I\u2019ve never liked the term \u201cthought leadership\u201d. In fact, I hate it. My first run-in with it was back in 2010, when I was working for David Smith and Mark Locke in Fujitsu UK and Ireland\u2019s Office of the CTO. Even then, we were pretty clear: you don\u2019t get to call yourself a thought leader. That label is earned. Other people decide it for you, usually long after you\u2019ve stopped trying to chase it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Fast-forward to today, and \u201cthought leadership\u201d is still something marketing teams everywhere love to talk about. It\u2019s also something I recognise as part of my job in the Node4 OCTO. But my unease with the term has never really gone away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So when I came across some LinkedIn Learning training on \u201cbecoming a better thought leader\u201d (and yes, even typing that makes my stomach turn), I braced myself. And then something interesting happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was introduced to the idea of a thought reader<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The course explained it like this<\/a>…<\/p>\n\n\n\n A thought leader<\/em> is an expert. The go-to person. The one with the depth, the scars, the experience, the opinions. All fine. We know that world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But a thought reader<\/em> is different. A thought reader is someone who pays attention to the world around them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Someone who tracks what\u2019s happening in the market, in politics, in technology, in society. Someone who can read the room, not just the textbook. Someone who can bring context rather than just content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not an ivory-tower specialist. Not a voice shouting into the void. But someone grounded in what\u2019s actually going on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s the person who joins the dots and says: \u201cI see what\u2019s happening here, and here\u2019s what it might mean for you.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Because unlike thought leadership, I think thought readership can<\/em> be claimed. You can choose to be someone who stays curious, who pays attention, who reads widely and listens well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And if I\u2019m honest, that feels a lot closer to where I sit.<\/p>\n\n\n\nA different take<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
And that resonated<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
A definition worth noting<\/h2>\n\n\n\n