Shade Zahrai

And then I don't really sound like I have a lot of competence in myself.

Where, oh, I can hear Delilah, how sweet.

Oh, let her in.

Whereas if you slow it down a little, hi, I'm Sade Zerai, really excited to be here.

Tell me about what you do.

You maintain a steady pace.

You maintain those pauses.

Importantly, you maintain engagement when you're speaking.

These little things are subtle cues that again can elevate how you're perceived.

Now, one other thing which is not talked about often enough, how fast you walk.

If you want a simple micro boost to increase how you're perceived, studies looking at biological motion have found that if you walk with purpose, meaning a little bit faster than a kind of a waddle with a little bit more pep in your step.

Intention.

Intention, yes, good word, intention, you're perceived as having higher status than if you just shuffle your feet and move really slowly.

And I think that's so important for us to be aware of because it's simple.

It's really simple.

Know where you're going.

And then this is also important for women to be aware of because when we dress up, when we are at work, when we're in professional environments, we sometimes wear things that are a little restrictive that prevent us from walking quicker.

And also we wear shoes.

Sometimes they're very high heels that prevent us from walking quicker.

So we just need to be aware that these could be giving certain perceptions and preventing us from doing certain or engaging in certain behaviors that would actually help the perceptions of how we're seen by others.