This document discusses the concept of thought leadership and provides various perspectives on what it is and isn't. It suggests that thought leadership is not just about being an expert, producing content, or self-promotion. Rather, it's about provoking new ideas, inspiring others to think differently, and asking questions rather than just providing answers. While the digital age has increased opportunities for thought leadership, it has also created more noise. The document advocates for thought leaders to say less but say it well in order to be heard and to create invitations for discussion rather than just solving problems.

1. What’s the big idea?
Ten-and-a-half thoughts about
thought leadership.

2. It seems like everyone
wants to be a ‘thought leader’
these days.

3. But what, really, does that mean?

4. How do you go about being one?

5. And should you even be one anyway?

6. There are no definite answers.
But we do have a few thoughts.

7. The old definition ofthought leadership assomething quasi-academic
doesn’t hold upanymore.

8. Technology is changing everything.

9. Information
is
everywhere.

10. First, let’s think very
carefully about what
thought leadership isn’t.
Hint:
□ It’s not PR.
□ It’s not marketing.
□ It’s not just ‘content’.
□ And it’s not just being a ‘subject matter expert’, either.

11. There’s a big volume problem that
risks devaluing thought leadership…

12. Wouldn’t you get bored of
drinking champagne if you drank
it every single day?
The people who work in the
chocolate factory lose their taste
for chocolate.

13. to the noise
Social media
has only added

14. Shhh!
You’ll be heard
better if you say less.
But say it well.

15. *
Too long; didn’t read
If you have a leading thought but nobody
reads it, does it really exist?
TL;DR*

16. Did Michelangelo call himself
a thought leader? Did Plato
or Einstein
or Gandhi?
God forbid that you should
ever say it of yourself.

17. you’re a
thought leader.
Let others say…

18. And anyway, does everyone
need to be a thought leader?
Be honest with yourself – do you?
Does your organisation?

19. Maybe it would be better
to follow well than lead badly?

20. One of the defining
moments in human history
was the harnessing of fire.
Because being able to cook
food and whatnot meant that
for the first time ever we had
time to think about things.

21. Good thought
leadership should be
an invitation to sit
around the campfire.

22. Solving problems should
not be thought leadership’s job.
Leave that to others.
The job is to provoke,
inspire,
change how
people see
the world,
open up new
possibilities.

23. You know that Henry Ford quote,
If I’d have asked people what
they wanted, they would have said
faster horses’?
Well, great thought leaders are
letting people know:
Whatever’s coming next,
it’s not gonna be about horses.’
‘
‘

24. There’s no shortage of people
offering you answers.
What the world needs is more
people asking the right questions.

25. E M Forster said
how will I know what I think until
I see what I say?’
That’s partly why writing and
thought leadership are so connected.
It’s often when you start working
your thoughts out on paper that the
magic happens.
‘

26. This little collection of thoughts was inspired
by a debate about thought leadership that we held
at The Free Word centre while the storms raged
in January 2014.
Many thanks to our two speakers that evening:
Cristina Ampil, managing director of PwC US’s
Thought Leadership Institute; and Nick Portet,
creative director at a thoughtful private bank – and
to everyone else who came along and pitched in.

27. Want a hand shaping your thoughts?
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