How Do I Know My Thought Leadership Skills Are Improving?

Three telltale signs to know you’re on track

You’re aspiring to develop your thought leadership skills. How do you know you’re heading in the right direction?

You may have a few obvious markers to your credit: an author credit or two in an industry publication or journal of ideas; or instances of taking part in a panel at a conference, or even giving a keynote speech. But these successes may not come often, and one doesn’t guarantee the next.

We’ve noticed three behavioral shifts that reveal a step-change in an individual’s thought leadership capabilities. If you’re seeing these behaviors in yourself, you should feel confident that you’re on the right track.

Refusing to Settle

Creating distinctive ideas and insights and then persuasively articulating them is hard. And it’s meant to be—otherwise anyone could do it. But the fact is, few people regularly shape opinions or inspire difficult action through their research, writing, and speaking.

What’s needed is the will and effort to push for excellence—in the knowledge that if you don’t do it, no one else will. In our workshops, we always talk about the importance of “giving a shit.” We insist on this. As we elaborate: If you don’t care about your work, what in the world makes you think that others will? We’ve seen professionals reinvent their career trajectory after absorbing this simple truth.

You know you’re making progress when: You won’t settle for the quick solution. You’re uneasy when it’s too easy. Something doesn’t feel right. If it does feel right, it’s time to get a reality check from your trusted advisers to stress-test your thinking. And by the way: Even seasoned professionals often fall into the trap of not seeking constructive criticism as an essential part of this process.

Dismantling the Scaffolding

In thought leadership creation, you need a lot of what we call scaffolding. This is all the research and writing that ultimately won’t end up as part of the final construction. That doesn’t mean it was wasted effort. You needed the scaffolding, and now you need to take it down.

Another way we think of this is as “deleting—with joy.” Here’s a common example. You look at the first two paragraphs of your breakthrough article, written after great effort, and see that they are true and accurate. And you realize: they’re unnecessary. They just get in the way. In fact, their real purpose was to push you mentally to the third paragraph, where you get to the heart of the matter. Another example of deleting with joy: a carefully developed chart that is interesting but not essential. Again, deleting it now doesn’t mean the effort has been wasted: You may end up shifting it to an appendix or using it for a post on social media. 

You know you’re making progress when: You are comfortable “letting go” of your written words—even joyful about it. You see that in doing so you are producing an outcome that is more compelling and more truthful. And here too, trusted advisers or partners can help you make the tough calls about what’s truly essential.

Fighting for Recognition

Now you’ve created something you know is good. In cases where you are more junior or have limited experience, you may not get much public recognition for your work. But as you get more experience, you’ll find yourself stepping up to claim both ownership and accountability.

What do we mean by ownership? Well, for instance, you’ll expect and increasingly demand that your name appears alongside your boss’ at publication.

What do we mean by accountability? You’re confident that you’re the best person to defend the ideas before journalists, present them to clients, and answer the toughest questions. You have the deepest knowledge of the strengths, the flaws, and the thoughtful responses to legitimate questions.

You know you’re making progress when: You instinctively put yourself forward as the owner and spokesperson for your work. You do this not out of ego, but to defend the truth of the work. As you develop higher-level thought leadership skills, you know when it’s time to claim ownership and accountability. This comes with confidence in your own capabilities.

These three changes in behavior act as proof points that you genuinely care about the quality of your work. They are telltale signs that demonstrate your progress in developing thought leadership skills. Experience is certainly one key to this progress. And the guidance of trusted partners is another critical element. Go forth, confidently.

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