How to SHIFT from Follower to Leader to Thought Leader with Denise Brosseau

Dec 22, 2021

Denise is an amazing person that I heard in another session of a mutual friend and mentor, Sam Horn. And I loved what Denise had to say so much that I just instinctively knew I needed to bring her to my community so that you too can learn and grow from what Denise has to teach you. And you’ll see why!

Denise is an award-winning author, thought leadership consultant, and keynote speaker with a long track record of results with an international clientele including Abbott Labs, Deloitte, Cisco, Gracenote, and Roche.

She is the CEO of Thought Leadership Lab and an Adjunct Professor at Stanford Business School.

Denise is also a best-selling author of Ready to Be a Thought Leader? (Wiley/Jossey-Bass) and has been featured in Fast Company, Forbes, Inc. Magazine, NPR, and the New York Times.

She is a frequent keynote and seminar speaker at companies like Intel, Intuit, and Microsoft; leadership conferences including the Indiana and California Governor's Conferences; and college campuses, including Wellesley, Berkeley, and Stanford Business School.

A serial entrepreneur, Denise is the co-founder of the prestigious women's start-up launchpad Springboard Enterprises (which has helped women entrepreneurs receive over $10 billion in funding for their businesses), the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs (now Watermark), Invent Your Future Enterprises and the Invent Your Future Conference for Women.

As you can see and hear, Denise has walked the talk.

Talking Points:

What is a “Thought leader” compared to simply a “Leader”?
What are the steps to shift from being a Leader to becoming a Thought Leader?
Who are some examples of Thought Leaders through history?
What is meant by the “first follower” and why are they so important?
Thought Leader vs. Visionary vs. Integrator

Quotes:

Thought leadership for me is that being that pebble in the pond, really creating a ripple effect and difference around a topic that matters to you. – Denise Brosseau
It’s about implementing transformational change and creating a community around a topic area that actually brings others on board to share and shape messages. It's really taking that idea from one to many, which is being a thought leader. –Denise Brosseau
How do we get people to pick up our ideas and carry them forward? That's the journey of a thought leader and I don't know about you, but I never learned that in college. – Denise Brosseau
All people have the ability to be transformational leaders. Real people can take ideas and make a difference. I think that's what’s empowering about this journey, that it isn't for those other people with a secret decoder ring that they were born with. None of that is true. We all have the power to use our voice and use our platform and use our ideas for good. – Denise Brosseau
Most of the world is feeling powerless. feeling victimized by life, like they have no control, like life is being done to them, and that they can't make a difference in their own life, let alone anyone else's. However, we all matter and we all have that ability. We don't have to be Nelson Mandela or Mother Teresa or Oprah Winfrey. – Dr. Irene Cop
The first person with an idea is often thought of as a bit crazy. – Denise Brosseau
One of the skills you have to learn as a thought leader is how to speak to someone who has a different perspective. And one of the main things we need to understand is that, if we ridicule, if we undermine, if we denigrate the other side, you never ever have a chance of changing their mind. You really have to come from love, you have to come from understanding, and you have to come from a willingness to see things from another person's perspective. – Denise Brosseau
We tend as leaders to keep pounding our side, to keep saying it loud and clear, and think that people will just get on board. That's not the way to get people to change their minds. It's being open, being curious. Even asking questions. – Denise Brosseau
Right now, most people are coming from a place of fear right now. They need certainty, and it's very easy to look for “My way is the right way.”, as the certainty to help with the fear versus understanding that everyone has their reasons. It's not about ‘who talks the loudest wins’. – Dr. Irene Cop
What is it that matters so much to you that you would get up on a Sunday morning for no pay and go work on it? – Denise Brosseau