Quiet leaders speak less and act first. People follow feet more than voices.

Words are cheap in a group and everybody knows it, which is why whoever starts moving tends to end up leading. Picking up the first box, making the first call, doing the boring setup: people follow that faster than they follow instructions, because it shows the plan is real. Volume and authority are not the same thing.

In the next group project, be first at something concrete and unglamorous. Do not announce that you are doing it. Watch how quickly the conversation rearranges itself around whoever is already working.