"Work on your presence."

If you’ve ever received this feedback, you know how vague and frustrating it can be. It often feels like an instruction to trade who you are for a cookie-cutter corporate persona, to be louder, more rigid, or simply less you.

For high-achieving professionals, especially those who already navigate complex identity expectations, this feedback can feel like an invitation to compromise. It pressures you to adopt an outdated leadership mould, reinforcing the idea that your authentic self is not "executive material."