Following her Oct. 19 General Session presentation at PRSA ICON 2026 in Orlando, Fla., branding expert and author Sally Hogshead spoke with PRsay about the signals people send before they speak, what makes someone persuasive and how professionals can distinguish themselves without trying too hard.
You’ve studied the signals people send before they even begin speaking. What do communicators often overlook about how others perceive them?
They don’t see the cause and effect of the signals they intentionally or unintentionally send, and how those signals are going to be received by their listener.
Imagine you’re walking into a room where you’re going to have a really important meeting. It might be a pitch, a job interview, a media interview or a difficult conversation with somebody in your family.
Anytime you need to communicate in a way that’s going to be heard, remembered and acted upon, it’s not just about what you’re saying. It’s very much about how you communicate and what will be most persuasive to the person on the other side of the table.
If I walked into an important meeting and focused only on the details, the bullet points and the follow-through, I could do it. But I wouldn’t be as effective or as likely to influence the decision unless I were communicating authentically in a way that inspired confidence — not only in myself, but more importantly, in the other person.
What makes someone immediately credible, and what can undermine that credibility?
We’ve done a great deal of in-depth research on the science of confidence. What we’ve found is that when you’re confident, you inspire confidence in the person who’s listening to you.
We’ve all had meetings where everything is going really well. The words are flowing, you’re articulating exactly what you mean, and the other person is hearing you, remembering what you’re saying, writing it down and nodding.
Conversely, we’ve all had meetings that go the other way. Suddenly, you say the wrong thing or the other person isn’t getting it. Your mouth dries up, and you freeze.
Whether they realize it or not, the other person senses that discomfort. Your chances of having a successful meeting can quickly go down the drain.
There are a few ways to make sure you inspire confidence.
First, be very clear about how other people perceive you.
Second, do your homework. I like to know something about the people I’m meeting. For example, I went to your website and looked at some of your work. That gives me context.
Third, think about the mutual outcome. What’s the best possible result for both people in the meeting? That applies whether you’re deciding where to go for lunch or negotiating a multimillion-dollar contract.
When hiring, what should leaders look for that might not appear on a résumé or in a performance review?
What you’re interviewing for is not a job description. You’re interviewing for problem-solving abilities.
Some people solve problems in a very analytical, linear way, which can be great in a finance department. But it might not be the best fit for someone working on social media campaigns who needs to develop a wide range of ideas in 24 hours.
A résumé shows someone’s skills, but it doesn’t reveal their innate advantages.
We worked with a wealth management company that had very high turnover, even though its hiring process seemed to be going well.
By using the Fascinate assessment before interviewing candidates, the company could better identify what a particular position required.
For example, one project manager might need to work well with chaos, stress and creative minds. Another might need to keep everything on budget, on time and on task.
Those are two very different types of people, even though their résumés might look the same.
The goal is to identify someone’s differentiating qualities and determine whether those qualities solve the problem your organization needs to address.
How can someone with a quieter, more understated personality stand out in a crowded professional environment?
People who have more subtle, understated personalities often feel uncomfortable tooting their own horn. And when they do, it’s uncomfortable for them as well as for other people.
The important thing to recognize is that we live in a noisy, crowded world.
The ability to listen, to remember and to communicate in a way that gives other people space is just as valuable — or even more valuable — than being high-profile, charismatic or funny.
Photo by Albert Chau
The post PRSA ICON Q&A: Sally Hogshead on Confidence, Credibility and Standing Out first appeared on PRsay.