Sovereign Presence:
Your Leadership Superpower
This article was written for Modern Woman Bali Magazine
One morning, I sat in a dark corner of an outdoor restaurant, slowly eating my breakfast. Looking up from my plate of eggs, I see a vibrant, muscled man rise out of his chair, walk to my table and say: “I just want to tell you: You’re a Boss!” Mind you, I have no idea what ‘A Boss’ is, however this gentle -man gifted me with the awareness of how my Presence speaks.
Presence is the expression of your Life Force energy streaming from the cells of your body, eyes and breath. It arises from the joyful core of your Being, radiating in all directions, creating a sphere of energy around you. ‘A Boss’ is fully embodied as her Presence in the here and now. No agenda, personal identity, past or future. Only an open, honest and alert Awareness. In a world obsessed with performance, hyper-curation, and self-obsessed visibility, it does not need your perfection. It craves your unique Presence.
Presence is an invisible power that is truly felt. When you walk into a networking event Presence introduces you saying: ‘I’m not only skilled, I’m authentically Sourced!
It is a grounded resonance-you don’t do Presence. It is not lit by ambition. You ignite it when you slow down, feel your body, breathe, and slide into the Silence within you.
In this infinite space you remember who you truly are.
In leading with Presence, you act from the dynamic ease of this stillness in real time. After a seminar presentation the woman next to me said: “Monica embodied a warm, open Presence. I felt that I could relax and feel what was mine to take away.” The openness of Presence brings forth a fearless protection. This innate quality allows you to respond with confident spontaneity to the ever- changing conditions of your business. Presence is a time-bending superpower. It says: “I am fully here! I am ready!”
Presence regulates a team faster than strategy, and calms a conflict before too many words of blame and shame are hurled. It magnetizes results with less effort, more impact and honest influence. Your emotions flow with nervous system coherence and your words are expressed with embodied clarity, landing with deep resonance. Leading with Presence nurtures joy, trust and confidence in yourself. Presence is the foundation to sell without selling. It supports you to scale without burning out. And to say ‘No’ without guilt.
You diminish Presence when your mind overrides your body’s signals. Or you race to meet another’s (or your mind’s) urgent demands. Or you react to ‘What is’ instead of pausing to accept “What is” (no matter what it is). In these moments, your Presence is untethered, flying free like a balloon. Presence is empty, radiant space. It needs grounding. We all have these habits that disconnect us from our deeper knowing, veiling our Presence superpower.
Bamboo is used as scaffolding to build high rise buildings. It is hollow, resilient and strong. We are all ‘hollow’ as Presence is the empty space that holds our body in place. In cultivating your unique Presence as a Leadership Superpower, you build a solid, inner architecture that can persevere through the storms and emerge victorious. The pause you take before a reaction? It is your Presence standing ready with a wise response.
