Zuckerberg is awkward. But he shows up.

You don't have to like Mark Zuckerberg to learn from him. Watch him speak and you'll see someone who's, very clearly, not at ease. 

He hesitates. He stiffens up. He makes jokes that don't land. But, to his credit, he still shows up.

His new video on Meta's superintelligence vision is a good example. There's a lot I could focus on. It's short. It's shot in an intimate, personal style. He leads with the big-picture mission.

But what stuck with me was this: midway through, he stumbles over his words. The delivery is bumpy. You can tell it doesn't come naturally.

So, if you're a CEO or senior exec, that might make you pause. If this isn't his strength, why do it? Is the awkwardness worth it?

Zuck seems to have figured out that leading from the front isn't optional. And if you avoid visibility, you're wasting one of the biggest marketing and PR levers in your business.

And also – people want to hear from the CEO. A statement from legal or a brand video won't land the same way. We should stop pretending otherwise. It's just much more interesting when a CEO speaks. People click. They watch. They listen. They pay attention. The message lands.

Zuck has learnt that over time. A decade ago, he barely spoke. I remember when he gave evidence to a Senate Committee – it was a huge moment precisely because we rarely heard from him.

Now? He's present. Visible. Talking. Sometimes awkward, often stiff – but there. And that matters.

That's visible leadership. It's not about being slick. It's about being present when it counts. 

So, if you run a company, the lesson isn’t "be like Zuckerberg." It's simpler than that: show up, speak plainly, and don't worry about the delivery too much.

People forgive awkward. They don't forgive absence.