What is thought leadership?

Generally, a thought leader is a person who is recognised as an authority in a specific field or industry. There are a diverse set of characteristics that an ideal thought leader should possess, such as:

1. Expertise: Thought leaders possess a profound understanding of their domain. This expertise is often built over years of experience, research, or practice.
2. Innovation: They drive innovation by introducing new ideas, concepts or solutions to complex problems relevant to their industries.
3. Influence and impact: True thought leaders significantly impact their industry or community. Their ideas resonate with a broad audience inspired, influenced, and guided by their opinions.
4. Effective communication: Thought leaders are adept communicators who can convey complex ideas in a way that is accessible and engaging, whether through writing, speaking, or other media.
5. Collaboration and networking: Thought leaders actively connect with people to foster collaboration and knowledge sharing.

Thought leaders vs. experts and influencers

The term ‘thought leadership’ has been used frequently and loosely in recent years. For example, some people use it interchangeably with the term ‘experts’ and ‘influencers.’ While they may have overlapping characteristics, an expert or an influencer is not necessarily a thought leader.

An expert is defined as “a person who is very knowledgeable or skilful in a particular area.” For example, a company’s CEO may be an expert in their industry. Still, they do not necessarily have other thought leader characteristics such as visibility, broad influence, or impact on the wider industry.

Meanwhile, someone like Elon Musk is widely considered a thought leader in the tech and automotive world. Hildegard Müller, the President of the Automotive Industry Association (VDA), wrote about Elon in the German paper Handelsblatt: “He is a visionary…he is fixated on details and thinks far ahead. He not only wants to describe new things but also create, build, drive and watch them fly. He is not afraid of technology, not afraid of risks, impatient and least of all sparing himself.”

Many people share the same sentiment as Hildegard, with analysts commenting in a Business Insider article that Elon is a “charismatic CEO with a cult-like following” who also “feeds into the innovator narrative.”

Elon is regarded as a thought leader despite criticisms that he often makes promises that have yet to be delivered. For instance, he has previously voiced his confidence in Tesla’s ability to dispatch its cars as ‘robotaxis’ by 2020, but it seems to be pushed back to August 2024. On top of that, he has had countless bizarre and controversial moments, from his tweets of Shrek memes to challenging Vladimir Putin to a combat.

Perhaps charisma is one of the most significant determinants of a thought leader’s prominence. According to Forbes, “content that fails to connect with people, by definition, cannot be classed as thought leadership.”

Meanwhile, influencers create content that resonates with a sizeable audience but often approach them differently than thought leaders.

According to Forbes Coaches Council member John Knotss, “Influencers surround themselves with fans who are attracted to them as a person. Thought leaders attract people who are interested in their thoughts. Influencers influence people to act, while thought leaders influence people to think.”

Jennifer Rotner, CEO of Elite Creative, differentiates the two based on how they communicate with their audience. According to her, influencers talk to you, while thought leaders converse with you.

There are also different requirements for influencers and thought leaders. Influencers are not obligated to possess a deep understanding or knowledge of a particular niche, though many do.

Ben Eubanks, an HR analyst and one of the top HR voices on LinkedIn, demonstrates how the three roles—thought leader, expert and influencer—overlap. While he often creates posts on LinkedIn, his thought leadership extends beyond social media into the books he authors and the webinars and podcasts he hosts.

However, the truth is that there is a flexible criteria for who is considered a thought leader. A book titled ‘The Thought Leaders Practice’ briefly defines a thought leader as “someone who is known for knowing something,” and many people fall under that category, hence why we see so many people across various industries and niches who are considered thought leaders.

Erin Balsa, Founder of Haus of Bold, said about thought leadership: “At the end of the day, perception is reality.” Perhaps it all boils down to how your audience perceives you, regardless of whether you see yourself as one.

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