What can you do to set yourself apart from the competition? How do you position yourself as a leader in your niche?
Thought leadership has been the buzzword in business and marketing in just the last few years. However, thought leaders have always existed. You know them as the individuals or organizations that are viewed as the foremost authority in their industry.
But what did they do to command this level of distinction, authority, and influence? And how can you also be at this level? Here are 4 approaches that will help you be recognized as a thought leader:
Infuse Thought Leadership in Everything
Beyond your marketing strategy, make thought leadership a way of life. Thought leadership is much more than just the content that you produce, but it’s the way you operate. From product development to learning, you and your team approach every aspect of your company with ideas that are based on experience, insight, and collaboration.
Thought leadership is doing what you say; it’s following the advice that you give and proving your authenticity.
Share to Be Known for What You Know
To gain an edge over the competition, you don’t have to keep secrets or withhold best practices so that only you can benefit from them. Thought leaders are confident enough to share their insight abundantly, knowing that collaboration is the key to elevating perspective.
By sharing what you know, you are building your credibility and positioning yourself as an authority. The more people you impact by sharing your insights and experience, the more valuable you become in the eyes of your people, your customers, your industry, and even your competitors.
Value Over Volume
Thought leaders are known to be the ones who deliver compelling content that is relevant and thought-provoking. By positioning your point of view strategically and focusing on substance, you have the opportunity to attract and engage the right audience. To be heard above all the noise is your goal and bombarding people with mass volumes of content rather than delivering value leaves people with the impression that you are only after quantity and not quality.
Elevate Your Perspective
To be compelling and innovative, as all thought leaders are, you need to push new ideas and approach things that will get people rethinking about traditional strategies and considering different angles. Thought leaders don’t follow the herd; they lead the pack.
You need to open up your mind to broader ways of operating. You should be ready to share your new points of view and welcome the debate that typically follows when one pushes the envelope. Be confident about the way you intend to approach the future, challenge those with closed mindsets, and inviting to like-minded people who have insight they feel could broaden your perspective.
At Inscape Consulting, we empower leaders towards thought leadership through executive coaching and leadership support services. We aim to provide leadership insight through programs and diagnostics with sound strategic planning. If you want to challenge your way of thinking, let’s connect: https://meetme.so/GregNichvalodoff
