Pract•ad•goal is a word host Heather Holloway created. It is the sum total of the words ‘practical advancement goals.’ Her intention with this podcast is to teach entrepreneurs how to advance their careers with practical business advice.
Edison, Disney, da Vinci, Branson…what do these names have in common? They are all Thought Leaders. But what is thought leadership and what makes it so magnetic to our human psyche?
Today’s guest Matt Gordon, Authority Muse at The Educated Authority, is here to help you hack into your own credibility and become the Thought Leader you were born to be.
The proclaimed “cult king-maker,” Matt Gordon divides thought leaders into his Five Thought Leader Archetypes (including Inventor, Visionary Publisher, and Showman) and discusses how grasping and understanding these archetypes can give us a view into how we psychologically clamor for more from these types of people.
Matt also dives into creating a unique language to hook yourself into your audience’s brain and the importance of creating an emotional bond with that audience amplifies your unit of creative output exponentially.
“People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” is a quote often attributed to Theodore Roosevelt, but today, Matt dissects how the quote may sound trite, but actually holds a substantial weight when on a Thought Leadership journey.
Practadgoal Talking Points
[2:22] Matt’s backstory: How did he become who he is today?
- Matt had a medical scare back in 2018, where he decided that he has to have a 100-year goal plan.
- That long-range goal should involve doing something good and positive in the world that’s going to outlive him.
[3:42] Entrepreneurs’ Goal: To leave the world better than we found it.
[4:04] What does Matt do in The Educated Authority?
- He works with thought leaders by helping them build relationships with their audience as they promote/market their offerings.
- Helps track the average value per customer.
[4:28] What is ‘Average Value Per Customer?’
[5:30]: Matt defines who/what a thought leader is.
- A thought leader is someone who has a school of thought.
- Someone who actually has followers.
- Someone who has an emotional bond with the audience.
[6:52] How can we become thought leaders?
- You can write a book, just like what people from years ago did, and then spend years promoting the book.
- A more current way to do this is to have a blog or a podcast where you can publish content and gain followers or an audience. Once an audience has been built, you can then publish a book.
- The bottom line is, you need to document your thoughts.
[8:53] Book sales and readership statistics.
[9:49] Thought leadership: There are many ways to do this! Heather shares some tips.
[10:40] Matt shares some examples of how to repurpose/repackage content.
[11:51] What can history teach us on how to become thought leaders?
- Look at history and ask why it happened and how. What are we supposed to learn from history?
- Study history and start seeing patterns in how people who changed the world interacted with their audience.
[13:19] Five different kinds of thought leaders/archetypes.
[15:15] Figuring out your own archetype: Matt discusses how.
- Answer six easy questions and you’ll be provided with historical figures you can model to create success in your own world.
[15:57] Where did the idea of archetype come from?
- Carl Jung’s idea that archetypes are burned into human psychology, and these are cross-cultural, cross-age – it doesn’t matter where you’re from, or what time period you’re living in.
[17:24] Matt shares an interesting story about the study of the “victory salute.”
[18:39] What does it take to become an effective thought leader?
- Understand the hard wiring in the brain, and don’t try to paddle against it.
- Start spotting patterns, or pay attention to someone who has already done it.
[19:46] Biggest mistakes that are being committed by those who try to become thought leaders
[20:22] Offering knowledge-on-demand, instead of a body of knowledge that people can use to achieve the transformation that they’re seeking.
[23:32] Authority Misfire: Offering all kinds of information to people (being people’s “Google”) without establishing an emotional connection with the audience.
[26:19] The need to care and connect first before working on the logistics.
[26:56] Maslow missed something when he created the hierarchy of needs. What is it that he missed?
[28:03] Matt’s advice to those who want to grow their personal brands as thought leaders.
- Authority Lexicon: Have your own special language (words, terms, phrases).
- Identify values and attributes that you can bring to the table.
- Create your origin story.
[31:43] Relational role: What is it and how does it “kill” the imposter syndrome?
[34:00] Heather summarizes what Matt can give and offer to anybody who is looking to become a thought leader, and how people could connect with him.
[35:12] Matt discusses his monthly newsletter, The Authority Gold.
[36:57] Thought Leadership: It’s very attainable.
- Moving large audiences is very possible. In fact, it’s been done many times before. You just have to replicate the efforts.
- You don’t have to change everything about you and your business in order to make this happen.
- Mass audience control: without this, you can be respected and known, but you won’t be rewarded.
[38:24] Heather and Matt reiterate the importance of the origin story.
Connect with Matt and The Educated Authority:
Resources Mentioned in this Episode:
Thought Leadership Quiz – uncover your Authority Archetype and get started on your personalized Authority Playbook.
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