What do you want to be known for?
Becoming known as a thought leader has a bit of a rock star ring to it. The good news is that we believe rising to the expert echelon of your career is a lot easier than climbing the Billboard charts.
Feeling capable, qualified and competent in your area of specialty is just as important as your credentials, degrees and certifications. Some people tell us that their confidence hinges on earning a degree or working in a particular industry for a few years. Often, self-assurance builds after completing a certification program.
That was the case with a client who contacted us about a year ago. Because his boss was about to be promoted, the company was looking for someone to fill her position. Our client was encouraged to apply for the role. Although he was very talented in his line of work, he was uncomfortable with the thought of managing others.
While he wanted to move up in the organization someday, he had no prior leadership experience. We recommended that he search online for leadership or management certification programs. He was pleasantly surprised at the number of free and low-cost options he found through Coursera, LinkedIn Learning and industry associations.
He chose a highly rated program that familiarized him with best practices, strategies and business terminology. He learned the difference between management and leadership, and after completing the program, he felt confident that he could become an effective leader. He was hired for the position and is thriving in his new role.
Show and Tell: Create a Career Portfolio
Another client was very enthusiastic about a job working with seniors age 55+. The phone screen went well, and she promptly followed up with a thank-you note. She knew she was a good fit for the position, but after a week passed and she still hadn’t heard back from the company, she wasn’t sure what to do next. We suggested that she create a career portfolio to shine a spotlight on her achievements.
A career portfolio can wow the interviewer and we’ve seen it make the difference in a candidate getting the job offer. It can be used for both in-person and virtual interviews. If you have an in-person interview, the portfolio is often leather-bound, and can include your resume, exceptional performance reviews, awards or recognitions, and testimonials or recommendations. Depending on the type of work you did, the portfolio is also an opportunity to share examples of your work.
Now that so much of the interview process takes place virtually, we recommend a slightly different type of career portfolio, one that lives online, preferably on your own website.
If you don’t already own it, buy the domain for your name (e.g., firstandlastname.com). Include your career portfolio on your website. You can include the link on your resume, and choose different bits and pieces of it to send as attachments to an email when appropriate.
Related: Video Interviewing: The New Normal
In this case, our client had a lot of stellar performance reviews and testimonials. We encouraged her to create a single page of snippets from the testimonials to highlight that she was highly regarded by both colleagues and managers.
At first, she felt like this strategy was too far out of her comfort zone. But she did it anyway, and included the testimonials in her email to the recruiter. Within 20 minutes, the recruiter called to invite her for an interview with the hiring manager.
From Subject Matter Expert to Thought Leader
A subject matter expert is someone who has extensive knowledge about a specific topic and stays on top of industry news, trends and best practices. Taking it a step further, a thought leader shares their expertise. While a SME has a personal knowledge base and tends to use it to do their job well, a thought leader uses it to gain visibility.
Related: Tweaking Your Professional Brand
Want to be seen as a thought leader? One of the easiest ways to boost your visibility is to participate in conversations on LinkedIn. As a LinkedIn member, you can join up to 100 groups to strengthen and expand your network. We recommend becoming active in one or two groups that a) align with your career goals and b) include members you admire.
You’d be amazed at what you can contribute by spending just 10 minutes a day posting content and liking and commenting on others’ posts. Your comments don’t have to be long, although the more substantive, the better. If social media isn’t your thing, consider this a new muscle you’re building.
Wondering where to quickly and easily find relevant content to post to your LinkedIn groups? You might want to do a Google search for “where to find curated content.” Scoop.it might be a good resource for you to check out.
Once you start becoming a familiar name in a group, reach out and introduce yourself to people you’d like to meet. These conversations expand your professional network, creating opportunities to develop relationships with like-minded professionals in your industry.
Start having conversations with senior leaders in your industry. Search for webinars and conferences in your area of specialty. Note who’s presenting at these events, even if you don’t attend, and find ways to communicate with them.
We often ask clients to think of their “career hero,” challenging them to reach out to that person. In my experience, well-known industry experts are kind and gracious and often happy to talk about their career journeys. Subject matter experts and thought leaders are usually very passionate about their work and tend to enthusiastically share what they know with others interested in the same topic.
As you move from subject matter expert to thought leader, you’ll open doors to opportunities you may not have even known existed!
Look as impressive in writing as you really are.
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