Evolving with Every Lesson: My Takeaways from Jenny Foss on Pioneering Thought Leadership

It is quite true that to be a thought leader and to be able to inspire others, we need not necessarily be a business leader, corporate giant, or senior-level manager; we just have to be effective in whatever we do in our own capacity. This is the same realization that has been instilled in my mindset for some time now. Since then, I have begun writing about my work stories creatively and for a deeper experience. I have been quite consistent in putting words to leveraging my experiences into well-crafted stories for personal branding and providing inspiration for learning continuously and unconventionally.

My recent experience with the course How to Become a Thought Leader and Advance Your Career by Jenny Foss, who is a LinkedIn Instructor, Career Consultant, Published Author, and Certified Professional Resume Writer, added a more refined approach to pioneering thought leadership in advancing my career and futureproofing my path.

The course effectively teaches about how a creator approach has to be adopted to be a thought leader in your field. It does not have to be about at what level we work; rather, it’s about how we work and how passionate we are about advancing knowledge through our own storytelling.

The course delves into four parts:

·???????? Defining thought leadership

·???????? Where should we start?

·???????? How and what should we share?

·???????? Best practices for thought leaders

1.??? Who are thought leaders?

Thought leaders are people who are go-to people in their field and who are passionate storytellers. They are inspiring others through their stories and their authentic and original voice and wisdom. They are brilliant content curators as well, focused on a creator mindset, a continuous learning mindset, and an unconventional approach. They are experts, leveraging their experiences and those of others to form stories to inspire.

If I look into my experience of defining and reflecting on my efforts to put voice into crafting stories from my work and passion projects, I see how I am beginning my journey of pioneering thought leadership. Working in higher education media communication, I have crafted many stories from work, from passion projects of my own life exploring wildlife, the natural world, war stories, etc. With time, I have begun to learn and practice unconventional approaches, something that I can teach others to be able to be really resourceful while leveraging artificial intelligence in a dynamic and ever-evolving world. I now look more into mastering storytelling in my fields.

To be specific, being in the creative field of education, I am now advocating and following the concept of working out of joy and passion rather than obligation, and from my experiences?in?educational?content creation, media?vlogging, writing articles, and traveling, I can clearly say that the joy of creation and continuous learning are the driving forces behind this work.

My articles on The Joy of Creation: Breaking Free from the Chains of Obligation, The Mind in Motion: The Unseen Activity of Constant Contemplation, Education Unbound: Embracing and Reimagining Education as a Lifelong Journey, Daring to Go Beyond: The Unconventional Path Forward, and Unceasing Momentum in Media Communications: Continuous Action, Learning, and Improvement in the Pulse, and many more of them are such examples of how I share my thought leadership.

2.??? Where should we start?

This part talks about establishing your brand and identifying your style of content creation. It requires spending time to define who we are professionally, how we would like others to perceive us, what we stand for, what our values are, and what message we need to share. Whether we are writers, speakers, or content curators, we need to choose some mode of sharing to be able to spread our message.

If I look back and reflect on how I started, then I would like to share that it was writing that became my tool for sharing my message. The articles that I write and the posts that I share advocate that learning should be unconventional and continuous; it should not stop with classroom education and getting a livelihood; rather, it must be driven by the joy of creation. This is what I have always tried to display through my articles, and this is what I want my message to be perceived as.

Being into educational content creation and communication, I have various skill sets like video creation and editing, but so far, writing has become one of my most adopted and passionate forms of language to be able to share my mind. So far, I have written around 60 articles on various platforms; out of them, 43 are published on LinkedIn. I have also been fortunate to get my travelogues published on travel websites, and I am also working on some of my articles on continuous learning and the creator mindset to be able to get published on some bigger platforms. I now look forward to more ways of sharing my message, such as creating videos through YouTube and organizing LinkedIn events.

3.??? How and what should we share?

This section talks about what we should share. To begin with, it could be about insights and lessons from our work experiences, our opinion pieces on leadership stories, new trends in our industry, ideas, and expert interview insights. The most important part is that we must begin. To further create, we should decide whether it is audio, video, or written form, whichever we want to select; if it is video, will it be video prerecording, live, or a blend of both? How we will go about our podcast, whether it is a situational or regular series, and on what platforms we will share our content are some of the important aspects we need to think about.

The section further shares the insight that we just have to know 20 percent more about a topic or theme than the general population to be a thought leader; we just need to know how to leverage the experience. Becoming a content curator also adds value, as it involves cultivating thought leadership. It talks about sharing interesting content from diverse creative sources, events, and publications for people to read or view. This helps us and others stay updated with the latest trends and increase our visibility in our network.

Jenny further talks about pitching our content to media and influencers with stories to increase our reach among the masses, exploring speaking opportunities through professional initiatives, learning to make speaking proposals, and even creating and curating our own events to do so.

Reflecting back on my journey, I have been doing the same, working with my writing and also teaching students in my team through the insights learned from my own experiences. I have been observing that the more content and articles that I share through my writing on LinkedIn, the more people are following me day by day. From academicians, educational polymaths, educational directors, creative people, and freelancers, there are now around 2500 followers and counting.

I am also very soon going to begin with my new initiative platform, where I will not only be curating a lot of content but also sharing my own content with my audience.

4.??? ?Best practices for thought leaders

In the fourth and final section, Jenny Foss shares many other important aspects of advancing through thought leadership. She talks about engaging people through our content rather than lecturing them; she points out that knowledge and wisdom should be shared through storytelling. It is also important that, as we grow in our experience and journey, we also help other people through our mentoring and advice. Finally, all these efforts require consistency, relevancy in content, defining the brand, adaptability into the future, and authenticity of voice with a running list of ideas.

Reflecting on my journey upon this part I can clearly share that I have shared multiple stories and articles on the themes from my mind and experiences through work. I adapted the storytelling approach rather than sharing lectures with the audience. The lessons and insights that I have learned through content marketing and leveraging AI and LinkedIn have also been taught to the students I have been working. ?

If I have to share my journey of personal growth through books that have transformed my perspective on work, life, and unconventional wisdom through this article, some of them have already been read and some are in progress and have had a profound impact on me, including "VUCA Learner" by Dr. Manoj Joshi and Suhayl Abidi, "Deep Work" by Cal Newport, "The Third Door" by Alex Banayan, "Outskill: Future-Proofing Your Career in the Post-Pandemic World" by Partha Basu, "Half-Earth: Our Planet's Fight for Life" by Edward O. Wilson, and "The Art of Clear Thinking" by Patrick King. Reading them has not only changed my perspective but has also given me the power to apply this knowledge to nurture my passions. I have also been resourceful in maintaining a list of ideas running on my phone that serves as my writing interest later on. I keep updating this list when an idea strikes me.

I can clearly say that my efforts in writing articles have been consistent, as I maintain an alternate day post schedule on LinkedIn. This keeps my productivity as a creator in check and keeps me ready for news.

In the ever-evolving landscape of professional growth, the journey to becoming a thought leader is both challenging and rewarding. The insights from Jenny Foss's course, coupled with my personal experiences, underscore the importance of authenticity, continuous learning, and the power of storytelling. Thought leadership isn't about holding a high-ranking title or having a vast audience; it's about sharing genuine insights, fostering growth in ourselves and others, and passionately contributing to our fields. As we navigate our professional paths, let's remember to not just seek knowledge but to share it, to not just grow individually but to uplift others, and to not just work but to inspire.

Are you ready to embark on your thought leadership journey? Reflect on your experiences, find your unique voice, and start sharing your insights. Join the conversation below and share your own takeaways or aspirations in the realm of thought leadership. Let's grow and inspire together!