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Sleep Is Your Superpower

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Why getting 10 more minutes could be your smartest leadership move. Feeling a little foggy right now? You’re not alone.

Over 50% of American adults are chronically sleep-deprived. One in five has serious sleep issues. Between 2:00 and 4:00 p.m., the average corporate executive is sleep impaired.

Can you relate?

Dr. James Maas of Cornell University found that most Americans effectively pull an all-nighter every week. Think about that: the average professional walks into work every Monday in a state of sleep debt. That’s a leadership liability.

Still, many high achievers wear sleep deprivation like a badge of honor. “I don’t need much sleep,” they say with pride. But here’s the truth: chronic fatigue isn’t a strength—it’s a silent performance killer.

What really happens when you’re underslept?

You lose focus. You become more reactive and less strategic. You may even drift into “microsleeps”—a few seconds of unconsciousness you won’t remember until your head jerks back up in front of your laptop (or worse, on the drive home).

As former President Ronald Reagan joked: “No matter what time it is, wake me—even if it’s in the middle of a Cabinet meeting.”
Funny? Maybe. Helpful for leadership presence? Not so much.

If you want to sharpen your edge, inspire your team, and make better decisions under pressure, start by putting on your own oxygen mask.

Tonight, give yourself an extra 10 minutes of rest. Just 10. It’s a simple act of self-leadership—with compound interest.
Great leaders know that a rested mind is powerful.

You Can Learn Charisma

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Charisma isn’t a mysterious trait you either have or you don’t. It’s not reserved for extroverts, natural performers, or people who love the spotlight.

In fact, studies show that 60% of CEOs are introverts. Many of them aren’t naturally drawn to the public-facing parts of leadership, but they’ve learned how to command the room when it matters.

Because charisma, when understood correctly, is not about dazzling people. It’s about how others experience you. And the good news? That can be shaped with intention.

At Change Masters, we define gracious charisma as the ability to inspire others through the power of your presence, even in the most high-stakes moments. The most effective leaders we’ve coached—whether naturally outgoing or reserved—develop this presence through specific, learnable behaviors.

MIT research breaks charisma into four observable components:
✔️ Perceived warmth
✔️ Perceived strength
✔️ Level of engagement
✔️ Fluidity of thought and speech

Each of these can be improved with awareness and practice.

Charisma comes in many forms. Some leaders radiate warmth and energy. Others project calm confidence with a hint of dry wit. Your version should reflect your personality—and be intentional enough to match the moment.

While charisma alone won’t give you executive presence, it’s a key component. It enhances your ability to connect, influence, and lead with impact. And it’s absolutely within reach.

We’ve seen clients transform their leadership presence by learning to show up more fully and authentically. This doesn’t require changing who you are; it means learning how to make who you are resonate more powerfully in the room.

You don’t need to be “born with it.”
You just need to be coached into it.

Too Much Charisma

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“Just a little more charisma can make a very positive difference in your effectiveness.” That is something we say in our book, Seeing Yourself as Others do. We have observed this phenomenon many times.  It is helpful to have a scientific study support our pragmatic observations.

A recent study in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology documented that …

… you can have too much charisma.

Much of the study was about validating the Hogan Development Survey on charisma. The study looked at four Hogan Assessment scales that are associated with the perception of charismatic leaders: Bold, Mischievous, Colorful and Imaginative.  The report is written for other researchers with long and complicated explanations. (I am Hogan certified which helped.)

Let me give you a simplification of the study. The Hogan Assessment percentile scales from 1 to 100 can be looked at as low, medium or high on each of the scales. The study found that leaders who scored low or high on the charisma scales were less effective.

Leaders who were medium on the scales were seen as:

  • Bold scale: Conviction and confidence.
  • Colorful scale: Optimistic, expressive and captivating.
  • Mischievous scale: Push the limits and explore the unknown.
  • Imaginative scale: Visionary.

There is a high correlation with those showing a medium rating on the Charisma scale for leadership and organizational effectiveness. These leaders are most effective when there is a strain on the organization. They are able to communicate a direction and motivate others to follow their direction.  They are often more directive and less collaborative as leaders.

Charismatic leaders, who are also more collaborative, create more engagement when there is opportunity more than difficulty. They are able to maintain the leadership position for longer periods of time with more engaged followers.

Too much of a good thing

When looking at the same scales for leaders with higher scores on the charisma scales, they were not as effective and often destructive. Leaders with high scores were seen as:

  • Bold scale: Overconfident, narcissistic with high hubris.
  • Colorful scale: Manipulative and attention seeking.
  • Mischievous scale: Excessive risk taking.
  • Imaginative scale: Eccentric.

We have all seen leaders who fit this profile of high charisma taken to a counterproductive extreme. The larger-than-life personality hired to “save” a company, who does more damage than good, fits this profile. That is an example of being too high on the charisma scale.

Not too little and not too much

If we are low on the charisma scale, it is helpful to increase charisma somewhat. Communicate with more conviction, optimism and expression than might come naturally. It contributes to your effectiveness. It is helpful to realize that a medium amount of charisma is the most effective.

 

Successful Women in STEM

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There is considerable discussion and research about how to to attract more women into STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields. Harvard Business Review article by Laura Sherbin looked instead at the attributes of women who are successful leaders in the STEM professions.

The six characteristics for success strongly align with the C.L.E.A.R.L.I. attributes of authentic executive presence from our book, “Seeing Yourself as Others Do – Authentic Executive Presence at Any Stage of Your Career” (SYAOD).

In the mid-1980’s I led a very high-performing computer Systems and Programing team that accomplished what many in the industry thought was not possible.  The relevance to this topic is that half of my team was female. Three of  my six directors, and 50% of the programmer analysts, were women. My experience is directly aligned with what Sherbin has identified in her article on successful STEM leaders who are women. Her article is based on a nationally representative survey of 3,212 women with STEM credentials.

The success attributes are:

1. Telegraph confidence. The subtle and not so subtle message that men are better at STEM fields has intimidated and discouraged many women. The successful leaders were seen as less likely to be buying into that myth. They demonstrated what we refer to in our SYAOD book as “Command of the Room with Charisma“.

2. Claim credit for your ideas. Successful leaders are more likely to speak up compared to the 82% of women in STEM who feel their contributions are ignored.  Regardless of the environment or gender, it is important to be wise about when and how you express your ideas. We have a video, “What to do when someone steals your idea” in our 23 Mundane Moments series that addresses this topic.  It is important to show enthusiasm when delivering a clear and concise message. Otherwise, it can get lost today and picked up next week by someone else.

3. Invest in peer networks. Sherbin points out the importance of building relationships that increase trust and influence. There is some risk in advocating for others in the organization. There is also benefit in taking those risks. Those who built networks often experienced support from others when they really needed it.

4. Build up protégés. Investing time in helping others may seem altruistic and it probably is.  There are, however, direct benefits. Those who did this were seen a builders of new leaders in the organization and seen in a very positive light.

5. Be authentic.  It is much less stressful at work when people feel they can be themselves.  The more successful women STEM leaders were more likely to say they felt they could be themselves at work.  We find “authentic” is important and often misunderstood. In fact, when selecting the title of our book, we added “authentic” to the “executive presence”. Being seen as authentic and feeling authentic are not the same. Both are important.

6. Hone your brand.  The study found the successful female leaders went beyond their job title and description. They were active internally and externally. They supported affinity groups, attended conferences, did networking and helped people know them.

One thing I liked about the results of the study is that success is mostly a choice. I have seen this be true among our many clients who fit the female STEM leader profile, and my experience running a systems and programming group.  We have also had very positive feedback about how our book has helped people in technical roles be significantly more effective.