Speak Up: Develop Your Executive Presence & Leadership Communication Style

Click here if you’re a senior leader who’s ready to recalibrate how you’re perceived at the executive level — in the next 90–120 days. The Executive Presence Mastery System may be your logical next step.

Click here to pinpoint the specific area in your executive presence that’s keeping you invisible to senior leadership and guarantees you stay working hard as a pack mule who never gets promoted. Download the Executive Presence Scorecard assessment.

What if people aren’t investing in your idea… but in you? Discover how to prepare for that in today’s episode.

Whether you're pitching a project, leading a team, or trying to gain buy-in at work, most professionals focus too much on the idea itself—and not enough on the psychology behind decision-making. This episode breaks down what truly drives investors, leaders, and stakeholders to say “yes.”

By the end of today’s episode you’ll know from legendary Broadway investor Ken Davenport:

🔥Why passion is the most powerful (and overlooked) driver in persuasion and leadership
🧮How top investors evaluate opportunities—and why people matter more than ideas
🏆Practical ways to influence others by aligning with what they actually care about

Hit play now to learn how to turn your passion into influence and finally get people to believe in—and back—what you’re building.

Remember the 6-Day Executive Presence Reset starts May 4, 2026.

To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.

About our guest:
Ken Davenport, is a Tony Award-winning Broadway producer and entrepreneur who has raised over $100 million for the arts and built one of the fastest-growing theatrical companies in the U.S. (Inc. 5000).
His credits include A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical (Broadway, North American Tour, Australia), Harmony: A New Musical written by Barry Manilow and Bruce Sussman, Once On This Island (Tony Award), Gettin’ the Band Back Together, The Play that Goes Wrong, Groundhog Day (Tony nomination), Deaf West Theatre’s Spring Awakening (Tony nomination), It’s Only a Play, Macbeth starring Alan Cumming, Godspell, Kinky Boots (Broadway – Tony Award, National Tour, Toronto, Australia, and West End), The Visit (Tony nomination), Mothers and Sons (Tony nomination), The Bridges of Madison County (National Tour), Allegiance, Chinglish, Oleanna starring Bill Pullman and Julia Stiles, Speed-the-Plow, Will Ferrell’s You’re Welcome America (Tony nomination), Blithe Spirit starring Angela Lansbury (Broadway, West End and National Tour), and 13.
Off-Broadway, Ken has produced JOY: A New True Musical (Book Writer), Daddy Long Legs, Altar Boyz (Co-Conceiver), My First Time (Author), The Awesome 80’s Prom (Creator), That Bachelorette Show! (Creator), and Miss Abigail’s Guide to Dating, Mating & Marriage (Author). Ken’s productions have been produced internationally in over 25 countries around the world.

In Speak Up communication and executive presence coaching, high performing leaders and executives learn to enhance their influence and confidence, refining their communication style to increase visibility and effectiveness in promotion opportunities.

By honing communication skills and fostering a trusted advisor mindset, aspiring executives cultivate mastery in public speaking and beat imposter syndrome. Your leadership becomes more strategic and inspiring.

Click here if you’re a senior leader who’s ready to recalibrate how you’re perceived at the executive level — in the next 90–120 days. The Executive Presence Mastery System may be your logical next step.

Click here to pinpoint the specific area in your executive presence that’s keeping you invisible to senior leadership and guarantees you stay working hard as a pack mule who never gets promoted. Access the Executive Presence Scorecard assessment.

Why do even experienced senior leaders hesitate or lose clarity in the exact moments that matter most?

If you’re already operating at a high level but find yourself holding back, overthinking, or not landing your message cleanly in executive conversations, this episode breaks down the hidden performance gap that’s quietly impacting how you’re perceived.

By the end of this episode you’ll know:

🧩Why hesitation under pressure isn’t about confidence—but cognitive access and structure
🔎What’s actually happening in high-stakes moments that causes you to lose precision
🔑How to communicate faster, clearer, and with more authority in real time

Press play to learn how to eliminate hesitation and start showing up with the clarity and precision your leadership level demands.

So if you’re listening to this and recognizing… That you’re already operating at a high level but you’re not executing with the precision you expect from yourself…
That’s exactly the work we do inside the Executive Presence Mastery System.

Inside EPMS, we focus on:
real-time communication under pressure
decision-level messaging
and eliminating hesitation at the exact moments that define your leadership

So if that’s where you are— Go to the top of these show notes, click the link, and book a discovery call. Or visit www.speakupwithlaura.com/speakup.

Remember the Executive Presence Reset begins May 4 where you’ll get 6 exercises in 6 days to reset how you’re perceived at executive levels. Have a glorious day. No need to do anything, just be excited!

To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.

In Speak Up communication and executive presence coaching, high performing leaders and executives learn to enhance their influence and confidence, refining their communication style to increase visibility and effectiveness in promotion opportunities.

By honing communication skills and fostering a trusted advisor mindset, aspiring executives cultivate mastery in public speaking and beat imposter syndrome. Your leadership becomes more strategic and inspiring.

Click here if you’re a senior leader who’s ready to recalibrate how you’re perceived at the executive level — in the next 90–120 days. The Executive Presence Mastery System may be your logical next step.

Click here to pinpoint the specific area in your executive presence that’s keeping you invisible to senior leadership and guarantees you stay working hard as a pack mule who never gets promoted. Download the Executive Presence Scorecard assessment.

What would you do if your career weirdly disappeared overnight—and you had to start from scratch?

If you’ve ever felt unsure about your next step, struggled to communicate your value, or wondered why your voice isn’t landing the way it should—this episode dives into the real, messy journey behind building confidence, clarity, and a career that actually works.

By the end of this short episode you’ll know:
🪝How to turn uncertainty and setbacks into long-term career momentum
🚀3 simple communication shifts that build trust and influence
🔑How to speak with clarity so people actually listen and take action

Press play to learn how to turn your voice into your most powerful career advantage.

May 4 releasing a new short podcast series next week called The Executive Presence Reset.

Each episode is just a few minutes long and focuses on one specific communication habit that can influence how leadership perceives you.

If you’ve been thinking about how to show up more confidently in meetings or position yourself for your next role, I think you’ll find this series helpful. (Runs May 4-9 - no sign up necessary.)

To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.

In Speak Up communication and executive presence coaching, high performing leaders and executives learn to enhance their influence and confidence, refining their communication style to increase visibility and effectiveness in promotion opportunities.

By honing communication skills and fostering a trusted advisor mindset, aspiring executives cultivate mastery in public speaking and beat imposter syndrome. Your leadership becomes more strategic and inspiring.

Click here if you’re a senior leader who’s ready to recalibrate how you’re perceived at the executive level — in the next 90–120 days. The Executive Presence Mastery System may be your logical next step.

Click here to pinpoint the specific area in your executive presence that’s keeping you invisible to senior leadership and guarantees you stay working hard as a pack mule who never gets promoted. Download the Executive Presence Scorecard assessment.

Are you unknowingly sabotaging your influence by focusing too much on yourself—or worse, relying on logic alone?

If you’ve ever struggled to get buy-in, felt ignored in meetings, or watched your great ideas go nowhere, this episode reveals why. Most professionals think persuasion is about being impressive or logical—but neuroscience says otherwise. This conversation breaks down the real drivers of influence and how to apply them immediately.

By the end of this episode with Joshua Bandoch you’ll know:
🧠How to instantly become more persuasive by shifting focus to what others actually care about
🤫Why emotions—not logic—drive decisions and how to use that to your advantage
🔎 Simple, practical techniques like storytelling, strategic silence, and barrier removal to win people over

Hit play now to learn how to turn every conversation into an opportunity to gain trust, alignment, and real results.

Reminder that May 4 we start the 6-day Executive Presence Reset: 6 super short episodes revealing small shifts that can change how the top levels of leadership perceive you.

If you look at this episode and think, “I know I should speak up more—but when I do, I either say too much or not enough,” and it leaves you second-guessing yourself afterward… you’re not alone.
That’s why we built the Executive Presence Scorecard—to give you clarity on exactly where you’re losing impact.

If that sounds like what you need, go to the 2nd paragraph of these show notes, click the link, and take the scorecard. It’s the fastest way to understand what’s really holding you back.

About our guest:
Joshua Bandoch is a public policy, think-tank leader, TEDx speaker, and the author of How to Get What You Want: Mastering the Art and Science of Persuasion. He breaks down persuasion into practical, repeatable skills anyone can use—on the job, in negotiations, and in everyday conversations.

Joshua has spent the last decade mining psychology, neuroscience, economics, public policy, and history for cutting-edge persuasion techniques that work. He’s put them to use in hundreds of speeches written for senior government officials, in his daily work leading teams, and navigating high-stakes communication inside a public policy think tank.

To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.

In Speak Up communication and executive presence coaching, high performing leaders and executives learn to enhance their influence and confidence, refining their communication style to increase visibility and effectiveness in promotion opportunities.

By honing communication skills and fostering a trusted advisor mindset, aspiring executives cultivate mastery in public speaking and beat imposter syndrome. Your leadership becomes more strategic and inspiring.

Click here if you’re a senior leader who’s ready to recalibrate how you’re perceived at the executive level — in the next 90–120 days. The Executive Presence Mastery System may be your logical next step.

Click here to pinpoint the specific area in your executive presence that’s keeping you invisible to senior leadership and guarantees you stay working hard as a pack mule who never gets promoted. Download the Executive Presence Scorecard assessment.

What’s the real cost of staying quiet—or over-explaining in high-stakes conversations?

If you’ve ever found yourself holding back in meetings or over-explaining your ideas just to be understood, you’re not alone. Many experienced leaders struggle with trusting their own authority in high-stakes moments—and it quietly impacts how others perceive their clarity, confidence, and readiness for the next level.

By the end of this episode you’ll know:
🔎The hidden patterns that cause you to either over-talk or stay silent
🔑 Why waiting for perfect clarity is actually hurting your influence
🚀 How to speak with confidence and authority in real time without over-explaining

Press play to learn how to trust your voice, show up with clarity, and lead conversations at the level you’re already operating at.

If you’re ready to move from: “I need to get this exactly right…”
To:
“I’m going to make this clear enough to move the conversation forward.”

This is totally fixable — but not by just “trying to be more concise.” It’s trusting yourself to filter and layer the information to best help your audience.

Inside the Executive Presence Mastery System (EPMS), we work on:
speaking up in the moments that matter
structuring your thoughts in real time
and eliminating both over-explaining and hesitation

So you actually show up at the level you’re already operating at.

Go to the top of these show notes, click the link, and book a discovery call. Or visit www.speakupwithlaura.com/speakup.

Good news! The Executive Presence Reset is coming May 4 revealing six small shifts that can change how the top levels of leadership perceive you.

To learn more visit www.speakupwithlaura.com. New Speak Up podcast episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday early in the morning.

In Speak Up communication and executive presence coaching, high performing leaders and executives learn to enhance their influence and confidence, refining their communication style to increase visibility and effectiveness in promotion opportunities.

By honing communication skills and fostering a trusted advisor mindset, aspiring executives cultivate mastery in public speaking and beat imposter syndrome. Your leadership becomes more strategic and inspiring.