A Valentine’s Day Love Letter to Thoughtful Thought Leadership (2024)

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Love letters are a great way to let someone know exactly how you feel. Whether you believe today is simply an over-commercialized capitalistic run at greeting cards, chocolates and flowers, or that the day embodies the heart and soul of what makes us human and connected, today, I do reflect on the many kinds of love that fill my heart.

I love thoughtful thought leadership.

I love Thinkers that show-up without showing off.

I love Thinkers who sell their ideas without selling their souls.

I love Thinkers who bring ideas into this world without being a jackass about it.

I love Thinkers who present ideas instead of bloating their status.

I love Thinkers who don’t pander for likes, comments and subscribes.

I love Thinkers who know the difference between building a personal brand and self-marketing (they are not the same).

I love Thinkers who build frameworks without being a “market of one.”

I love Thinkers who are quotable and don’t create social media content quotes about their own work.

I love Thinkers who make money because their ideas get implemented/work and not because they simply said something on social media.

I love Thinkers who think deeply before hitting the publish button.

What is the heart of the Thoughtful Thought Leader?

1. Knowledge and expertise. A deep understanding of their domain of authority coupled with tangible results.
2. Authenticity. Genuine and transparent. This leads to real trust and valuable audiences.
3. Relevance. Unique thinking backed with results that create value and relevance.
4. Consistency. How well they show up – time and time again. ‘How often’ is as important as the value in that frequency of connection.
5. Creativity. How unique is the way that they solve a problem? How creative is the way in which they deliver this information?
6. Boldness. Can they take risks, challenge the status quo and does this work drive change and progress?
7. Adaptability. The true ability to change and evolve the thinking as the world changes… which is happening at an exponential pace.
8. Communication skills. A strong ability to cogently share the thinking in a meaningful and resonant way.
9. Credibility. A strong reputation is not defined by followers or subscribers. It how their domain of authority is accepted in the industry that they serve. Credibility and trustworthiness then creates lasting impact.
10. Community. Audience engagement matters. Audience commitment to the work is paramount. How does everyone show up to make everyone better?

If you are a Thoughtful Thought Leader, I’d like to get to know you better.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Before you go…ThinkersOneis a new way for organizations to buy bite-sized and personalized thought leadership video content (live and recorded) from the best Thinkers in the world. If you’re looking to add excitementand big smarts to your meetings, corporate events, company off-sites, “lunch & learns” and beyond,check it out and follow us on LinkedIn: ThinkersOne .