The Skill Most Professionals Already Have and Almost Never Use

In my years working with professional singers and teaching young artists, one thing has always
held true. What makes a performer truly memorable isn't technical mastery, it's the commitment to embodied communication, and the shift it creates from focusing on yourself to communicating
with your audience. Technique alone is transactional. Embodied communication makes it relational. And those are the people we are more likely to invest in, hire, and trust.

That principle doesn't belong only to the stage. It belongs in the investor pitch, the board meeting, the job interview, and the team you're trying to rally behind a vision. And right now, it matters more than it ever has.

The World Economic Forums Future of Jobs Report 2025 identifies sales and business development among the fastest growing roles globally through 2030. As AI absorbs more routine and technical work, the skills that remain distinctly human, building trust, reading a room, communicating with conviction, are becoming the new competitive edge. For founders who have built something technically impressive, and for engineers and technical experts who have built careers on craft and expertise, the relational skills that have been lying dormant need to be strengthened now. The good news is that you already have these skills. Like muscles rarely used, they simply need to be activated.

Years ago, an executive coach told me my new coaching focus was about 90% sales and 10% coaching. I’ve never been a shrinking violet, but that was going to be a challenge. I'm a very private, 1:1 kind of person. But as a trained classical singer and stage performer, I knew that when prepared, I could show up as needed, focus on the audience, and let go of  perfectionism.
You can too.

Body: Your First Communication Tool

Great performers convey story through their whole body, not just their words. The same is true for a founder in front of investors, a technical lead presenting to a board, or anyone making a case that matters. Breathing and speaking with your whole body manages nerves, keeps you present, and signals confidence before you've said a word. Getting out of your head and into your body is something quiet thinkers and technical experts need to remind themselves of more often. People feel the difference immediately, and so does the room.

Voice: What Your Listener Feels Before You Finish the Sentence

Your voice communicates far more than words alone. Your intention shapes your tone, and others feel that and respond to it. A founder whose belief in their idea is genuinely audible closes more rooms than one who is merely articulate. A technical expert who speaks with conviction rather than qualification reads as a leader, not just a subject matter expert. Adapting your tone to what your listener needs, rather than what you want to say, is what creates real connection and moves people to act.

Mindset: Managing the Voices That Hold You Back

The critical inner voices that undermine us tend to be loudest at the moments we most need to shine. Anticipate them and have a counter strategy ready. When presenting, focus on what your audience needs to understand and teach what you know with conviction. For networking, be genuinely curious and manage your expectations. If you make one good connection, consider it a win. What matters most is showing others that you like yourself and that you like them, imperfect as we all are.

What we learn in theatre is that human beings are made up of a vast range of selves, colors, and emotions. We have the capacity to express so much more than we allow ourselves to. And it's a gift, to ourselves and to our listeners, when we do.

Did You Know?

1. The World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs Report 2025 lists sales and business development roles among the fastest growing globally through 2030, as technology takes over routine tasks and human connection becomes the differentiator.
2. Introverted leaders often outperform extroverts when managing proactive teams, because they listen more and are less likely to feel threatened by initiative. (Adam Grant, Wharton School)
3. Research from Harvard Business Review found that professionals who demonstrate warmth before competence are more likely to be trusted and followed, even in highly technical fields.
4. A 2024 analysis found that sales training hours across leading organizations increased by 178% in a single year, as companies recognized that relationship skills, not product knowledge alone, drive growth. Technical experts who can also sell their ideas are among the most valuable people in any organization.

In the news:

• March 23rd I presented my lunch-n-learn “Own Your Space and Take your Place: Performance Boosters and Myth-busters to Supercharge your Career” to the ESCP Alumni Association in Paris.
• April 8th I’m facilitating Confident Public Speaking for French Founders and Entrepreneurs to the French American Chamber of Commerce of New England in Boston.
• The next Positive Intelligence Resilience Builder program begins April 17th . Claim your spot to develop the mental fitness tools to be more agile, improve productivity and wellbeing without sacrificing either one, and lead with your best self.