Thought Leadership Leverage

06/10/2026

Your book shouldn't make money on the shelf. It should make money in your business. 📚

That reframe alone is worth the price of admission — and it's exactly where Lucy McCarraher MBE starts.

On the latest episode of Leveraging Thought Leadership, I sat down with Lucy — co-founder of Rethink Press, founder of the Business Book Awards, and author of 17 books — and she delivered a masterclass on what business books are actually for.

Here's the cut-through:
1. Stop writing the book you want. Write the book your market needs. 🎯 Lucy's framework is ruthlessly simple: person, pain, promise. Know exactly who it's for, what problem they're trying to solve, and what transformation you're delivering. Everything else follows.
2. Authority comes from usefulness — not impressiveness. 💡 The best business books aren't built to dazzle. They're built around proven methodology, real client outcomes, and stories that make readers say "that's me." Relevance creates credibility. Full stop.
3. Your book is an undercover sales agent. 🕵️ Given to the right person, at the right moment, in the right context — a book outperforms any brochure, pitch deck, or business card. The smartest authors aren't chasing shelf space. They're engineering trust. 🔥

In today's landscape, the experts winning aren't the ones with the biggest advances. They're the ones treating their book as a growth tool — attracting ideal clients and opening doors traditional marketing simply can't. 🚀

Thank you, Lucy, for bringing such sharp, practical wisdom to the show. 🙏

Find the full conversation — episode 706 — wherever you get your podcasts. Search Leveraging Thought Leadership.

https://thoughtleadershipleverage.com/why-business-books-should-build-your-business-lucy-mccarraher/

Peter Winick talks with Lucy McCarraher, about what business books should really be used for as a growth tool.

06/09/2026

Tomorrow.

If your organization still sees age as a liability instead of an asset, we need to talk.

Join me live with Dan Pontefract for a timely conversation on leadership, demographic change, age bias, and why experience may be one of the most overlooked competitive advantages in business today.

We’ll also dig into Dan’s journey building meaningful thought leadership that actually drives impact.

📅 Tomorrow June 10th | 1 PM EST

Don’t miss this one.

https://www.linkedin.com/events/7448411993977380865/

06/08/2026

Most thought leaders build businesses that are high touch and low scale.

Speaking.
Coaching.
Consulting.
Advisory work.

Nothing wrong with that.

But here’s the question you should be asking yourself every day:

How do I make my expertise work when I’m not in the room?

That’s where scale lives.

Assessments.
Training programs.
Licensing.
Digital tools.
Scalable intellectual property.

The goal isn’t to replace your high-touch work.

The goal is to complement it with assets that can reach 10, 100, or 1,000 times more people than you ever could on your own.

Your expertise is valuable.

The question is: how scalable is it?

06/05/2026

Most thought leaders come from one of three places:

The academic.
The practitioner.
The executive.

The problem?

They often assume everyone sees the world the way they do.

Academics lean on research.
Practitioners lean on experience.
Executives lean on results.

None of these perspectives are wrong.

But if your audience speaks one language and you’re communicating in another, your message won’t land.

The best thought leaders know their default.

The most successful ones know when to adjust it.

So ask yourself:

What’s your default—and is it helping you connect with the people you’re trying to serve?

06/03/2026

The career playbook you followed? It wasn't written for who you're becoming. 🔥

Most high achievers hit a point where the mountain they climbed stops feeling like enough — and nobody talks about what comes next.

In the latest episode of Thought Leadership Leverage, I sat down with Greg Larkin, author of This Might Get Me Fired and founder of Punks & Pinstripes, for one of the most candid conversations I've had about reinvention, resistance, and what it actually takes to lead transformation in organizations that weren't built for it. 🎙️

Three things that hit different in this one:
1. Reinvention is no longer optional. 💡 In a post-loyalty economy, institutions aren't handing you your next chapter. You have to build it — with intention, courage, and the right people around you.
2. Community beats credentials every time. 🤝 Greg built Punks and Pinstripes precisely because real reinvention is lonely. What moves people forward isn't a better résumé — it's a trusted circle willing to have honest conversations.
3. Real thought leadership comes from scars, not slogans. ⚡ Greg doesn't skip the hard parts — the politics, the resistance, the personal cost of trying to create change in systems designed to resist it. That's exactly what makes his work matter.

This is essential listening if you're an executive, founder, or thought leader ready to stop optimizing the old model and start building something more meaningful. 🎯

Thank you, Greg Larkin, for bringing the honesty and the edge. This one will stay with you.

🎧 Find the full episode wherever you get your podcasts — search Thought Leadership Leverage and hit follow so you never miss a conversation.

Peter Winick speaks with Greg Larkin about what it takes to reinvent yourself when the old rules of work, loyalty, and leadership don't apply.

06/01/2026

Thought leaders have a dangerous habit:

They mistake curiosity for buying intent.

A prospect takes a meeting.
Asks smart questions.
Wants another conversation.

Great.

But are they interested in your work... or interested in hiring you?

Those are two very different things.

Too many experts spend months in conversations that feel like sales cycles but are really just intellectual exploration.

Try asking the question directly:

"Are you curious about my ideas, or are you evaluating my services?"

The answer might save you a lot of time.

05/29/2026

Everyone’s obsessed with the future of work.
Very few are talking about the demographic reality shaping it.

Experience is walking out the door in many organizations… and most leaders don’t have a plan for that.

Join me live with Dan Pontefract as we unpack his new book, The Future of Work Is Grey, and explore why age, experience, and longevity may be some of the biggest untapped advantages in business today.

📅 June 10 | 1 PM EST

If you care about leadership, talent, culture, and performance, this conversation is worth your time.

https://www.linkedin.com/events/7448411993977380865/

05/29/2026

A keynote is an event.
A workshop is an event.
A webinar is an event.

And events end.
That’s the problem.

Too many thought leaders build businesses around moments instead of mechanisms. They deliver great content, get applause, maybe even inspiration… and then everyone goes back to business as usual.

Real value happens when your ideas get embedded.

Inside the culture.
Inside the workflows.
Inside the behaviors that actually move business results.

The question isn’t, “How do I create a great event?”

The better question is:

How do I make my work stick after the event is over?

That’s where transformation lives.

05/27/2026

The best pilots don't pray for perfect skies. They learn to fly in the storm. 🛫

Colonel (Ret.) Merryl Tengesdal didn't just break barriers as the only Black female U-2 pilot in history — she built a leadership framework forged at 70,000 feet. And on the latest episode of Leveraging Thought Leadership, she brings that altitude straight to the boardroom.

Here's what hit different in our conversation:
1. Ditch the perfect plan. Build a better response. 💡 Leaders who thrive don't avoid turbulence — they read conditions in real time and adjust. Preparation matters. Rigidity kills.
2. Failure isn't a verdict. It's data. 🔥 Top performers don't skip setbacks. They mine them. Merryl reframes failure not as an identity, but as the raw material of real growth.
3. Story is strategy. 🎤 The most powerful leadership tool isn't a framework or a deck — it's a story that makes someone see themselves differently. Merryl's keynote approach is pure authenticity, zero persona. That's exactly why it lands.

What makes Merryl's thought leadership cut through is simple: she doesn't traffic in polished theory. She speaks from the stratosphere — literally — with clarity, candor, and conviction that translates across industries, teams, and boardrooms. 🚀

Her book Shatter the Sky is everything the title promises.

A massive thank you to Merryl for bringing this energy and wisdom to the show. 🙏

Catch the full conversation wherever you get your podcasts — search for Leveraging Thought Leadership, episode 704.

Peter Winick talks with Merryl Tengesdal about leading under pressure, connecting through story, and turning experience into insight.

05/26/2026

AI isn’t lacking tools. It’s lacking clarity and leadership.

Tomorrow, I’m sitting down with Charlene Li to talk about her new book Winning with AI: The 90-Day Blueprint for Success—and how leaders can move from scattered pilots to real, measurable results.

No hype. Just a practical path forward.

📅 Tomorrow | 1 PM ET

https://www.linkedin.com/events/7442703950706806784/