The Word

On presence, performance, and the art of real connection

In my last sales job, we used to play a game.
Before we’d go out into the field — selling windows, roofing, and energy solutions — we’d warm up with a role-play exercise. One person would pretend to be the homeowner, and the other, the rep. The catch? The “homeowner” was given a secret word, and it was the rep’s job to get them to say it.

I always got the word. Fast.

So fast, in fact, that they started making me stand far away so I couldn’t overhear it.
But the truth is, I wasn’t guessing.
I was listening.
I was tuning in.
I was treating the role-play like real life: warm, curious, invested.

You can’t fake presence.
And I don’t think I ever have.

That game taught me a lot about the magic of staying with someone.
Of letting go of your agenda for just a few minutes.
Of warming up — not just the homeowner, but yourself.
Body. Mind. Soul.

It’s why I don’t walk into a room and talk at people.
I talk with them.
I meet new faces like familiar characters returning from a long journey.
I approach the unknown like it’s already part of the story.

That game was about selling. But for me, it became about seeing.
Seeing people clearly.
Letting them feel seen.
And, often, saying the word they didn’t even know they needed to say.

Whether I’m supporting children at lunch or pitching a vision to leadership, that instinct — to notice, to respond, to connect — is still my greatest asset. And it’s one I’ll never dilute, no matter the room.