WEBVTT - Make yourself stand out

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<v Speaker 1>Good morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is about how to become known as an

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<v Speaker 1>expert or thought leader and hence make yourself stand out.

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<v Speaker 1>You might wonder what becoming known as an expert has

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<v Speaker 1>to do with productivity and time management. The answer a lot.

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<v Speaker 1>When I first started working as a freelance journalist many

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<v Speaker 1>years ago, I spent a ton of time dreaming up

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<v Speaker 1>article ideas that I had then pitched to editors. Since

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<v Speaker 1>these editors didn't know me from Adam, I wouldn't get

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<v Speaker 1>many responses. But after I began writing books about how

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<v Speaker 1>people use their time, a miraculous thing happened. Sometimes editors

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<v Speaker 1>would reach out to me, Hey, we're doing a story

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<v Speaker 1>about you can insert some topic here, morning routines, how

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<v Speaker 1>stay at home mom spend their time, reviews of sociology books.

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<v Speaker 1>I discovered that it is a lot more efficient to

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<v Speaker 1>have clients reaching out to you then you reaching out

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<v Speaker 1>to them. The most straightforward way to make that change

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<v Speaker 1>in direction happen is to become recognized as an expert

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<v Speaker 1>at something. So how do you become a recognized expert?

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<v Speaker 1>How do you become the sort of person people seek out.

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<v Speaker 1>Some people grow up knowing what specific topics they'll be

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<v Speaker 1>passionate about, then they study those exact topics in school.

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<v Speaker 1>For many of us, though, it's not that simple. We

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<v Speaker 1>have to figure this out to become thought leaders. We

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<v Speaker 1>have to figure out some interesting thoughts and then we

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<v Speaker 1>have to build a following around those ideas. That's the

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<v Speaker 1>leadership part. My favorite book about how to do this

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<v Speaker 1>is Dorry Clark's book stand Out. Dory is a thought

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<v Speaker 1>leader unbecoming a thought leader. In her book, she writes

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<v Speaker 1>that building a strong professional reputation is the best way

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<v Speaker 1>to protect and advance your career. When you're recognized by

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<v Speaker 1>others as an authority in your field, clients and employers

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<v Speaker 1>want to work with you specifically, and if you do

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<v Speaker 1>lose your job, you're equipped to bounce back. Becoming an

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<v Speaker 1>expert doesn't happen overnight, but there are some things you

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<v Speaker 1>can do today or at least in the next few weeks,

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<v Speaker 1>to get started on becoming more recognized within your field.

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<v Speaker 1>You can spend some time today thinking about a few

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<v Speaker 1>questions that Dorry recommends. Asking these questions will help you

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<v Speaker 1>figure out the most fruitful topics to generate great ideas about,

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<v Speaker 1>For instance, what parts of your field you feel most

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<v Speaker 1>passionate about. What topics are you a local expert, in

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<v Speaker 1>which Dorry defines as not necessarily the best in the world,

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<v Speaker 1>but better or more knowledgeable than those around you. What

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<v Speaker 1>aspects of your field do you find yourself drawn to

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<v Speaker 1>always reading those articles first, are going to those sessions

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<v Speaker 1>at conferences? Then ask yourself what questions in these areas

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<v Speaker 1>you'd really like to see answered and stand out. Dorry

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<v Speaker 1>explains that one of the best ways to establish yourself

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<v Speaker 1>as an expert is to produce some new knowledge that

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<v Speaker 1>other people can see and share. Books take a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of time to write, but anyone can write something shorter,

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<v Speaker 1>such as an article or a white paper. Wikipedia defines

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<v Speaker 1>a white paper as an authoritative report or guide that

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<v Speaker 1>informs readers concisely about a complex issue. I like that

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<v Speaker 1>word concisely. It means short enough to be doable. So

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<v Speaker 1>take a few minutes today and think through a question

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<v Speaker 1>that you'd really like to see answered. Then think about

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<v Speaker 1>how you can do original research on this topic. Dori

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<v Speaker 1>suggests a few questions. Who is knowledgeable in your industry

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<v Speaker 1>but doesn't often get asked for their insights or opinions.

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<v Speaker 1>How can you reach out to them? What on the

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<v Speaker 1>ground field research can you conduct in your area of interest.

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<v Speaker 1>Who can you visit or interview about their experiences? Is

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<v Speaker 1>there a hidden good news story in your field that

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<v Speaker 1>most others aren't aware of or talking about. Over the

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<v Speaker 1>next few weeks, you can carve out sixty to ninety

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<v Speaker 1>minutes twice a week to do your research. Then for

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<v Speaker 1>two weeks, maybe carve out thirty minutes a day for writing.

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<v Speaker 1>Just a few words at a time will get you there. Ideally,

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<v Speaker 1>your manager will be interested in sharing your research through

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<v Speaker 1>your organization's channels. That will get your name and your

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<v Speaker 1>ideas in front of all sorts of people. If you're

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<v Speaker 1>out on your own, you can put your research up

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<v Speaker 1>on your own website or other public platforms, and share

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<v Speaker 1>news of your discoveries through LinkedIn and other social media channels.

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<v Speaker 1>The good news is that when you put things out

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<v Speaker 1>into the world, you get feedback. People engage with the ideas,

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<v Speaker 1>and then you can refine your ideas and contribute more

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<v Speaker 1>to the discussion. Contributing to the discussion is networking, defined

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<v Speaker 1>as establishing connections, and it's a lot more satisfying than

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<v Speaker 1>handing out business cards at a cocktail party. When people

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<v Speaker 1>see you have a great idea, they come to you,

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<v Speaker 1>and that takes a lot less time than you going

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<v Speaker 1>to them. So what are you going to do today

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<v Speaker 1>to build your expertise and let the world know about it.

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<v Speaker 1>I'd love to hear your ideas in the meantime. This

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<v Speaker 1>is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the

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<v Speaker 1>most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear

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<v Speaker 1>from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,

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<v Speaker 1>or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook

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<v Speaker 1>and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod that's b E the

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<v Speaker 1>number four then breakfast key o D. You can also

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<v Speaker 1>shoot me an email at Before Breakfast podcast at iHeart

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<v Speaker 1>media dot com that Before Breakfast is spelled out with

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<v Speaker 1>all the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward to

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<v Speaker 1>stay hang in touch.