Table of content:

• Generic, Surface-Level Insights
• All Self-Promotion, No Value
• Inconsistent Voice and Messaging
• Failing to Back Up Claims with Evidence
• Poor Execution and Presentation

Not all CEOs are thought leaders. Even CEOs who are excellent strategists, top-notch supervisors, and skilled managers of processes aren’t necessarily visionaries and industry authorities. Leading a business and predicting where markets are headed or will move in the future are completely different abilities.

Fortunately, thought leadership can be developed. Sharing industry observations and insights through bylined articles and social media content can help position a senior executive as a thought leader over time. Similarly, a well-written book can be a shortcut to thought leader status.

However, thought leadership isn’t guaranteed. A steady stream of posts and articles does not necessarily equate to an enhanced reputation or boosted credibility. In fact, many CEOs end up shooting themselves in the foot and damaging their credibility by making avoidable mistakes.

To build industry authority and earn the respect of colleagues and senior leaders, avoid these common pitfalls.

Mistake #1: Generic, Surface-Level Insights

The fastest way to damage your credibility and confirm you’re just like every other leader in your industry is to create content that regurgitates what others have already said. If you aren’t adding to the conversation or deepening readers’ understanding of issues relevant to your company or market, you may want to hold back from posting. Otherwise, you may confirm that you don’t have original ideas.

Likewise, sharing information stuffed with jargon and business buzzwords can damage any chance of being seen as a visionary or leader. If you’re truly a pioneer with groundbreaking ideas, you don’t need to share messages with phrases like “paradigm shifts,” “disruptive innovation,” or “synergistic solutions.” Rather than spouting popular phrases and acronyms, drill down and explain why your approach or observations are new using plain language. Then weave in real-life examples from your personal experience to confirm your first-hand connection to the ideas.

Mistake #2: All Self-Promotion, No Value

True thought leadership is created to educate and inform other people. That’s it. Sure, smart thought leadership also supports your desired position as a leading thinker, but the primary purpose should be service, not sales. Astute readers can immediately spot when something you’ve shared is marketing-speak, and that damages your credibility and authority. Your true intentions may be questioned. Don’t pat yourself on the back or try to sell your company’s products or services. That’s not thought leadership.

A more effective approach is to address industry challenges and reveal how you’ve seen companies solve them, without mentioning your organization. If you give others credit, so much the better. Share frameworks you’ve developed, potential solutions you’ve been researching or hearing about, or new ideas that you believe have potential to make a difference.

Mistake #3: Inconsistent Voice and Messaging

CEOs who try to demonstrate expertise across multiple topics or areas of interest risk being seen as scattered. It’s harder to convince people you’re an expert when you claim to know about a lot of different subjects; the assumption then becomes that you’re more of a generalist who knows a little bit about a lot of things. Positioning yourself as someone with broad knowledge actually detracts from your desired position as an expert and thought leader.

When you talk or write about a wide variety of topics, say, from AI to supply chain to cryptocurrency, it’s hard for others to know what you’re really an expert in. They don’t know how to think of you. Are you an expert in logistics? Finance? Large language models? Or something else entirely? This confusion damages your attempts to be seen as a thought leader. Instead, find a swim lane and stay there. Choose one core area where you can provide unique insights and build from that; everything you share should then tie back to that core competency. That’s how you’ll build authority.

Mistake #4: Failing to Back Up Claims with Evidence

Although contrarian viewpoints and new ideas are key to thought leader positioning, being able to back statements up with proof is important. Making bold claims without any type of evidence will call into question your credibility and authority. Your claims will be seen as personal opinion rather than proven expertise.

Given that CEOs typically have access to robust research reports and studies conducted internally, making statements that you can’t prove with research data or published reports can be damaging. Instead, whenever you share an observation, insight, or prediction, immediately offer concrete examples and proof. That will help others view your ideas as visionary rather than just commentary.

Mistake #5: Poor Execution and Presentation

Even the most insightful or exciting ideas can fall flat if poorly expressed. Thought leaders also need to be expert communicators or to have partnered with writing professionals who can support them. If you can’t structure and present your ideas clearly, your audience may question your ability to actually execute.

Yes, everyone recognizes and understands that CEOs are overscheduled and frequently struggle to find time to think. Which is why hiring a writing collaborator is a smart solution. Working alongside a communications professional helps ensure that your insights are clearly conveyed and enhance your reputation. Your audience can feel confident in your ability to act on recommendations and strategies, based on your professional-level communication.

CEOs who emerge as thought leaders do so through consistent communication and value delivery, not promotional messages and unsupported claims. Working to be of service to others is also essential.

Work to avoid these credibility-killing stumbles and mistakes to speed up your rise to thought leader status.

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Table of contents:

• What “Bestseller” Actually Means
• The Major Bestseller Lists Explained
• Why Other “Bestseller” Claims Don’t Count
• How to Talk About Your Success Honestly

Several years ago, a local author proudly proclaimed that she had written a bestseller.

I hadn’t heard of her book, so I was curious how she had made it onto the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, or USA Today bestseller list, especially since she self-published. How many copies had she sold, I asked.

Her response? Around 100.

“A hundred thousand?” I asked.

No, 100.

Selling 100 copies does not come close to qualifying your book for any bestseller list. Perhaps she had hit an Amazon category bestseller for a few hours, but that’s very different from landing on an esteemed bestseller list.

If you claim to have written a bestseller, be sure you can back it up.

What “Bestseller” Actually Means

A bestseller is commonly understood to mean a book that has landed on a major national bestseller list. These specifically include the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today lists. (However, the Wall Street Journal discontinued its weekly bestseller list in 2023.)

These are the gold standards, and being named to them carries real weight with the media, publishers, authors, and readers.

Amazon has developed its own bestseller rankings based on relative sales at any point in time in each of its categories. A book could be the top-selling title in its category and win the #1 spot for an hour with two books sold, for example, because no other titles in its category sold during that window.

Sure, you can claim Amazon bestseller status if your book achieves that, but it’s important to clarify that it’s an “Amazon bestseller.”

The Major Bestseller Lists Explained

I would love to be able to break down exactly how many copies you need to sell, and for how long, to be named to one of the major bestseller lists. But as many news reports have found, qualifying is not at all simple. Making one of the lists is part science and part projection.

Some major publishers used to recommend that their authors work with ResultSource, a service provider that could help them improve the odds of becoming a bestseller. However, after a Wall Street Journal article (sorry, it’s behind a paywall) years ago, I haven’t heard much about them.

My understanding is that bookstores report numbers of copies sold weekly, and book buyers weigh in on how many copies they expect some titles to sell. This is akin to a budget versus actual numbers in your sales projections.

So, there is no instruction manual for how many copies will qualify you, though I have heard from multiple sources that the minimum count is 5,000 per week. To start.

Why Other “Bestseller” Claims Don’t Count

Despite how unclear the process is for selecting bestsellers, we all know the bar is set high.

Claiming to have written a bestseller when your book has not made it on one of the big lists only undermines your credibility when you speak to other authors and publishing professionals.

It’s a lot like claiming to be a Harvard graduate when you only attended a certificate program there. Yes, you attended a Harvard program, but no, you are not a member of the Harvard University Alumni Association alongside graduates who earned degrees (I verified this).

How to Talk About Your Success Honestly

Landing atop an Amazon category is worthy of celebration and pride. Even Amazon bestsellers don’t necessarily hit the top 10 or #1. So let everyone know if your book is selling well enough to earn that accolade, if it does.

But don’t overstate that accomplishment.

When you exaggerate, you lose credibility, which is why so many authors write books in the first place — to enhance their credibility. Claiming otherwise undermines your authority.

And if your book hasn’t yet landed on a bestseller list, it’s in the majority. So few ever do. Nothing to be ashamed of.

However, there are other ways you can attract attention to it, such as by entering publishing awards programs. If you win, you’ll then have an “award-winner,” and you would be an “award-winning writer.”

Ghostwriters can enter the annual Andy Awards program, sponsored by the American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) and Gotham Ghostwriters. There are also plenty of independent publishing awards programs out there.

You could also think back to why you wrote your book in the first place. Your purpose probably wasn’t to make a bestseller list.

It was likely much more important than that.

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Table of contents:

• Why Workbooks Are Trending Right Now
• The Business Case for Companion Workbooks
• What Makes a Good Companion Workbook
• Which Book Topics Work Best for Workbooks
• Creating Your Workbook

Ask a literary agent what types of books are selling right now, and in addition to prescriptive memoir, self-help, and fiction, you’re likely to hear them mention workbooks.

Search on Amazon for workbooks and you may be surprised by the number that have emerged on the publishing scene. There are workbooks to accompany all types of books, from business to memoir to textbook, thought leadership, children’s, and reference, among many others.

Many bestselling titles now have workbooks available, although not all have been created by the original author.

Why Workbooks Are Trending Right Now

Workbooks have burst onto the publishing scene very recently as readers increasingly want to understand how to apply what they’ve read.

The shift toward practical learning, rather than reading for information or pure enjoyment, seems to have sparked interest in creating supplementary tools. Instead of taking in a memoir to better understand the author’s experience, for example, readers now appreciate ancillary tools, like workbooks, that help them pick up the intended takeaways and consider how they can help improve their own lives.

You’ll spot many books now offering a companion workbook to aid in comprehension or application of the material.

The Business Case for Companion Workbooks

From the authors’ perspective, workbooks offer new opportunities.

Yes, designing and creating them requires work, but once produced, workbooks can provide a new product line and additional revenue stream. They can be sold independently or bundled with the accompanying book, increasing the profits from each sale.

They can also help improve the Amazon rating by helping each reader get the maximum benefit.

What Makes a Good Companion Workbook

Now, not all workbooks are useful; there are good workbooks and bad. One recent one I bought was nearly a complete repeat of everything in the book, rather than containing exercises to help apply the takeaways. It was disappointing.

Some common elements of helpful workbooks include:

• Exercises that reinforce concepts
• Fillable forms
• Action items
• Space for reflection
• Templates
• Tracking forms
• Scheduling tools
• Calculators
• Additional reference materials and resources

The best workbooks complement and deepen the reader’s understanding of the original book, rather than simply regurgitating the same material. It should help the reader figure out what to do with the knowledge they’ve gained.

For example, a workbook to accompany a retirement planning book could have many types of financial tracking tools, evaluation forms to help determine where you are in your retirement planning journey, links to online calculators, and perhaps some pages to brainstorm and dream of what an ideal retirement would look like.

Which Book Topics Work Best for Workbooks

It’s surprising how many genres and subjects could use a workbook. Obvious topics, such as self-help, business, fitness, hobbies, careers, and how-to, where the reader is looking for education and guidance, are fairly easy to convert into a workbook format.

Others may be more of a challenge, such as fiction, art, or cookbooks, but with some creativity, I bet you could come up with some useful pages to help readers reflect and learn from the original content.

Creating Your Workbook

If you’d like to consider producing a workbook, start by designing some of the key sections, much like you crafted your original book’s outline.

Is there a chronological process that could form the backbone of your workbook? Are there certain milestones or core lessons the reader needs to comprehend? What exercises or actions could support their application of your material?

Could you provide a list of essential tools and equipment? How about a typical timeline for implementation? Photos to demonstrate the ideal outcome?

As long as you keep your readers’ interests and needs front and center in your planning process, I’m confident you’ll be able to think of many additional exercises and tools to aid them.

Workbooks are hot right now, so do your best to design and produce one soon, to take advantage of this trend. Because workbooks help readers make better use of your book, they can also convert one-time fans into repeat customers.

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Table of contents:

• Setting the Foundation for Success
• The Discovery Phase
• Build Trust

Some of the most successful books turn out so well because they are the product of brilliant ideas and expert writing.

Most business leaders have the experience, stories, observations, insights, lessons learned, and vision to make a great book, but they don’t always have the publishing familiarity to be able to shape it into a successful read.

That’s often why they get stuck. Some aspiring authors are unable to proceed with writing a book because they’re not sure of the first step, or the step after that. They don’t know what the process of writing and publishing a book looks like.

Fortunately, that is exactly the type of knowledge and expertise that a professional ghostwriter brings to the table.

Of course, the success of such publishing partnerships depends on how well you collaborate. In many cases, the success or failure of a partnership or collaboration comes down to clear communication and expectation-setting.

Setting the Foundation for Success

The best collaborations begin with a plan, a roadmap for how the writing journey should go.

Before you dig into the writing process, it’s a smart idea to clarify exactly what each person is going to contribute to the project.

Set clear expectations for who will do what. Usually, that happens as part of a ghostwriting agreement.

Typically, you’ll offer the big-picture vision of the book and the defining purpose, as well as the subject-matter expertise and stories and examples that bring your insights to life. Your ghostwriter will bring their knowledge of how books are prepared, what publishers expect to receive, their familiarity with storytelling, and their ability to take complex concepts and turn them into easy-to-understand prose.

To ensure you both stay on course, put these understandings and expectations into a document. In the marketing communications world, this document is often referred to as a creative brief. Briefs lay out who the target audience for the book is, what the book’s bigger purpose is, what you want readers to understand or know by the end, when you’ve both agreed it will be done, and which publisher will be releasing it, among other things. You can fill it with as many particulars as you both prefer.

The goal of this brief, or roadmap, is to keep everything on course in terms of contributions to the narrative and the schedule. It also helps prevent scope creep, such as if you decide halfway through that instead of 60,000 words, you think 80,000 is a better length. You may be right, but that will require a renegotiation of your agreement with your ghostwriter. Likewise, if you both realize partway through that you need an outside researcher to dig for lesser-known case studies, you’ll want to update your blueprint to reflect how that work will be done and by whom.

You’ll also want to be clear about communication expectations. Will you schedule regular Zoom meetings? Will you share information via email, or will you create a Google Doc or a Slack channel? What is acceptable for a response time? Should you both agree to at least acknowledge a message within 24 hours? Or is 48 more reasonable? How about weekend communication? Is that okay or overstepping?

There’s no right or wrong answer here. However, you two need to agree on how and when you’ll collaborate. If you’re a morning person and your ghostwriter is a night owl, you probably won’t be receiving immediate email responses, though you may spot files landing in your inbox late at night.

If you talk about it upfront, no one will be surprised or disappointed by the timing of communications. That helps keep the work progressing well.

The Discovery Phase

Ultimately, the quality of your finished product will depend in large part on how well you transfer what you know to your ghostwriter.

You’ll do that by providing background materials you’ve probably been gathering for ages, as well as writing samples and videos of you presenting relevant material, as well as through the meetings you’ll have where you talk through the book’s content.

Before we start having phone or Zoom meetings, I prefer to send along questions in advance so that clients know what we’ll be discussing and can give the topic some thought. That frequently helps with recalling relevant stories or examples, which can be difficult to come up with on the spot. You might ask your ghostwriter to do that for you.

As you’re talking through content, be sure to share what you can about your preferred writing voice. How do you want to come across on the page?

Are you more comfortable with a conversational tone, to make your material more accessible, or would you rather take a more scholarly or professional tone, to convey your mastery of the subject? Telling your ghostwriter what you like helps them figure out how to match it in the writing.

Build Trust

Successful collaborations are based on mutual respect and transparency. Really, what that means is being honest.

Yes, you should express any concerns about whether you can actually make the deadline you’ve committed to in your publishing contract. Yes, you should share helpful pieces of information about you, such as that you’re hard of hearing, for example, or you’re nervous about sharing some personal stories publicly.

Professional ghostwriters value and appreciate clients who are willing to be open with them. They won’t judge you and they’ll be much better able to meet your needs or address your concerns if you let them know what they are.

When you’re just getting to know each other, it may be hard for your ghost to recognize when you’re joking, for example. Tell them, to be sure.

Be kind and thoughtful when providing feedback. Your ghostwriter is nervous and wants to give you exactly what you’re after, which can be difficult initially. So, when you provide feedback on chapters or section drafts, know that you will encourage your collaborator to continue to strive to do their best if you can be compassionate and clear when you offer input.

If you’re harsh or mean, they may shut down. They certainly won’t be able to give you a better product, and they may opt not to continue working with you.

Remember that your ghostwriter is your writing partner and not your employee. Consider them your equal and you will have a much more collaborative relationship built on mutual respect.

A collaboration blueprint can be as formal or informal as you both choose. However, you’ll want to be sure you establish clear expectations, maintain regular communication, demonstrate mutual respect, and express excitement for the chance to work together.

If you do that, your writing partnership will have the best chance of resulting in a manuscript that is even better than you had hoped.

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Table of contents:

• The Real Cost of a DIY Book
• The Professional Ghostwriter Investment
• When DIY Makes Sense

Most CEOs and business leaders would agree that thought leadership positioning can be good for business and good for your personal brand. To achieve that status, you need a strong public presence, which is typically accomplished through regular articles, blog posts, books, public speeches, and media interviews.

Given the frantic, often all-consuming schedule that C-suite execs and entrepreneurs grapple with, it’s almost impossible to keep up the pace of information-sharing without outside help. Retaining professional support has become a normal part of doing business now that we live in the age of 24/7 social media.

However, some leaders believe that the only way for their personal brand and reputation to be authentic is if they create their own content. For many, that holds true even when the possibility of writing a book surfaces.

The Real Cost of a DIY Book

Business leaders who consider writing their own book often focus on the financial benefits, to the exclusion of other considerations. They tally the cost savings of a do-it-yourself (DIY) book and arrive at a fairly large number.

After all, professional ghostwriters aren’t cheap.

But in making the decision only about money, they don’t take into account other costs.

The first is their time investment. To begin drafting a book, you can’t just start writing unless you’re working on a fictional account that can be made up in your head. If you’re writing a nonfiction book, you’ll need to study existing books on your topic, to confirm the book you want to write doesn’t already exist. You’ll need to spend time organizing your key points and creating an outline. Then you’ll need to do online research to confirm that your arguments and examples are based on fact and not hearsay or AI hallucinations.

Your first draft of a chapter could easily take 40 hours or more, depending on how fast a writer you are. Many of my clients are smart, creative, and articulate, but writing even a few paragraphs can take a full day, they’ve told me. Which means that 40 hours per chapter may be low.

When you start to calculate how much of your time you’ll invest, using your equivalent hourly wage as a rough estimate, you may be surprised by what writing your own book is costing you. If you’re paid, say, $100/hour, each chapter is costing you at least $4,000 if you can get it done in 40 hours. That may be optimistic, however.

Beyond the straight number of hours you’ll need to spend working on your draft manuscript, there is the issue of consistency. Rarely are weeks exactly the same schedule-wise, which means you may be able to find two hours this week to work on your book and maybe four next week, but it’s a challenge to make consistent progress.

Without a dedicated block of time in which to work on your book, it could take many months just to finish drafting a single chapter. It’s difficult to gain any real momentum when you’re working at that pace.

When your whole manuscript is drafted, are you familiar enough with the book publishing industry to know what to do with it at that stage? Do you know who should review it next? Do you have a publisher lined up?

Then there’s the quality question. You may be a decent writer, but are you a strong enough writer to pen a book you’ll be proud of? Are you confident it can stand head-to-head against other books on the same topic?

Poorly written content can do you more harm than good. If your book turns out to be mediocre, as evidenced by Amazon reviews or published book reviews, the damage to your reputation and career can be extremely costly.

Writing your book yourself can certainly help keep money in your pocket, but is that the best decision long-term?

The Professional Ghostwriter Investment

Professional ghostwriters charge tens of thousands of dollars to work alongside you and write your book. The more experienced, in terms of books published; the number of bestsellers to their name, NYT, WSJ, and USA Today; and the number of writing awards earned; the higher their price tag. That’s because with more experience, the lower your risk of ending up with a dud.

Newer book ghostwriters will certainly charge less. By “less” I mean under around $25,000. Celebrity ghostwriters will charge more on the order of $150,000 and up. And the rest will typically be somewhere between $50,000 and $100,000.

As with most things, you tend to get what you pay for.

Some of you are seeing those numbers and are certainly experiencing sticker shock. How can ghostwriters justify charging that much, you may be thinking?!

Well, they’re charging for their considerable expertise as well as for their time. Drafting, editing, and polishing your book will take months. And skilled ghostwriters bring to the project specialized publishing expertise that will also benefit the project.

The result is a book that is better, more insightful, and more skillfully written than you could have done on your own — without you having to spend hours and hours trying to finish it.

When DIY Makes Sense

There are situations, however, when writing your book can make the most sense.

The first is if you genuinely enjoy the writing process. If you love writing, then consider hiring a writing coach to guide you. You’ll be the writer, and you can have a consultant standing by to offer feedback and input on your drafts.

The second scenario when writing your own book makes sense is if you have lots of time. If you have free time and are interested in doing the writing, that’s another vote for a DIY approach. Of course, this assumes that you’re not already under contract and you don’t have a deadline hanging over your head in a couple of months.

Finally, if you can’t afford to hire a professional, writing your first draft can be one way to reduce your need for a ghostwriter. If you can craft a rough draft manuscript that you can hand off to a developmental editor, you can save money that way, too.

Your decision regarding whether to write your book yourself or to hire a professional ghostwriter really comes down to opportunity cost.

You can absolutely write your own book. You likely have the skill and you have the ideas, so you could write it. But should you? Is spending months writing the best use of your time? What is your time worth? And are you confident that a manuscript you draft will be worthy of 5-star reviews on Amazon? Will it be the best version possible?

That’s where the true value of a professional ghostwriter can make all the difference. They can help ensure your personal brand and reputation are enhanced by your book and that you’ll have a positive return on investment.

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Table of contents:

• In Praise of Print
• The Digital-First Approach
• Print as a One-Two Punch
• Sequential Release

The vast majority of my clients come to me planning to publish a hard copy book. Not necessarily hardcover, because paperback is lighter and less expensive, but they want a tangible, physical book.

I don’t blame them, since print books are still considered the gold standard in building credibility and authority.

In Praise of Print

A print book has a “thud factor” — the satisfying sound it makes when you drop it on a desk. The heavier the book, the deeper the sound.

A print book also has a laundry list of potential uses. You can use it as a direct mailer to send to prospects and current clients as evidence of your expertise. You can bundle it with speaking engagements as a value add. You can assign it to students in the college courses you’re teaching as an adjunct, as well as many other promotional opportunities that are easier when you have a physical item.

People don’t generally throw books away, so your title will have permanence.

The two big downsides of print books are the speed and the cost.

No matter which type of publisher you’re working with, a print book will take longer because of all the pre-production work required. After the editing and proofreading, there is the page layout and print preparation, followed by the actual printing. Then the printed pages have to dry before they can be bound together.

I don’t think anyone has ever referred to printing a book as a “speedy” process. It’s not.

As for cost, if you’re working with a traditional publisher, your agreement likely requires that they pay for production. The tradeoff is that the speed of production is typically much slower than that of hybrid and independent presses. Hybrid publishers do require that you pay for production and printing, but it is possible to expedite the process.

Given the time required for books to be printed, there are many situations where it can make sense to release a digital version first. This would be in advance of your official release date.

You can still follow it with a hard copy book, but digital-first can help ensure you don’t miss any marketing opportunities that are time-sensitive.

The Digital-First Approach

Digital-first publishing allows you to get your ideas out into the market faster. In many cases, your book can be available in weeks versus months.

This can be critical when you’re addressing timely topics, a competitor is also working on a book, or in industries where obsolescence is a concern. You need yours out there first.

In addition to speed of availability, since digital-first means your manuscript is formatted digitally for availability online as an e-book, your potential reach is massive. When the electronic version of your book is available on platforms from Amazon Kindle to Google Play Books to Apple Books, buyers worldwide have access. There’s no shipping delay to get to the other side of the globe.

I’m not saying that this is an either-or situation, however. You can and should still proceed to release a print version of your book, but if time is of the essence, lead with a digital version while the hard copy is in production.

Print as a One-Two Punch

Physical books carry more weight as evidence of your accomplishments than digital versions. For that reason, business leaders building their personal brand will want to proceed with a print version.

Another important reason to proceed with a hard copy book is that traditional media outlets, conference organizers, colleges and universities, and corporate buyers prefer to see hard copy books. A print book is a tangible credential that digital-only authors lack.

Sequential Release

Frequently, it’s smart to release both versions of your book in staggered fashion: first comes the digital format, followed by print weeks later.

Launching a digital version first allows you to capture market attention.

The other advantage of leading with a digital version is that you can get reader feedback. This can be useful if you still have time to revise your hard copy edition before it goes to the printer.

With the pace of business only increasing, finding ways to circumvent traditional slow-moving processes can yield even greater success long-term.

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Table of contents:

• Writing for Anyone and Everyone
• Underestimating How Long a Book Takes to Produce
• Leading with Ego, Not Value
• Putting Off Marketing Until the Release Date
• Viewing their Book as a One-Off Project Rather than an Asset

Many CEOs have built successful companies. They’ve taken the helm and helped their businesses expand organically or through acquisition, rolled out new products and services, added headcount, and/or maybe pursued new target markets. They’ve generated millions, or even billions, in revenue for shareholders.

After those major accomplishments, you’d think writing a successful book would be easy, right?

Not so much.

Yes, my clients do well with their books, but not all books written by CEOs and business owners — even with the help of a ghostwriter — will automatically achieve their goals.

After ghostwriting dozens of business books with CEOs, business owners, founders, professors, and experts, I’ve seen what works and what doesn’t. I’ve also witnessed other authors with fantastic ideas make costly mistakes that negatively impact how well their book performs.

Fortunately, these failures are completely preventable. You just need to learn what the red flags are so that you can avoid them when you’re writing your own.

Mistake #1: Writing for Anyone and Everyone

One problem many business leaders have is that they almost know too much. They have so many amazing experiences and lessons learned that they know could be helpful. And they want to share all of them with everyone.

Unfortunately, targeting a broad audience can lead to a book that is so generic that it gets lost amongst all the other general business advice books.

A better approach is to zero in on a particular group that will benefit most from your insights and observations. Maybe that’s fellow CEOs of organizations with 1,000+ employees. Maybe it’s leaders of companies in the AI space. Or maybe it’s new college grads looking for their first job.

By focusing on one particular group of potential readers, you’re in a much better position to help them with their specific challenges and opportunities. But the challenges that new college grads are facing today are very different from what a Fortune 500 CEO faces.

Pick one narrow group and write your book for them, specifically.

A client of mine several years ago wanted to write his company’s corporate history for anyone, anywhere who had ever heard of it. That’s a massive audience, I pointed out. I encouraged him, instead, to write it for the company’s biggest fans. Assume some existing knowledge of the company and then share inside stories that its advocates would love to hear. After all, they would be the most likely to want such a book and to recommend it to others.

The book became an international bestseller.

Mistake #2: Underestimating How Long a Book Takes to Produce

Many business leaders have been thinking about writing a book for years. They’ve had a lot of time to think about it and frequently have a well-developed idea of what they want included. Although the scope of their book may be clear to them, they generally underestimate how long it’s going to take to draft a manuscript of 60,000 to 65,000 words.

Some think they’ll be able to work on it in the evenings or on weekends, or even while on vacation.

They expect that 30 to 60 days should be plenty of time to get it done. Of course, once they sit down and try to make significant headway on their own, they realize their thinking was flawed.

It typically takes much longer than 30 days to produce a quality manuscript, even with the help of a ghostwriter. A well-written, high-quality business book more often takes 9 to 12 months to finish. Yes, it can be done in less time, but only if the author (you) has the ability to carve out time weekly in their schedule to talk through chapters and review drafts. Without that dedicated time, it can take more than a year, or longer.

If you can block off 1-2 hours per week to meet with your ghostwriter, it’s possible to get your book done in a matter of months.

Mistake #3: Leading with Ego, Not Value

CEOs who write books to inflate their own egos generally end up with boring content. If the primary purpose is telling everyone how great you are, it’s going to fall flat.

I say that because most readers today want takeaways. They want actionable insights.

One of the bestselling categories at the moment is prescriptive memoir, because readers like compelling stories, but they also want to know what to do with the information shared. How can they apply it in their own lives?

CEO books need to include strategy, recommendations, and useful ideas, not just story after story about what an incredible job they’ve done at their current employer.

A CEO client of mine several years ago wanted to write a book to explain her company’s intellectual property. Her goal was to help other business leaders by sharing easy-to-understand anecdotes and stories alongside insights and recommendations. She wanted to have a positive impact, first and foremost.

Several times I had to push her to toot her own horn because she was so focused on making sure she explained the business principles and how-to information she knew would be helpful.

And it was. Her book immediately hit the Wall Street Journal bestseller list because she made it all about service to her reader and not about her.

Mistake #4: Putting Off Marketing Until the Release Date

Many leaders are under the impression that marketing their book starts as soon as it hits bookstores. Some also expect publishers to do all of the promotion, which is not true, but what’s important to understand here is that activity surrounding raising the visibility of the author, their message, and their book needs to start well before the book is done.

I often recommend that authors begin blogging, if they aren’t already, about their book’s topic now. Start sharing research, reports, articles, op-eds, and related speeches that can help explain why the book’s content is needed or relevant.

Pursuing guest podcast interviews, public speaking opportunities, conference participation, publicity, and advertising are all good starting points to make your target audience aware of you and your message months before your book is out.

The worst thing that can happen is that you put off marketing until you have books in hand, and at that point, media outlets view it as old news. Some have three-month lead times and need to receive advance reader copies before the book is available in bookstores.

I can’t say that I have too many clients who wait until the last minute to promote their books because I’m constantly emailing them publicity opportunities to pursue while we’re working together. I push them to get their title finalized and cover designed so that they can share that image of their “forthcoming book” with everyone they come in contact with.

Mistake #5: Viewing their Book as a One-Off Project Rather than an Asset

Some CEOs get so focused on the process of writing their book that they lose sight of the bigger picture. They’re relieved when the time-intensive work on their book is concluded. Then, their book comes out, they share it, and they move on to other tasks.

Sure, their book is a useful credential, but they don’t invest as much time as they could in leveraging it.

In truth, a book should serve as an asset for years to come. The most successful CEO authors do all they can to extract value from their investment of time and money.

In truth, you can slice and dice the sections and chapters of your book in many new ways to repurpose it for maximum benefit if you’re strategic about it.

You can use chapters as potential keynote topics. You can take lessons from chapters and convert them into LinkedIn articles or blog posts. You can convert some of the content into lead magnets for your company. You can mail your book out with a personalized note as a way to forge new business relationships.

Really, the opportunities are endless.

One of my clients years ago wrote a book to launch their new company. From the outset, it was a critical asset, and they used it as evidence of their expertise. The book helped them land lucrative consulting engagements and training opportunities worth millions of dollars. Then, they pitched a second book, which they sold for a six-figure advance. That book, which I edited, was a New York Times bestseller.

The book was successful because they planned from the outset for it to be the foundation of their marketing strategy, which they then built on and added to so as to create new business opportunities.

Business leaders who invest in books as tools to showcase and amplify what they’re doing frequently find that it can spark new business opportunities for them and for their company. But it does take strategizing and planning from the outset.

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Table of contents:

• What Voice Matching Actually Means
• The Discovery Process
• Technical Elements of Voice
• Iterating to Achieve a Match

The biggest compliment I can receive as a ghostwriter is hearing an author-client’s friend or family member tell them that they loved the writing in their book. The vast majority of people have no idea that the author worked with a collaborator or ghostwriter, and when that’s not apparent in the writing, it’s a big win for the ghost.

I want their book to sound like they wrote it. That’s my job, after all.

What separates ghostwriters from authors or freelance writers is their ability to write in a way that sounds like someone else — their client. Capturing the language, the pace, the word choice, and the sentence structure of their client’s natural writing style is what differentiates ghostwriters from authors.

Authors share their ideas, their stories, and their expertise in their own words.

The ghostwriter’s challenge is to think about how someone else would explain something when they essentially step into the author’s shoes.

Matching a client’s voice, so that others have no idea that someone else assisted in conveying their message on the page, is the ultimate goal for professional ghostwriters.

What Voice Matching Actually Means

Although matching a client’s written voice is what ghostwriters strive to do, the challenge is more than just mimicking or copying what they say and how they say it. If you wanted to do that, all you have to do is copy and paste what comes from an interview transcript.

Authentic voice matching actually requires the ghostwriter to learn to think how their author-client thinks, how they process information, and how they view the world.

That’s why ghostwriting is such a challenge. Ghostwriters aren’t merely playing a part, such as when a comedian impersonates a well-known figure. That takes talent, certainly, but impersonators are merely copying mannerisms and facial expressions.

Ghostwriters are more like method actors in that they study the life experience of their character to understand their values, what experiences shaped their thought patterns, and their perspective on events.  The result is that they get into the heads of their clients so that they can think and write more like them.

You know the ghostwriter has been successful when readers see what’s on the page and recognize the words as having been expressed by the author.

The Discovery Process

Voice matching takes considerable time and effort, which typically begins with information gathering. The ghostwriter and author spend time together, with the ghostwriter asking questions about the author’s experiences, upbringing, likes and dislikes — you name it.

They want to view the author in their natural life, to witness how they behave around other people, what kinds of stories they tell, how they explain difficult concepts, to try to get at why they are the way they are.

You may recall that celebrity ghostwriter J.R. Moehringer moved into a house down the street from Prince Harry for something like a year, so that they could spend a lot of time together while working on the book Spare. Granted, that book was a memoir and not a business book, but the challenge of getting into the head of his client was the same.

In addition to spending time together, with the ghostwriter listening and observing or even shadowing, there is usually a fair amount of existing material that can be used as background research.

I always ask for and study on my own:

• Articles the author has written
• Articles that have been written about the author
• Blog posts
• Social media posts
• Interviews
• Speeches
• Presentations
• Negotiations

In addition to learning how they communicate, I’m looking for patterns I can replicate. This could be recurring phrases they rely on, sentence rhythm and cadence, and techniques they use to emphasize a point or to diffuse tension.

Together with my own meetings and conversations with my client, I start to pick up on how they would say something.

Technical Elements of Voice

Although we don’t typically notice our own unconscious writing preferences, everyone is slightly different.

Some clients write in short, direct sentences that border on abrupt.

Others prefer to overcommunicate and end up using complex analogies, layered stories, and lengthy sentences that can be hard to follow at times.

There is also the component of tone, which helps determine where on the formal-casual spectrum the author lies. Academicians who lecture to classes tend to be more formal and more directive, while managers and business leaders may attempt to be more accessible and approachable. They don’t want to close any doors or hinder discussion, so they may be softer in their language choice and even self-deprecating.

The types of analogies can also differentiate one author from another. Someone who cites other great literary works apparently assumes their reader is well read and will pick up on their references. Whereas someone who relies more heavily on movie analogies or cooking jargon will come off differently to the reader.

A ghostwriter needs to pay attention to those anecdotes and make note of patterns or overreliance on particular types of stories for better voice matching.

Iterating to Achieve a Match

Rarely does a ghostwriter nail an author’s voice on a first draft. In fact, I tell clients that voice matching is not my primary concern initially, although I’m certainly listening and studying and practicing as I create drafts. But matching the author’s authentic voice generally doesn’t happen until the manuscript is complete and we’re at the editing stage.

Once my client has the chance to read all the chapters from start to finish and to recognize their hard work and insights on the page, then we can zero in on how they might express something differently than I’ve captured it.

Sometimes changes are as simple as word choice adjustments. Other times, the changes have to do with sentence length. During that last polishing phase, when all the content is on the page, is when we go through the draft to make sure the author likes what they see.

I hear some business leaders and experts worry about the authenticity of their book if they had a ghostwriter help. If that is one of your concerns, too, let me assure you that your book will be your book because you’re going to be involved in every decision made, every story told, every report cited. What you’re not going to have to do is spend every evening and weekend typing away on your keyboard.

Leave that to your ghostwriter.

Table of contents:

• The Credibility Amplifier
• Your Stage Awaits
• Inner Circle Access
• The Partnership Magnet Effect
• Compounding Growth
• Permanent Credibility

We’ve all heard, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.”

While it is certainly true that your network — “who you know” — is a valuable personal asset, there is also value in a tangible form of your expertise — the “what you know.”

That’s what your book is, quite literally. It contains evidence of your intellect, insights, and experience.

But what you may not realize is that your book is also the key to unlocking business relationships that would be all but impossible to access without it.

The Credibility Amplifier

When you invest time and money in conceiving of a book topic, organizing, writing, and publishing it, you’re setting yourself apart from others in your field.

That act of packing your experiences and expertise in book form immediately confers on you the title “author.” And once you’re an author, you’re viewed as a step above or ahead of others in your industry. You earn instant credibility that opens doors and starts conversations for which others have not yet qualified.

Your book is proof of your authority.

Your Stage Awaits

One reason that business leaders and experts write books is to qualify for speaking opportunities. Published authors are frequently invited to speak.

Event planners, conference organizers, trade show managers, and corporate meeting planners are constantly on the hunt for credible experts who can provide useful information or advice to their audiences. Your book is evidence that you have ideas and a perspective to share.

And that you’re likely articulate if you were able to write an entire book.

Of course, with speaking as with most opportunities, success breeds success. When you do a great job at one conference, the conference planner will recommend you to their colleagues. Corporate meeting planners mention you to their peers looking for suggested speakers. Word can travel fast.

Each appearance can dramatically expand your network and reinforce your authority positioning.

It can also increase your bank account. With each talk, speech, or presentation that receives positive reviews, your fee rises. Keynote speakers may start by charging $500 and quickly increase it to $5,000 or even $20,000 per gig if word spreads.

While the cash is great, the new relationships formed can be even more valuable. Your network will continue to expand, and along with it, your reputation and credibility.

Inner Circle Access

As you’re making a name for yourself on the speaking circuit, it’s likely you’re being invited into some rooms you didn’t even know existed. There are mastermind groups, industry think tanks, and invitation-only meet-ups and gatherings where serious business gets done among those given access.

Your book is your ticket to get in.

Advisory boards, boards of directors, professional associations, and industry groups often seek out well-known authors to assume leadership roles, join boards, or participate as panelists. These leadership roles get you in front of industry leaders and decision-makers who want to be aligned with experts and thought leaders like you.

The networking that happens at these levels, with these types of people, is very different, very strategic.

The Partnership Magnet Effect

Just as success yields more success, successful people want to align themselves and be associated with other successful people. Being a published author puts you almost in a category by yourself because it signals a level of success that few other people in your field can match.

With a book credit to your name, you may find that other leaders in your field now view you more as a colleague and potential partner or ally. As such, they may be more willing to share their thoughts and ideas with you.

Now, as colleagues, there may be opportunities for joint ventures, partnerships, collaborations, or strategic alliances that you probably couldn’t have even imagined a few years ago. Because now you’re seen more as a peer, an equal, than someone who needs their help.

Compounding Growth

One of the most valuable aspects of your book is the effect it has on your ability to grow your network. There is a compounding that happens, much like in investing.

Each new connection you make as an author has the potential to exponentially increase your network, and with individuals who have their own high-value network you can tap into. Your status as an author more easily opens doors to new connections.

Then, the exponential growth of your network creates exciting new business and professional opportunities you might never have imagined. Business deals, partnerships, collaborations, referrals, speaking invitations, board positions, podcast and blogging offers — the list of possibilities is almost endless.

And it all starts with your network and the launch of your book.

Permanent Credibility

The biggest advantage your business book can provide you is ongoing credibility and authority in your field. Your published book benefits you 24/7, sparking introductions behind the scenes, enhancing your reputation and credibility as people hear about your recent release, and opening doors you didn’t know were there.

Your book is a silent marketing tool that is always working for you.

The impact on your network is also permanent. Even years after its release, your book will continue to serve as a networking catalyst, forging new relationships and uncovering new opportunities that compound over time.

Yes, a book is a product. It’s proof of your expertise and market knowledge, but it’s also a key to a network of relationships that can transform your business and your career.

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