Finding and synthesizing relevant information is a crucial skill for any thought leader. Whether you want to write a blog post, a white paper, a presentation, or a podcast, you need to gather, analyze, and communicate information that is valuable, credible, and original. But how can you do that effectively and efficiently? Here are some tips to help you.
Before you start searching for information, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve and who you want to reach. What is the main question or problem you want to address? What is your perspective or argument? Who is your target audience and what are their needs and interests? Having a clear purpose will help you narrow down your focus, choose the right sources, and avoid irrelevant or redundant information.
The most audience-centric way to dive into a lot of information is to build a frequently-asked questions (FAQ) list. Put yourself in your audience's shoes and think about what they're likely asking around a certain topic, ore areas where they might be confused. Once you have your FAQ it's easy to begin sorting and organizing the information you're synthesizing based on what helps provide answers.
To find relevant information, you need to use a variety of sources that cover different aspects, perspectives, and levels of detail. Depending on your topic and purpose, you might use academic journals, books, reports, news articles, blogs, podcasts, videos, or social media. You should also use different types of sources, such as primary, secondary, and tertiary sources, and evaluate their reliability, validity, and bias. Using multiple sources will help you gain a comprehensive and balanced understanding of your topic and avoid plagiarism.
Leveraging multiple sources of information is crucial for thought leaders to build a more comprehensive and robust viewpoint. Using multiple sources also helps you refine your understanding of your topic so it is easy for you to explain your topic to anyone. Multiple sources will help shape well-rounded and balanced thinking that resonates with both right and brain people and will enhance the quality of your overall thought leadership.
Lots of sources fall into the "structured" information category, like books or articles in industry publications, but don't forget to consider unstructured information, too. Look for any relevant information within social media posts and community forums like Quora and Reddit. Don't limit yourself to text-based information, either -- some of your best sources might come from a podcast episode or YouTube video.
Once you have collected enough information, you need to organize it in a way that makes sense for your purpose and audience. You can use different tools and methods to organize your information, such as outlines, mind maps, tables, charts, or diagrams. You should also use a consistent system to cite and reference your sources, such as APA, MLA, or Chicago style. Organizing your information will help you identify the main themes, gaps, and connections in your topic and structure your content logically and coherently.
To synthesize relevant information, you need to analyze it critically and creatively. You need to compare and contrast different sources, identify the strengths and weaknesses of different arguments, and draw your own conclusions and implications. You should also look for patterns, trends, anomalies, and contradictions in your information and explain how they relate to your purpose and audience. Analyzing your information will help you generate new insights, perspectives, and solutions that add value to your topic and demonstrate your thought leadership.
The ability to pull out insights out of information is like developing a muscle. I approach by trying to imagine being stopped in a hallway conversation by a client or colleague who asks me to summarize what I learned. Another approach is to look at the information and pretending you have to quote a small piece of it on a social media platform with limited space. Sometimes when I do this it's like the best nuggets or details light up on the page before my eyes.
The final step is to communicate your information in a clear, concise, and engaging way. You need to choose the appropriate format, style, tone, and language for your purpose and audience. You should also use different techniques to enhance your communication, such as storytelling, examples, analogies, visuals, or data. You should also proofread and edit your content to ensure it is accurate, consistent, and error-free. Communicating your information will help you convey your message, persuade your audience, and establish your credibility and authority.