Thought leadership occurs when an individual or organization sways an audience to adopt a particular "model" or way of thinking about a topic. The audience, in turn, considers the model the traditional method of understanding that topic.

The subject can be anything from a field, profession, or product/service used for business purposes. These models of thinking can address how to use a product or service, notable and vital qualities, and how it affects the audience directly. The impact and influence of the message supersede the message.

In a nutshell, strategic thought leadership guides your target audience to embrace your organization's unique perspective on what you offer. Linger Firm understands how to initiate your company to develop a Thought Leadership Model (TLM) to help you extract more value from your marketplace and reap financial rewards.

All businesses, organizations, and individuals can benefit from thought leadership. Leadership is intrinsically rewarding; those who help others achieve a better quality of life often find themselves achieving the same. At Linger, we understand the benefits of investing our skills and knowledge in empowering others through creativity.

Thought leadership should be concerned with something other than securing the title of thought leader but aiming to generate one or more Thought Leadership Models (TLMs).

Creating a TLM is a more informed approach that opens an organization to proactive thought leadership. Successful thought leadership extends the positive benefits to a broader population.

Many professionals don't see themselves as thought leaders or are simply uncomfortable with the label. Linger believes it is unnecessary to identify as a thought leader to benefit from creating TLMs.

Generating and promoting TLMs through the practice of strategic thought leadership can enhance the success of your marketing, the expanse of your influence, and the customer service of your company.

TLMs clarify thinking by redirecting focus from the source of thought leadership to what thought leadership is. A TLM is a system that works with purpose.

An example of a TLM is a business’s process for informing a market on how to make buying decisions about a particular product or service. A person or organization will generally have to create multiple TLMs with different purposes for each situation that arises.

At Linger, we assist you in creating a TLM through a collaborative effort. We nurture a TLM to grow and change as it is distributed, which helps it evolve and adapt to different situations.

Suppose your organization is already labeled a thought leader because you have originated one or more TLMs; no problem! Linger Firm will aid in maintaining this position and keeping your company focused on generating your next successful TLM.

We can assess the concept of a Thought Leadership Model from many perspectives. As mentioned above, a TLM is a system. Systems should demonstrate a purpose, with the sum being more significant than their parts. TLMs should also have measurable results, such as increased business, customer loyalty, referrals, and sales.

A TLM should be effective at achieving its purpose of empowerment. It is a vehicle that transports people to new heights of strategic thought and marketplace leadership. Just as reading a map of a mountain is a very different experience than summiting that mountain, we understand that models are not tangible.

However, they can be helpful, and TLMs replace outdated, less effective mental models previously utilized. A new map of the mountain showing freshly charted paths is much better to go hiking with than an older map that still reflects trails that were long ago overgrown.