Episode 160. 4 Steps to Plan Your Thought Leadership Strategy

Becoming known for your unique thought leadership and building a body of work is the first step to being a successful solopreneur, making money online, and growing your coaching business.

In This Episode:

Building a body of work and becoming known for something
How to start planning your 2024 thought leadership strategy
My 2024 thought leadership strategy
Building thought leadership to set yourself up for your 1-3 year dreams

Listen on Apple Podcast | Spotify | YouTube | Any Player

Becoming Known for Your Unique Thought Leadership

Prefer to listen to this episode on YouTube?

Building a body of work and becoming known for something

The first step to building a body of work and becoming known for something is to make a decision on what matters to you and what YOU want to become known for, without the infiltration of surrounding voices, boxes, or norms.

For instance: What topics do you want to be known for? What skills do you want to be known for being good at? What characteristics and values do you want people to remember you for?

Do note that your answers shouldn’t be just based on how you are right now, but rather, it should be centered around who you want to become and are working on becoming.

This means that if there is a topic you want to be known for, start writing about it so that others are able to see your perspectives on that topic and start associating you with that topic.

After you decide what you want to be known for, and as you start to build a body of work around exactly that, the next step is to define “value”.

Meaning: Learn to define value in your own body of work, and create a system to measure this so you can evaluate the effectiveness of your content.

For example, maybe for you, thought leadership isn’t about how much you know, but rather, how willing you are to show that you’re a continuous work in progress and share what you’re learning and how you’re growing.

In this case, your thought leadership strategy might prioritize documenting your behind-the-scenes, sharing what you’re learning and adding your perspectives while you’re learning, and so on.

This behind-the-scenes look into your own growth is what makes your body of work and thought leadership not just extremely valuable for your people, but also very distinct and unique to you.

Likewise, another related action item is to consider the depth and caliber of your content.

Knowing how to showcase the depth and caliber of your thinking is important for building thought leadership in 2024.

When you’re able to do this, you stop constantly worrying about whether your content is too surface level or generic.

Because people might get ‘hooked’ on that sexy podcast episode title, but they actually stick around and listen to the full episode and other ones because they love the substance of your work. That is the potency of being able to highlight how you think and let your brilliant ideas, stories, and perspectives literally sparkle in your body of work.

In a similar vein, let’s also talk about developing a clear, distinct voice in your body of work. To do this, you’ll need to develop an acute understanding of what your voice is, and start to build the muscle of identifying when you’re speaking from someone else’s voice.

An exercise I suggest is to look back at your content from the past 12 months and ask yourself: Are there certain phrases or language you’ve used in the past 12 months that no longer feel resonant with you or simply do not feel aligned to you at all right now?

For each of them, ask yourself why you used them initially? And why does it no longer feel resonant with you?

Knowing what your unique voice is integral to your 2024 thought leadership strategy because here’s what might be happening for some of you. You’ve consumed so much from others that you start picking up their language and style of writing.

But right now, you don’t even realize it.

You have an inkling that your content is looking and sounding like everyone else. Although something deep inside you isn’t sitting right, you still feel like it’s a ‘smart’ thing to do because your logical brain is convincing you that others must be doing it right, so you should pay more attention to their content and analyze what’s working for them.

But on the other hand, when you know what your voice is and you let that shine in your body of work, people know it’s a piece of content from you whenever you post.

With post after post, people are trained to recognize your voice. If anything, now others are looking to you for inspiration.

When I first quit law school and was starting my business, I had nothing to show for. So I spent the first few years of my entrepreneurial journey figuring out what I wanted to be known for (i.e. honing my knowledge and getting practical experience) and building a body of work to showcase how I’m growing.

Today, I’m able to pursue my own entrepreneurial path because I stopped creeping around at what other entrepreneurs in my space are doing. Instead, I started becoming known for my unique thought leadership.

This is how I’ve not only become known for my unique thought leadership, but it’s also how I’ve been able to quit the traditional for what I believe to be exceptional.

The way I see it:

Thought leadership is what makes the difference between someone sitting quietly in your audience for months or even years, versus them instantly recognizing that they need to book a sales call with you just days or weeks after learning about you for the first time.
Thought leadership is also what sharply differentiates you from the sea of entrepreneurs who are offering the same services as you, where people remember you as someone who is thoughtful, genuine, and brilliant at your craft.
Thought leadership is precisely how you’re literally going to sparkle and shine brightly on the Internet so you stay top of mind for clients, without having to conform to what you *think* you’re supposed to look or sound like in order to get clients.

Our clients are no different.

One of our clients first came to me wanting to start her coaching business. She had an idea, but needed support to build a body of work and become known for her thought leadership to turn this business vision into a reality.

Since coaching together, Client B started their business and has now become a full-time entrepreneur. The coolest part is that right now, as we are recording this, she is currently slow traveling in Asia.

For another client, after working at her previous job for 8 years, this client decided to quit and pursue her dreams at the beginning of 2023. Since we started our coaching together around mid-2023, she has traveled to Australia, Singapore, Thailand, U.S.A., Portugal, and Mexico. And she was able to *almost* hit her 6 figure revenue goal as a full-time business owner WHILE traveling the world in 2023 and now, in 2024.

As you can see, the peeps inside TLC are not conforming to what they’re “supposed” to do or who they were told to be. Instead, we are quitting the traditional and creating our own version of exceptional.

And it all starts with doing the work inside TLC.

This is THE room to:

Start putting in the reps to create your thought leader career and become prolific & consistent at building thought leadership
Build a body of work that lets you become known for your unique thought leadership, your story, and how amazing you are at what you do
And ultimately set yourself up for making your 1-3 year dreams a reality

Your next step is to book a discovery call. We will get crystal clear on whether coaching together is the next best move for you.

The discovery call is where we will have a conversation about

1) What are your dreams in the next 1-3 years,

2) The coaching, skills, and actions you need to make these dreams happen, and

3) How either coaching will support and guide you with all the above

You can schedule a discovery call here.

How to start planning your 2024 thought leadership strategy

Now, let’s talk about how to create a plan that you can start to take action on, week by week.

That said, I also want to invite all of us to start thinking ahead, beyond what’s going on in the next few weeks. Because too often we only focus on short-term goals and metrics and hence we neglect spending any time planning ahead and seeing the bigger picture.

But when you’re able to keep in sight both your short-term and long-term goals, you start taking action and developing the skills that will set you up for not just your goals for the next month, but also your goals for the next 1-3 years.

To start, I want you to think about your 3-Year thought leadership vision.

Get clear on what your goals are in the next one year, two years, and three years, especially as it pertains to becoming known for your unique thought leadership, so we can ensure that every step you take is in line with that vision.

I generally like to do this by asking myself:

What does success look like for me this year (i.e. one year )
What does success look like for me next year (i.e. two years)
What does success look like for me in three years time

Then, I start to reverse engineer the next 3 months ahead by creating a doable and manageable quarterly plan that’s in line with your 3 year vision.

In other words: What is my plan of action that I will need to commit to starting now?

I also consider what are the indicators to measure your progress.

I also ask myself:

1) What are the beliefs or thoughts you need more coaching on in the next 3 months to make my 1-3 year goals inevitable?

2) What body of work will I need to build to make my 1-3 year goals inevitable?

For many of you listening to this, myself included, creating long form content is part of the body of work you want to build and likely need to build in order to make your goals happen.

If this is the case, then it’s of utmost importance to learn to increase your capacity to create long-form content consistently.

Over time you’ll learn to increase your speed at getting into creative flow, generating ideas, and organizing information and become prolific and consistent at building your long form content and body of work.

Finally, doing what you said you’d do → You already know the plan of action, so what are the blocks coming up and slowing you down from doing what you say you’d do?

To help you think more about this, look ahead at the next 3 months. What are the blocks you foresee that will impact your ability to complete what you say you’d do? Then for each block, what’s *really* happening? Why does this block happen for you?

Also for each block, spend some more time to think about what is:

1) A practical solution you can try
2) A belief you need to release or a belief you need to strengthen
3) Coaching or support you can ask for

Because the thing is, whether it’s problems related to your career or job, family, relationship, moving to a new place, planning a wedding, the loss of a beloved pet, etc… Life will happen. It always will. That’s just part of the human experience.

And it’s also extremely human to feel more tired, demotivated, etc as a result of things happening outside of your business.

Rather than letting these things take away all your power:

1) Make efforts on a daily or weekly basis to take care of your mind and body and

2) Have a plan in place for when tough things come up or when things aren’t going as planned

We’ve talked about a lot so far. And all of these prompts and action items we touched on so far are also a glimpse into the conversations and coaching we’ll have inside The Thought Leader Club, which is where you get to dive deeper and deeper into this work.

At this point, it’s no longer about acquiring new information, chasing new strategies, or always starting something from scratch. Instead, The Thought Leader Club prioritizes cultivating and further honing your existing skills, strengths, and experiences.

TLC is unique because we are focused on the implementation and repeated practice of the information, tools, and strategies. It’s a curated room where everyone else has their head and heart in the game.

We are committed to doing the work alongside one another. This is a long game and our TLC peeps are committed to starting their journey right now, for the long term.

I know you already have the work ethic, brilliance, and capability to hone in on the skills you need to make your 1-3 year dreams happen. But right now, the skills required of you are out of your comfort zone.

And of course! Your goals and dreams are not traditional – They are exceptional! So of course this will require you to step out of your comfort zone.

Even though you have a track record of being great at getting things done, this time, no one will tell you what to do. More often than not, you won’t know if you’re doing something right, and you’ll continue to second-guess yourself. This is what will slow you down.

The question right now is not about whether or not you’re able to learn these skills or reach your goals – You ARE able to. Instead, it’s the sh*t you’re telling yourself → Which eventually will lead you to give up too early.

In entrepreneurship, no one will be there to tell you that you’re doing things right. There is nobody giving you a gold star. That said, what TLC can give you is the tools that have worked for me and my clients.

TLC is also here to hold a safe space for you to practice your reps. We are here to give you feedback on your work and give you a different perspective when things feel complicated, overwhelming, or just damn hard.

That’s why if this is work you’re committed to doing, I want you to consider joining TLC. This is the work we do here.

You can schedule a discovery call for us here to chat more about where you’re at and how TLC can support you.

My 2024 thought leadership strategy

I want to be known for the message of building a body of work and becoming known for your unique thought leadership so you can create opportunities in the next 1-3 years.

This is why I launched the TLC program, so I can support the folks inside TLC in building a body of work, stepping into the identity of a thought leader, and attracting really cool opportunities because of their body of work and thought leadership.

One thing I love about TLC is that our clients come from all walks of life and have a range of professional backgrounds/experiences, yet, the common thread among them is that they’re all building a thought leader career. SO MUCH FUN.

Defining “Value” → Learn to define value in your own body of work, and create a system to measure this so you can evaluate the effectiveness of your content

For myself, I created a rubric that I can filter my content through to gauge whether I’m adding value through that particular piece of content, in the most cheryl way possible.

First, I’d ask myself, On a scale of 1-5:

Is this Cheryl’s voice? Or does it make you think “Hmm… There’s a hint of so-and-so here”
If I took away all identifying information, will the content sound like everyone else? Or is there still a distinctiveness to it?
Can you feel Cheryl’s energy (ex: sincerity, fervor, etc – It depends on the piece of content)? Or does it just sound like nice words, but it doesn’t have any sort of feeling to it?

Yes/No

Did you include specific, concrete examples when explaining a concept?
Did you share either your thought process or a story / personal experience?
Did you include something “actionable” that the audience could either think deeper on or do / apply / implement?

The Depth & Caliber of Your Content → Learn to define depth and caliber in your own body of work, and create a system to measure this so you can evaluate the effectiveness of your content

To think about how I can showcase more of how I think, one question I asked myself here was: What are some bold statements or interesting concepts that I can create for my audience? And it is based on MY story?

You don’t need to have a PhD to become a thought leader
Quit the traditional for the exceptional
Fuck the top 1% / Fuck the boxes

Then I translate these concepts and ideas into content. I need to actually show my audience how I think about these bold statements.

For example, in Episode 157 of this podcast, I discussed why thought leadership isn’t just for the top 1%.

Shaping Your Voice → Develop an acute understanding of what YOUR voice is, and start to build the muscle of identifying when you’re speaking from someone else’s voice

In early 2023, I started feeling very disconnected with my messaging. Phrases like “5k-10k months” or “6 figures”, “Soft launching”, “Signed X clients in Y months” or “Made $ in Y months”, simply no longer felt resonant with what I wanted to be known for.

I realized as I was planning my thought leadership strategy, when I felt tempted to default back into this language or verbiage, it was me subscribing to what I *thought* a successful coach is supposed to do / say / sell.

Since 2023, I’ve been making a conscientious effort to notice where and when this is happening. Then I make a conscious decision to use language that is much more aligned with the brand I want to build and the thought leadership I want to be known for

Your 3-Year Vision → Get clear on what your long term and short term goals are so we can ensure that every step you take is in line with that vision

For my 1 year vision, success would look like:

Goal 1: Get my podcast monthly downloads back to 1000-1200 per month (It fell to 400-800 over the past 4 months) → Get it to 1300+ per month by the end of 2024
Goal 2: Welcome 4-8 peeps for each of the next cohorts of TLC (Planning to run a cohort from March to July 2024, and July to November 2024)

For my 2 year vision, success would look like:

Enroll 20-25 clients into TLC throughout the year
Feeling like TLC now has a reputation of its own
There is a clear energetic level up between 2024 Cheryl and 2025 Cheryl
I’m featured on press, being invited to speak on stages, being invited to guest on podcasts, etc
I can also see myself continuing to uplevel my skill sets via further education or training. Or perhaps it’s self studying via books and courses. I don’t exactly know what I want to be learning, but I want to immerse myself in a learning environment

For my 3 year vision, success would look like:

Enroll 25-30 clients into TLC throughout the year
There is a clear energetic level up between 2025 Cheryl and 2026 Cheryl
I am featured on press, being invited to speak on stages, being invited to guest on podcasts, etc
I am known not just for the work I do within my business, but also for my non-profit initiatives

Your Quarterly Goals → Create a doable and manageable quarterly plan (as well as indicators to measure your progress) that’s in line with your 3 year vision

Hosting 2x free masterclasses on Feb 4 to teach how to be prolific and consistent in building your body of work on just 0-2 hours a day

Pre-work includes: Slide deck for the masterclass. Set up a signup page. Set up confirmation email and other reminder emails. Create marketing assets to promote the masterclass.

A weekly podcast episode AND talk about building thought leadership and building a body of work in each episode

3x Weekly emails, weekly Instagram and LinkedIn posts, and ensure that I’m talking about building thought leadership and building a body of work in at least half of these weekly/ongoing content pieces

I’m also doing some continuous learning where every week, I’d read either research papers on thought leadership or related topics, or listen to podcast episodes or TED talks that focus on thought leadership or related topics.

I have been tracking my takeaways and other key research findings in an ongoing Google Doc. Every week, I’d take the time to go through three papers, for example, so I can learn about new /recent developments in the field. This has also been really helpful in terms of expanding my own knowledge and understanding of the concept of thought leadership.

Other potential action items I will likely include in my 2024 thought leadership strategy later on in the year include :

Collaborating with peers so we can combine our thought leadership strengths and broaden each other’s reach
Going to in-person events where I can learn directly from other thought leaders and introduce myself to them, and overall just staying connected to the industry
Do certain pushes to increase my visibility, for example, maybe one month down the line would be dedicated to building my email list because honestly, the emails I send every week are really really good. If you’d like to be part of our awesome weekly emails. You can sign up here.

Increasing Your Capacity to Create Long-Form Content Consistently → Overtime, learn to increase your speed at getting into creative flow, generating ideas, and organizing information

Although being highly speedy at content was not something I was particularly apt at in the early stages of my journey, I’m highly efficient today and hence able to be both prolific and consistent in building my body of work and becoming known for my unique thought leadership. AND I do this on just 0-2 hours a day.

On one hand, yes, increasing your capacity to be prolific and consistent WILL take time and practice.

But on the other hand, know that there is an end in sight. This IS a skill you can hone and get really darn good at. You will see exponential growth, so please stay committed to putting in your reps so you can become a speedy content ninja.

Doing What You Said You’d Do → You already know the plan of action… What are the blocks coming up?

To start, I had to look at what are the blocks that come up for me when it comes to building thought leadership.

One example of a block is the thought of when it came to my masterclass which we ran about 1.5 weeks ago was, “Ugh, the masterclass just feels like so much work.”

This feels like a huge, overwhelming task and I’m worried I won’t be able to finish all the small items according to my timeline, promote the masterclass sufficiently, etc and still do my ongoing weekly action items.

A belief that I had to work on strengthening before the masterclass, i.e. throughout the month of January, was that the masterclass topic is literally what I know best and what I do best (How to be a prolific and consistent content creator).

Even in the worst case scenario (i.e. I didn’t prepare anything and just showed up to talk LIVE… I can do it). Everything else (ex: sign up page, promoting it, etc) is just extra bells and whistles!

Another example of a block related to working on my podcast is a thought that often comes up for me is, “Ugh, it’s time to write another podcast episode…”

Although I do get my weekly episode finished more or less every single week. I still experience an initial “hump of inertia” where it feels like writing a podcast episode is such a chore.

A practical solution I’ve been using is some Pen & Paper Time to spark my creativity.

I put myself in a work environment that might stimulate me (ex: Working at a cafe instead of at home), minimize distractions, review my scrap notes and recall what I thought about in the past week.

A Belief that has helped a lot is, I know what to do. LET’S DO THIS.

Building thought leadership to set yourself up for your 1-3 year dreams

This was a sneak peek into my own thought leadership strategy for 2024, and it’s quite comprehensive in the sense that it doesn’t just cover the action items I need to take, but it also touches on how I can support myself through managing my mindset and energy so I can stay committed to this plan of action.

This matters to me because my 1-3 year dreams are important to me, and I want to give myself the tools, coaching, and the support I need to make my own dreams a reality.

For you who are listening in, I know that your 1-3 year dreams are highly personal and unique to you (ex: For some of you, your priority is to sign more best-fit clients for a group program. For others, it might be to attract speaking opportunities in 2024).

Whatever your dreams are, becoming known for your unique thought leadership and building a body of work is KEY to making these opportunities happen.

So the question is, how can you start to cultivate the relevant skill sets and mindsets in order to become known and to build a body of work?

Because when you set the standard for your body of work,

People are captivated by your story
They love being in your audience and hearing your perspectives and ideas
And they know that you’re THE person they NEED to work with, right now

When you’re able to build a body of work that captures the essence of your unique thought leadership, YOU START MAKING YOUR 1-3 YEAR DREAMS HAPPEN, RIGHT NOW.

This is precisely what we will help you do inside TLC.

For those of you who are committed to this journey ahead, your next step is to book a discovery call. We will get crystal clear on whether coaching together is the next best move for you.

The discovery call is where we will have a conversation about:

1) What are your dreams in the next 1-3 years,

2) The coaching, skills, and actions you need to make these dreams happen, and

3) How either coaching will support and guide you with all the above

You can schedule a discovery call here.

Sounds good? Awesome. Let’s get to work.