20 Tips On Thought Leadership

1. Be inspired
   
   A fish rots from the head down. It's impossible to engage people to your great ideas if you are not turned on. Manage your state so that you choose to be the energetic leader in all things you do.
   
   
2. Be a thought leader
   
   A thought leader helps people to see information or data in a way that is engaging, compelling and meaningful. Put effort into explaining ideas to others so they want to entertain change!
   
   
3. Discover genius in the gaps
   
   You have to take time to think. Innovation is a challenge when you brain is full of 'busy'ness. Nearly all great innovations and thoughts have happened in the gaps between doing. So take a walk, have a break, stare out a window.
   
   
4. Listen in layers
   
   All ideas and thinking can be divided into 3 layers: the content (detail) of the idea; the concept (purpose) of the idea; and the context (big picture) of the idea. Listen to ideas and ensure you have the detail, the purpose and the big picture aligned.
   
   
5. Develop a bias for action
   
   Ideas, innovations and thought leadership can lead to a lot of talk. Get active. Ask at each stage "How does this advance this project?".
   
   
6. Learn as a teacher
   
   The quickest way to learn is to approach everything from the mindset of "How would I teach this to someone else?".
   
   
7. Eliminate the competition
   
   Small minds see competition, great minds see collaboration. Look for complimentary alliances with those who at first glance you see as competitors.
   
   
8. Think like a futurist
   
   Craig Rispin author of Think like a futurist suggests that we can all develop the skill of foresight. See the patterns in trends and activities and learn to be ahead of the curve.
   
   
9. Channel surf
   
   People listen, learn, engage and make decisions through thinking preferences. Understand your personal bias and learn to flex your communication, so that more people, get more of what you say, more of the time.
   
   
10. 100% out, 80% ready
    
    A perfection mindset prevents us from taking productive action. Today, the ability to bring your ideas to fruition is key to moving from simple creativity to effective innovation.
    
    
11. Fail fast
    
    Sometimes a great idea that fails is the stepping stone to a brilliant idea that flys. Be ready to quit on the ideas that don't work.
    
    
12. There is no wisdom in crowds
    
    Try to look for ways in which you may be blanding your idea by trying to make them popular.
    
    
13. Play to your strengths
    
    There is an effortlessness to working the way that works for you. Discover your strengths and use them for the good of the team.
    
    
14. Be a Cosmonaught
    
    Peter Ellyard's book Cowboys to Cosmonaughts outlines the key to modern day collaboration. Cowboys are admired for their rugged individualism, but a Cosmonaught achieves so much more by working with teams of brilliant specialists.
    
    
15. Run mutual accountability project (MAP) meetings weekly
    
    Don't play to the weakest link in your team. Have weekly meetings where people review what they said they would do and whether they have or have not. As each week rolls by those who do - do, those who don't - resign. You need to participate in this equally - that's why it's called a mutual accountability project meeting.
    
    
16. Develop clear intentions
    
    You may not always have clarity about what to do next, but you can always have certainty. One is powered by the INTENT and a sense of what you want to achieve. The rest is detail. With clear INTENT you can always make better decisions.
    
    
17. Create value or don't create
    
    If you are continuously asking the question "How does this add value to someone else?" your ideas will always be relevant and profitable. Don't create cures for diseases that don't exist. Innovation is not about cool ideas, it's about ideas that are profitable.
    
    
18. Be a 'YES but', 'YES and' person
    
    Advances in ideas exist in two domains: the contribution to an existing idea or the contradiction. Build your ideas on the shoulders of giants.
    
    
19. Give it away
    
    One of the most empowering mindsets for creativity is to imagine you gave away your core business for free. How would you then make money? This ground-zero thinking forces innovation.
    
    
20. Lead, follow or get out of the way
    
    A leader has three imperatives: one, turn fear into confidence; two, create clarity from confusion; three, mobilise others to get things done.

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