Welcome—or welcome back—to The Thoughtful Executive!
Most executives and comms/marketing leaders I talk to aren’t struggling with having a point of view. Their content is usually emotionally intelligent, grounded in real challenges, and broadly aligned with what their audience cares about.
But where it falls apart is the part that comes next: what, exactly, should someone do after they’ve read it?
A CEO I worked with for over a year had a simple standard.
He wanted people to walk away from his pieces, turn to their teams, and ask: “Why aren’t we doing this?” or “What is our opinion on this?”
The bar wasn’t “Did they enjoy it?” It was “Did this start a conversation and drive action in the next 10 minutes?”
That’s where a lot of thought leadership goes soft.