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Would you like to be asked to speak at public events, conferences or on podcasts to share your insights with a relevant audience?
Then you want to be a thought leader. When you become a thought leader you are a recognized authority whose expertise is sought out.
If you want to attract high-paying clients, then it pays to become a thought leader. By definition, that means you have interesting thoughts and you are willing to share them.
Recently I have been impressed by the thinking of a certain thought leader, Arthur Samuel Joseph, arguably the greatest vocal coach in the world. In his book Vocal Leadership he wrote, “To get what we want in life, we have to be approved of by others.”
That was buried in a paragraph, but it is profound. Leaders garner the cooperation of others.
When I mentioned that during a speech, some of the audience bristled. Chalk it up to rugged American individualism, I reckon. They seemed to believe in the adage: “If it is going to be it’s up to me.”
But actually, if it is going to be, others have to agree.
Joseph’s thought reminded me of a quote of a late mentor, the thought leader Patrick Jackson. A phrase that has struck me from Jackson’s writings is this: “Success must be conferred on us by outsiders.”
Recently I caught up with a man I respect as a thought leader, John Calia of Rochester. Calia is an executive coach, leadership speaker, business consultant. We met when I helped him edit his first book, The Reluctant CEO: Succeeding Without Losing Your Soul.
We talked about the notion of success must be conferred on us by outsiders.
“Milton Friedman was a brilliant economist and, like all economists, a moral philosopher,” said Calia. Calia said Friedman’s pronouncement that the only social responsibility of business was to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits has been used by business leaders for 50 years to justify behavior.
“The Business Roundtable – made up of 181 CEOs of major American corporations – has outlined a statement of purpose intended to spread the benefits of corporate activities to ‘stakeholders’ not only shareholders,” said Calia. “The statement is not groundbreaking. It simply outlines what a great company would do – delivering value to customers, investing in employees, supporting communities.”
Calia notes it is, however, an important statement as it places those best practices in a leadership context with the potential better to connect businesses to the communities within which they operate.
So to get what we want in life, do we really have to be approved of by others?
“Many companies that have already adopted these practices have a lot to show for it – reduced employee turnover, better customer relations and improved profits,” notes Calia.
In his entrepreneurial career, Calia has led three companies as CEO and understands that success is conferred on by outsiders. A former naval officer, he currently makes his home in Fairport, NY, a village on the Erie Canal. As a Chair in the Vistage Chief Executive Leadership Program, he facilitates up to 16 executive peers — CEOs and business owners — from a diverse range of noncompetitive businesses for candid and challenging discussions. I was honored to be invited to speak to some of his groups.
When Calia moved to the Rochester area six years ago, he did not know anyone in the community. He started sharing his thoughts. Each week he writes a profound essay and distributes it to a growing group of subscribers. He has written thought pieces for the local newspapers and has been interviewed by other media as a result. This has helped him establish a healthy network in Rochester.
