better career prospects, more rapid promotions, early C Suite exposure, and financial rewards.

The Highflier Handbook should become a bedside reference to anyone seeking to get an edge and accelerate their career success. I have already started to incorporate its insights in my executive coaching practice.

Congratulations on taking this important step in going farther and faster!

Don Robert

—Chairman of London Stock Exchange Group

Preface (and a Personal Note to the Reader)

I suspect you're reading The Highflier Handbook because either you are a highflier or aspire to be a highflier.

One of the first messages I heard from Dr. James McCroskey and Dr. Michael Burgoon when I started the Communication Studies program at West Virginia University stayed with me. “Your client is one person. The individual is the unit of analysis,” they said. “You may be asked to do a program on ‘Team Communication’ or ‘Organizational Communication.’ But you’ll be evaluating individuals when the process begins.”

There are resources for an entire organization like McKinsey and Company or Bain or Boston Consulting Group. And they are wonderful at what they do. I have met many, many of them and am blown away by what they bring to their clients. But you are my one and only concern. If you are at the top of your game, others will have benefitted from being around you and that will make them better. In other words, I start from the inside out, so to speak, believing that one person, a leader, can spread his or her abilities around the organization and inspire greatness. So, if you are encouraged to “work with a coach” or to attend a program on leadership, jump with your whole heart on the opportunity you have been offered.

Not long ago, a seminar participant said, “I don't understand why this organization puts so much effort into programs on what I call ‘charm school.’”

I smiled and said, “You know, even if that were the impetus behind bringing me here, which I assure you it is not, a day spent helping you to be charming isn't exactly an obsession with what is often called soft skills. The prefix char in charming appears in character. It also appears in charisma. You'll get a lot out of this day if you think of it that way.”

Each chapter in this book stands on its own as a resource for you. I could not be more flattered than I am knowing I might be a resource for you. You are the “individual who is my unit of analysis.”

Introduction

I couldn't make up my mind which of two stories I should start The Highflier Handbook with, so I'm going to tell you both.

First, one Friday in December, I had led a communication seminar in Long Beach, California. As I was packing up, the CEO passed the conference room on his way out. He walked in and sat down, and we exchanged holiday wishes. He then said, “There's something I want to make sure you tell everyone who attends these programs. So often people come into my office for a meeting. They start talking about ideas. Their style of speaking reminds me of a drum solo at a jazz club. They are fast and often all over the place. I want them to practice speaking in an organized way so I can follow the train of thought.”

Isn't that a terrific analogy? The rat-a-tat-tat of a drum solo. That's just one example of a behavior that can undermine an otherwise brilliant employee in the mind of a senior member of the leadership team. Here in The Highflier Handbook, you'll read about ways to avoid this and other unintentional behaviors to make certain you are seen as you would want to be seen.

Next: In my last year at USC and just before graduation, one of my professors asked me if I'd like to accompany him to a speech he was asked to give. One of the fraternities asked him to speak about communication and leadership. I was to act as his gofer. Merriam-Webster says a gofer is an employee whose duties include running errands. And I was happy to do it. At that point I had not actually decided to be a consultant. The general path for a PhD graduate like me in Communication Studies was to apply for a professorship at a different academic program. But something changed my mind.

The president of the fraternity introduced my “boss” and said, “Today we'll get some suggestions on how we can show leadership to the Interfraternity Council.” He continued by saying, “For instance, how can I show more leadership among the brothers when there are major disagreements?”

The first thing I heard the professor say was, “I'm not here to give you tips about leadership. What I'm going to do is lay out some communication theory and ideas.” In other words, he was going to conduct what would amount to the class he taught.

I thought to myself, “Here's someone who wants some suggestions on how to do something better and the professor either won't do it or can't do it.” That afternoon, I decided to do what I've spent my career doing: advising clients on how to become more effective communicators with maximum credibility who are destined for leadership roles.

The Highflier Handbook will lay out for you just what those techniques and strategies are. You'll read examples here from C Suite executives that will raise your level of awareness of what works well and what doesn't. I've devoted my practice to the job of helping clients impress their colleagues with their speaking and written abilities. It's this impulse to help that led to my first book, So Smart But… : How Intelligent People Lose Credibility—and How They Can Get it Back (Jossey-Bass 2006), and now this one.

If you consistently apply the strategies I give you in this book, someone soon will point you out and say, “That's a highflier.”

Chapter 1Incredibly Talented

I knew from the beginning that I was looking at a highflier.

Why Me? Why Allen Weiner?

Of course, I always introduce myself at the start of a seminar, so it seems proper to start The Highflier Handbook the same way. The question has always been, “How did you become an opinion leader on executive communication? What gives you the bona fides to be an advice giver about these issues?”

For any of you who knew you had a knack for something early, maybe it was musical talent or writing or auto mechanics, I started picking up on communication behavior while working for my dad in retail. I was 12 years old when I first began helping him at his store. I picked up on facial expression and body language and ways that people expressed themselves. I was fascinated by all of that. I didn’t know at that time how I would turn what I saw into a profession. I just knew I was pretty good at it. You could call what I was seeing as learning sales skills if listening and watching customers is at the heart of sales. And most sales professionals would agree.

My first chance to study communication in an academic setting was as a Communication major in college. I was lucky in that it was an immersion in rhetoric and public address. What I had picked up on my own was validated by studying the classic rhetoricians like Aristotle and the application of those principles in presidential rhetoric as Abraham Lincoln used it and finally as all speech writers today apply them.

When I finished school, I joined the Navy. I served on a destroyer and then a cruiser. I was assigned to the Officer of the Deck when out at sea and reported courses and speeds and weather conditions. I was given a lot of advice about how to properly perform my duties. That was an early lesson in simplicity and clarity. But more than proper communication, it was the experience that led me to realize how I flourished in a support role. Even now, when a new client tells me how happy they are to have an executive coach, I tell them, “I’d rather you think of me as your staff officer for communication, credibility, and leadership issues. Think of me as reporting to you and ready to offer advice and counsel when you need it.”

I returned to school for a Master’s Degree in Communication Studies, as it was then called. The thesis requirement was a disciplined research study. Mine was on Machiavellianism or a personality quality that loves to influence others for the sheer joy of the exercise. I learned statistics and how to conduct proper scholarly research.

I then went to the University of Southern California for a PhD in Communication and was a large part of the Center for Communication Research and Service. Another two years of thorough and disciplined study.

I opened my own firm, Communication Development Associates (CDA), Inc., the day after graduation. I’ve been all over the world offering advice and counsel to clients who knew how important credible communication behavior would be in their careers.

That, in short, is the road I’ve been on that led to this book, The Highflier Handbook.

Why Now? Why Should You Care?

I have built a career determined to help fliers become highfliers. I simply had a calling, it’s fair to say. I wanted to look back someday and be proud of the role I might have played in others’ careers. CDA’s practice has, from the start, based our efforts on senior-level feedback about aspiring leaders. Early on employees would receive mid-year and end-of-year reviews that included insights about their performance ranging from “needs to improve,” to “met expectations” to “exceeds expectations.” In addition, a phenomenon is now a regular exercise throughout corporate America called “360’s.” I’ll wager that most of you reading this have participated in a 360 exercise. Impressions about people were sought from those who report to the person requesting them, from their peers, and from those to whom they reported. The impressions were often about demonstrated competence. For instance, “An incredible contributor,” “A proven scientific mind,” or “Shares both tactical and strategic ideas to all levels.” And, of course, in the sections labeled “Needs Improvement,” one might read, “Needs to speak up more in meetings,” or “Doesn’t participate in team activities,” and the dreaded “Not a team player.”

At some point, an employee might be encouraged to work with an executive coach to gain some ideas and suggestions to improve their performance. I was among those often chosen to be that coach.

Since the vast majority of the feedback began with very high praise for someone’s intellect or demonstrated brain power followed by not so high praise for their communication behavior, I decided to catalog many of those impressions in my first book, So Smart But …: How Intelligent People Lose Credibility—and How They Can Get it Back.

I was always interested, however, in how some employees made excellent first impressions. It may have been in an interview. It could have been skills shown at a presentation. It very well may have been in a team meeting where ideas were flying around. I knew I was privileged to hear about these stories from some of the world’s most discerning and successful executives. I realized I had to share their thoughts, their observations, with as many people as possible. And that has led to The Highflier Handbook: How to Be Seen and Become a Leader at Work.

The interviews you will read in each of these chapters were carefully chosen. “Curated” is a popular descriptor now and I think it applies to how I chose the people I interviewed. They are all Hall of Famers, you might say. I knew I was the keeper of a treasury of ideas offered about highfliers. If any of us were to take a class at which all of my interviewees were speakers, it would be the experience of a lifetime—to say nothing of the fee all of them would so richly deserve. These executives have shown the ability to identify highfliers within their organizations and had experienced being seen as highfliers themselves. They know what it takes. The Highflier Handbook is my way of helping you to become a highflier, too. To that end, along with the interviews you will see the tips and tools (TNTs) I have given to clients to help them all get to the next step along their career path.

“I knew from the start that I was looking at a highflier.”

In The Future Leader, Jacob Morgan describes asking CEOs, “How do you define leadership?” He relates their total ambiguity about it. He says, “The most common response was ‘Hmmm, nobody's ever asked me that before.’” He adds:

“We just take the concept of a leader for granted and assume that we all know what that looks like and who is a great leader. It's a bit like trying to define water; it sounds silly because, after all, we all know what water is, right? But how would you define water to someone who has never seen it? Would you just say it's a clear tasteless liquid? Dozens of liquids are clear and tasteless. Leadership is the same; it's everywhere in some form and we experience it daily, whether at work, playing sports, watching TV or shopping. It's all around us like air, and as a result we never stop to question what it really is or who a leader is. That's how exasperating books on leadership have come to be. We can't get specifics on how to be one.”

—(Morgan 2020)

So many of my conversations with established leaders began when I took a call from one or another about someone they had encouraged to work with me. But these conversations always included a “but.” From what I learned working with senior leaders in my earlier years, the “but” they usually talked about always involved (and still does) communication behavior. I wrote all about this in my first book, So Smart But …: How Intelligent People Lose Credibility—and How They Can Get It Back (2006).

I've heard all about what they think leadership looks and sounds like, and it didn't come from interviews. We were very often sitting around and talking about people who worked in their organization. All their stories about impressive people had something to do with communication behavior. It was statements like, “She took the bull by the horns in that meeting and had a no-nonsense quality to her words.” Here, in The Highflier Handbook, I'm going to share many more of those discussions in order to make the point that, overwhelmingly, people know a leader when they see or hear one.

Logos, Pathos, Ethos

We all owe our original understanding of what makes people credible, and what doesn't, to Aristotle. Aristotle described the qualities speakers needed to sway the crowd. I learned those qualities as an undergraduate major in Rhetoric and Public Address at West Virginia University (WVU). However, one would be hard pressed to find a discussion of those rhetorical qualities at a college major these days. All the academic programs now are identified as “Communication Studies.” In fact, my PhD from the University of Southern California reads exactly that: Communication Studies. It was just a lucky confluence of timing that I have been able to study in both programs.

Rhetoric is fascinating to me. Have you ever wondered why Abraham Lincoln, in the Gettysburg Address, said, “Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth”? Did you ever wonder why he just didn't say, “Government of and by and for the people”? Probably not. Well, it's because he read classical rhetoric and knew the power of repeating the same word at the end of three phrases.

But first, Aristotle. He described three qualities that a speaker needs to be successful with an audience: Logos, ethos, and pathos.

Logos

appeals to the audience's reason. It's the study of creating logical arguments.

Ethos

appeals to a person's status when you hear him or her speak and how that helps build a sense of trust.

Pathos

is about emotions and how a speaker attempts to make listeners feel anger or even love.

To show you how much immeasurable impact Aristotle still has, speaker, advisor, and author Chunka Mui used the acronym SWAN to describe Gordon Bell in a lovely obituary. I'll leave it to you to learn more about Gordon, who was an engineer. Here is what Chunka wrote in a post on LinkedIn:

“Gordon embodied what we aimed for in all our recruiting; Gordon was a SWAN: he was smart, worked hard, and nice. He also brought his considerable gravitas and sound advice to the Exchange, a sort of ‘Vanguard 2.0,’ a senior executive learning program where Diamond brought together technology and business executives to explore and exploit the strategic opportunities enabled by rapidly accelerating digital technologies. And Gordon was always a willing early reader of my book and article drafts. Adept as ever at zeroing in on the weakest points of my arguments, his comments always made my work better.”

Here's how Aristotle's model generally applies to SWAN:

Logos (Smart): Chunka wrote, “Adept at zeroing in on weak points of my arguments.” Aristotle said, “Appeals to the audience's reason.”

Ethos (Worked hard): Chunka wrote, “He … worked hard.… Gordon was always a willing early reader of my book and article drafts.” Aristotle said, “Appeals to the speaker's status or authority, making the audience more likely to trust them.”

Pathos (and Nice): Chunka said Gordon was “nice.” Aristotle said, “A speaker appeals to the emotions.”

From Ethos to Credibility

Now, on to the beginning of social science research on credibility and the beating heart of The Highflier Handbook. After leaving the U.S. Navy in 1970, I returned to Morgantown, West Virginia, to begin a master's degree in Speech.

I need to quickly say about my time serving that a large part of it included reporting to the captain of my ship on the bridge, the USS Newport News. Even though this book focuses entirely on leadership, I became addicted to serving the captain and to this day think that experience led me to being an advisor now. Many times, I've told prospective clients who ask me to describe what we will be doing together that I am not fond of the term “executive coach.” It implies that I'm senior to my client. Just as I was junior to the captain, I like thinking of myself as junior to my client and acting as his or her advisor. So, I've always said, “Think of me as your staff officer for credibility issues. I report to you and serve at your pleasure.”

Now, during the time I was in the service, the entire Speech Department and most of the professors in it, the Rhetoric and Public Address part, was, you might say, “relieved of duty” and replaced by professors who had studied under David K. Berlo at Michigan State University and were his acolytes. I was a convert on the first day after my first class. The Communication Studies Department was born.

Instead of memorizing Aristotle's Rhetoric (I'd done that already), I became involved in a disciplined study of this magic term “credibility.” Social science means statistics. Statistics means math and things like multiple regression analysis. It's rare for liberal arts students to gravitate to math. However, I could not get enough of it. Just the idea that I could be a part of a scientific analysis of what makes us all come across credibly, and that I could confidently expose potential clients to that, made it so exciting.

Why tell you that? It's to give you added confidence that the advice you get in this book has a foundation of pure no-nonsense research. Years of it. This is not YouTube and TikTok and LinkedIn purveyors of random beliefs about eye contact and hand gestures.

I remember another esteemed professor of mine, Mike Burgoon, taking a deep draw of a cigarette one evening and saying, “You are not in a trade school. This is an Arts and Sciences program. You have a responsibility to others to make claims based on science.” My enthusiasm for the study of communication began here.

Early Research and Testing on Credibility

David K. Berlo was the first name I heard as I started my master's and where my studies of communication began. He published a piece in The Public Opinion Quarterly (1969) entitled “Dimensions for Evaluating the Acceptability of Message Sources.” To paraphrase Berlo's words: It partly depends on who said it. We can call it ethos, charisma, or “source credibility.” But the more of “it” the communicator is perceived to have, the more likely it will be taken seriously. Typically, “credibility” depends on issues like social status. So it's not subject to change.

This was Aristotle on steroids. The words themselves were blowing apart the traditional beliefs about the impact of a person's behavior on his or her credibility and ability to be an effective contributor. But most importantly … it had been tested! And, by the way, “tested” means posing hypotheses, having subjects involved in a simulation, asking them to complete questionnaires about their experience, submitting those to computer tests, and waiting breathlessly for the results.

Berlo was on the faculty at Michigan State University and went on to become the President of Illinois State University. He was among the first to be described as an American communication theorist. That's what I wanted to be called!

Five Factors of Leadership

I was fortunate enough to begin my study and research in communication at exactly the year that two of Berlo's students came to join the faculty of the new Communication Studies Department at West Virginia. One was chosen to be the chair of the program, Jim McCroskey, and the other was a full professor, Mike Burgoon (the cigarette smoker).

I remember asking Dr. Burgoon one evening after reading B.F. Skinner's book About Behaviorism when I could think of myself as a behaviorist.

He said, “When you believe it.” I believed it.

According to Tim Levine and Hee Sun Park, McCroskey had a prolific research career (Levine and Park 2017). His research made many substantial contributions to the field of communication. In the most recent analysis of in-field journal articles, Jim was credited with 170 articles compared to the second-ranked prolific author. Jim's website lists 55 books and 240 research articles. Now, this is telling: What is less well known these days is that Jim's publications began with articles with titles such as “The Effect of College Speech Training on Academic Marks.”

McCroskey had his mind on the impact of communication on success even 60 years ago. I was just so lucky timing wise to be introduced to credibility and success at the very beginning of my journey into consulting. Levine and Park note that McCroskey was one of the editors of Human Communication Research (HCR). My first published study appeared in Volume 1, Number 1: “The Effect of Interaction Behavior on Source Credibility, Homophily, and Interpersonal Attraction” (McCroskey, Hamilton, and Weiner 1974).

And that brings us to this: Ultimately those studies revealed five qualities or factors that were at the heart of a person's ability to influence others. That phrase, “a person's ability to influence others” is a fine, if partial, definition of LEADERSHIP.

Those five factors are: Competence, Composure, Character, Sociability, and Extroversion. A sixth factor was subsequently found that McCroskey called Goodwill. In other words, all the feelings and attitudes and perceptions you have of the people you interact with most likely are related to these as well as their perceptions of you. And we have so much quantitative evidence for that.

A statistical test called Factor Analysis is generally used to take all the various adjectives people use to describe us and group them into categories. You may very well use different words, but all the words fall somewhere in these categories.

When you say, “Jack is so smart,” you are in the competence bucket, so to speak. If you think “Jack is in over his head,” it's in that bucket but unfortunately in the wrong direction.

The most common request I have received over the last few years to do coaching or seminars at the corporate level involved “executive presence.” That is the modern term for composure.