Article

Jon Bains
Jon Bains 18 November 2015
Categories Content

Some Thoughts On Thought Leadership

O Blog, give us the serenity to accept what cannot be changed. 
The courage to change what can be changed,
 and the wisdom to know the one from the other.

We live in an overly abundant world of words. We strive to lead each other through our thoughts and ideas - to make an impression. We project ourselves as far out there as we can to influence, inspire, enthuse and evoke. We do it because we are told to. We do it because we want to. We do it because if you do it right then you can transform those words into action.

 

Or cash.

That’s the theory anyway - in practice it’s a proper pain in the ass having to come up with interesting things to write about. The assumption is that we’re all journalists and just do it for a living - the majority of us simply aren’t and most of the words out there are utter self-serving nonsense. There is a good reason why the smart ones spend more time curating than creating - it’s all been said, explored, discussed, trolled, shared, plagiarised, commented on, up voted and ultimately disregarded.

Why bother?
Well some people simply like to write, it’s a great way to work out the problems of the day job and especially when the day job is working out problems. It’s a cliche but your underlying motivation to add to the choir / noise it what’s most important. If you are doing it simply for cynical commercial reasons and fixate on reach and ‘likes’ then that’s going to shine through. As humans we like others who have passion, who care about what they do, who know things that we don’t and can learn from, who do so ‘just because’.

What to write about?
When it comes to writing about ‘business’ the hardest thing - by far - is deciding what to write about.  Once that decision is made, that focus defined, that inspirational point plotted then pulling it all together should be reasonably straightforward.

What where you shouting about in the pub last night? What did you do yesterday? What was the most interesting conversation you had recently? What are you curious about? What did you just hear on the news? What makes you angry or sad, happy or humble? What *haven’t* you read about but want to? What was the hardest question someone asked you recently? What have you found yourself saying repeatedly that you assumed was common sense but apparently isn’t?  All good starting points.

Where should I be aiming?
Many start with the misguided assumption is that in order to lead thought they must ‘dumb it down’ for the followers. Perhaps that works for them, but the most insightful pieces are the ones that take, what may in fact be a complex subject, and distil it into understandable, rational and emotive discourse. It’s why ‘listicles’ are so popular - they are easy to read, easy to quote and can explore subjects from a fairly high level in a digestible form.

It’s a mistake to believe that either, ‘you are the smartest person in the room’ or anybody really wants to read academic navel gazing. Since you simply can’t write for everyone you might as well simply solve your own problem, at your own level, and share the ‘workings’. Being overly didactic removes the opportunity to discussion - shades of grey are far more appealing apparently.

Make it easy on yourself
Prune the search path by having a standard format and/or theme. Could be as simple as taking something you’ve read or heard about and reverse engineering why it’s interesting - basic analysis. Many just ‘keep it short’ and limit to short, snappy, frequent thoughts. Subjects that are topical tend to be easier to write about. The downside is they date rapidly so having a general approach, which takes a specific but then appreciates underlying trends or generalises it to provide a longer shelf life can be a strong move. It forces you to think more about the ‘why’ then the ‘what’ which is a good discipline. Having a regular routine which consumption of multiple sources of inspiration can help greatly.  

Don’t write about yourself.
I try to avoid it (sic). Well to be fair don’t unless you are really really good at it. More often than not will come across at best self-serving and at worst arrogant. That doesn’t mean don’t write about what you do. Case studies and the like can be extremely useful when written objectively - faults and all - and if well written they can provide a constructive critical framework for a deeper dive, but alas more often than not can come across as a crass dismissible puff piece, which will do more harm than good.

Conclusion

 

Have one.  ;-)

This piece was inspired, with many thanks, by Phil Dearson because we’re all looking for inspiration and there is something incredibly ‘meta’ about writing something about writing something.

About Jon Bains
Jon Bains, a 21-year net-vet, is founding partner of consultancy What&Why - purveyors of internationally proven, actionable strategy. They help new businesses get into the market and old ones out of their head. He is always up for new challenges, contracts and conversation. Connect with him at 
www.linkedin.com/in/jonbains. He doesn’t bite (much).

 

More By This Author

 

Read More On Digital Doughnut

Please login or register to add a comment.

Contribute Now!

Loving our articles? Do you have an insightful post that you want to shout about? Well, you've come to the right place! We are always looking for fresh Doughnuts to be a part of our community.

Popular Articles

See all
How to Review a Website — A Guide for Beginners

How to Review a Website — A Guide for Beginners

A company website is crucial for any business's digital marketing strategy. To keep up with the changing trends and customer buying behaviors, it's important to review and make necessary changes regularly...

Digital Doughnut Contributor
Digital Doughnut Contributor 25 March 2024
Read more
The World Is Shrinking: 6 Degrees of Separation Is Now 2!

The World Is Shrinking: 6 Degrees of Separation Is Now 2!

Six degrees of separation is not just a party game, it's a reality. Everyone is the world is interconnected, and thanks to social media, that connectedness gets tighter and richer each day. See the research...

Scott Christley
Scott Christley 9 August 2017
Read more
The Impact of New Technology on Marketing

The Impact of New Technology on Marketing

Technology has impacted every part of our lives. From household chores to business disciplines and etiquette, there's a gadget or app for it. Marketing has changed dramatically over the years, but what is the...

Alex Lysak
Alex Lysak 3 April 2024
Read more
Cats and Dogs Boost Your Business By 300%. Here’s How.

Cats and Dogs Boost Your Business By 300%. Here’s How.

It’s the age-old question that has endured ever since the creation of the internet: are you a cat person or a dog person? Or do you love both cats and dogs? We have both dog lovers and cat lovers at Sortlist, so it...

Aline Strouvens
Aline Strouvens 27 August 2021
Read more
What Marketing Content Do Different Age Groups like to Consume?

What Marketing Content Do Different Age Groups like to Consume?

Today marketers have a wide choice of different content types to create; from video to blogs, from memes to whitepapers. But which types of content are most suitable for different age groups?

Lisa Curry
Lisa Curry 21 October 2016
Read more