Do you suffer Imposter Syndrome? For those who may not have heard the term, it refers to the feeling that successful people often get, that perhaps they shouldn’t have gotten the job, or that they are not worthy of the title. At its root is humility, and perhaps a bit of disbelief that others see them as leaders. and perhaps, just a bit, a belief that they are a “fake”, and will at some point be discovered.

While these thoughts may occur with some successful leaders, there are also some people who truly are fake. The question is how to tell the difference.

An exceptionally useful filter are the Ten Tests of Thought Leadership*, but there are several other tell-tale signs to watch out for:

1. The ratio of self-promotion to third-party endorsement is very skewed.
2. More reporting on other people’s ideas, than sharing completely new ones of your own.
3. An inordinate amount of effort spent on monetization. While evidence of the ability to monetize expertise is actually a positive indicator of thought leadership, a singular focus on it isn’t.
4. A history of backgrounds that are different than the area of current expertise. Think of the Y2K expert who becomes a real estate sales expert who becomes a social media expert who becomes a crypto expert.
5. Very little new IP created. A thought leader is always thinking, so when there is so little that is being created, then it follows that there is also very little thinking.

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