#70 Leadership Presence: Why the Best Leaders Listen First

In this episode, I explore one of the most underrated leadership skills: listening first.Using Dwight Eisenhower as a reference point, I break down how he deliberately structured meetings to let others speak before he did—and why that simple behaviour created a major strategic advantage.I also share how I’ve been applying this approach in my own leadership practice, and the impact it’s had on the quality of conversations and decisions.We unpack four key benefits of leading this way:It reduces authority bias, so people are less likely to just agree with the leaderIt surfaces more honest, accurate insight into what people actually think and feelIt creates space for better ideas to emerge, helping identify real talentIt increases the impact of your own voice when you do choose to speakThis isn’t about staying quiet for the sake of it—it’s about being intentional with when and how you speak so that your leadership carries more weight when it matters.