Thought Leaders: We're Getting Credibility All Wrong

This one is primarily for my executive thought leader clients – and secondarily for anyone who wants others to listen to their advice.

(By the way, if people think you have good advice, they’re more likely to share your content and organically spread your reach. Like I did with this amazing post from Morgan Housel today. And here’s a poorly formatted article I wrote for SWAAY about why thought leadership matters.)

So. Being a thought leader means you need to be credible. But how do you communicate it?

We so often relegate credibility to a line like, “I’ve spent two decades working as a leader in x industry, and I’ve discovered….” 

Though that kind of statement is useful to your audience, it is not enough. You’re an executive. We already know you’re successful. We’re just not sure if you’re relatable yet. For other successful people, your track record and accomplishments might be enough for them to envision themself doing the same. 

But it won’t be for the common person who is still wrestling with whether or not they can be successful. Your success is not enough to convince the common person to take your advice.

“In business and investing, you want to learn the big lessons about why things behave the way they do without assuming the past is a direct guide to the future, because it’s not – most of the details are not repeatable. History is the study of change, ironically used as a map of the future.” — Morgan Housel

Why? Because you have to meet your audience where they are, not where you think they should be. As a reader or listener, if I don’t think you “see” me, if I don’t think you truly understand my obstacles or my felt needs, I’m probably not going to act on your advice. I might want to. I might intend to. I might even make a plan to. 

But if you’ve given me a shadow of a doubt that what was possible for you isn’t possible for me, I’m out. The common person isn’t generally walking around with big buckets of hope. And it’s not because they’re not trying. As a thought leader, you’re not just delivering advice – you’re delivering self-efficacy, confidence, and yes – hope.

Thought leadership is best achieved covering all three of the following:

1. Telling people something they don’t already know.
2. Giving them courage to do something they already want to do.
3. Giving them tools to do something they already want to do.

It’s not just a repository for sage advice.

You want to be credible? Be relatable.

If you have no idea where to begin with this practice and would like some coaching support, you know where to find me to chat.