This is an excerpt from The Expert’s Edge: Become the Go-To Authority People Turn To Every Time By Ken Lizotte

Can one actually become a thoughtleader just by practicing thoughtleading? Or must one have certain innate qualities? The answer to this question gets us into the age-old debate of nature vs. nurture, particularly with regard to the origins of high achievers. A thoughtleader in his own right, Dr. Charles Garfield, author of the book “Peak Performers,” has been studying this issue since 1970 and has drawn a decided conclusion: Nurture is king, he says. High achievers, whether you call them thoughtleaders or experts or “ peak performers” (Garfield’s term), are made not born. “All of them,” he declares.

This is an exerpt from The Expert’s Edge: Become the Go-To Authority People Turn To Every Time By Ken Lizotte

Are blogs a good idea and are they in synch with the thoughtleading approach? Like other thoughtleading actions, a blog will powerfully set you apart if you treat it as a tool. But simply posting a blog entry every day or so, then passively hoping that someone will see it will not help you one bit. Remember that for thoughtleading to be effective, it must be treated as a VERB. So find ways to proactively promote your blog and draw readers your way rather than waiting for them to come to you.

“If you build it, they will come” …does not apply here.

To learn more: The Expert’s Edge

Are you recognized as a go-to authority in your field?

Do prospects seek you out as THE expert to bring in to solve their problems?

Has your business been increasing steadily, despite recessions and tough competition?

If you can’t answer YES to all three questions, get a copy of McGraw-Hill’s “The Expert’s Edge: Become the Go-To Authority People Turn to Every Time” by Ken Lizotte anytime today January 25!

If you purchase “The Expert’s Edge” today, you’ll not only reap the benefits of its “5 pillars of thoughtleading” and how to implement them, but you’ll also gain access to over a dozen valuable professional gifts offered by a formidable array of well-known business experts and thoughtleaders… and at no extra charge!

Why read “The Expert’s Edge”? Favorably reviewed by numerous critics and business leaders, this book will move you toward “thoughtleader” status, separating you from your competitors and making boom-and-bust cycles a thing of the past.

But don’t take our word for it… listen to just a few of the many highly regarded business authors, professionals, consultants and CEOs who have endorsed both the book and Ken’s ideas:

Sean Gallagher, Chief Value Delivery Officer, MarketCulture Strategies
“Want to be the leader in your field? Read this book… You can’t be seen as an expert without it.”

Jan Phillips, author of The Art of Original Thinking: The Making of a Thought Leader
“If you aspire to be a thoughtleader in your field, you won’t find a better guidebook than Ken Lizotte’s ‘The Expert’s Edge.’ It’s a no-frills, cut-to-the-chase manual for mastering the tools of visionary leadership in a fast-paced, ever-changing world.”

Fred W. Green, Chairman of the CEO Club of Boston
“Brilliance is defined as ‘distilling the complex…to the simple,’ which is just what Ken Lizotte has accomplished. Ken’s latest work is a must read for CEOs and all other leaders who want a practical way to separate themselves and their companies from their competitors.”

As for the bonus gifts, you’ll receive tip sheets, articles, videos and much more! But remember, these complimentary gifts are available only if you purchase “The Expert’s Edge” today, Monday January 25, so don’t miss out!

Just forward your electronic receipt to michaela@thoughtleading.com to receive this list of downloadable bonus gifts!

Check out “The Expert’s Edge” NOW

by Carl Friesen, Chief Associate, emersongroup

Many late-night infomercials (not that I ever watch them, of course) promise a “new you” to anyone who will buy their exercise equipment, weight-loss supplements or CD-based training program. I don’t generally believe them.

But you really can re-craft yourself through your thought-leading activities. Let’s say you’re seen as a solid, reliable “implementer” – someone who can get things done. You want to move up to the higher fees and greater adulation available to a strategic-level consultant, someone who says how the implementers should do their work. If your magazine articles, speeches, e-mail newsletters and other efforts demonstrate your grasp of strategic issues, you can start to build a case for why you are the best source of strategic wisdom.

Consider the case of a UK-based engineer, experienced at the soil chemistry techniques that help turn to new purposes properties that had been contaminated by former industrial use. He wanted to reposition himself as a strategic-level consultant. So, I worked with him on an article that described how economic and social factors have to be in place, as well as soil chemistry, to make one of these “brownfield” redevelopments a success. Post-publication, reprints of this article helped this engineer move himself into a new space in the market.

Your public profile as a thought-leader should always be about positioning yourself as you want to be seen, even if that’s different from where you are at present.

Here’s a message from thoughtleader guru Ron McCall:

Rationale for Thought Leadership

Thought Leadership is more than corporate PR, it’s a sound business strategy.  But where’s the evidence?  Recent studies now confirm that senior management who have the vision and the dedication to build a credible reputation for innovative ideas significantly increase shareholder value.

Here’s why:

1.  Endorsements by the national media and the business press provide external validation that the company is being competently managed,

2. High-status in the executive suite leads to sound corporate governance by tightening the linkage between executive pay and firm performance, and

3.  CEOs with reputation premiums provide long-term management continuity by creating enhanced career opportunities for their direct reports.

If you’d like to have a copy of the paper titled, “Rationale for Thought Leadership,” drop me a note or give me a call, and I’ll forward one to you.

Voice: 423.288.2929 | Email: rjmccall@executivecom.com

Visit Ron’s website: http://www.executivecom.com/