Welcome back to the Look and Sound of Leadership, an ongoing series of

executive coaching tips designed to help you be perceived in the workplace

the way you want to be perceived. I'm

Tom Henschel, your executive coach, and today we're talking about playback as

feedback. Roland is a dapper Australian. In conversation his language is a seamless

stream of delightful metaphors and analogies. People love listening to

Roland, except when he presents. In front of groups, Roland is plagued

withums. Unable to change this annoying habit, he came to me. Even in a mock presentation

with just the two of us in a conference room, sure enough the

umms leapt out in full force, so we began to work to change his habit.

The first goal when trying to change any habit is not to do anything differently but to try to create an awareness of the habit itself.

When do I do it? When don't I do it? Is there a feeling connected to it, what do I know about it?

Try to get as conscious as you can about it.

I wanted Roland to gain awareness of his particular habit.

Knowing his organization's voicemail system, I gave him this piece of homework.

Listen to every internal voice message before you send it.

Roland's immediate response to this was, oh, I hate listening to myself on tape.

I have heard this lament from so many people for so many years

that I've come to believe it's a pretty universal feeling.

If you've felt that way, too, I'd really like to change your thinking, because

taped feedback is such a powerful tool for smashing old habits.

Think about your voice. You don't hear your voice. You experience it resonating in

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