208. Want to be a thought leader? Start here. (Simone Heng)

There’s a reason most people never become known for their thought leadership. It’s not because they lack ideas… But because they haven’t done the work to build their credibility or subject matter expertise.

Today’s guest is Simone Heng, a human connection specialist and award-winning author. Simone’s mission is to inspire deeper connection in a world that’s increasingly disconnected.

Her book Let’s Talk About Loneliness has received six international accolades. She’s also spoken to thousands (ex: Harvard, Google, Meta, the United Nations, and more), and her work has been featured by CNN, Al Jazeera, Forbes, Harvard Business Review, and BBC Radio.

Simone built her career in thought leadership not through shortcuts, but through years of intentional work – Educating herself, building a credible brand, and publishing ideas that are not only polished, but profound. If you’ve ever wondered what it looks like to play the long game in a world that rewards speed… This is the conversation.

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:57) “I’ve never seen an Asian woman speak like that” 

(03:13) Developing a subject matter expertise 

(07:17) Choosing your topic of expertise 

(09:20) Being told to hide parts of you 

(10:41) The behind the scenes work

(12:36) Your story isn’t enough 

(16:09) Do you need a PhD to be a thought leader? 

(22:24) Reviewing Simone’s past content 

(26:52) Becoming a speaker or author 

(30:49) What’s next for Simone 

(35:43) Actionable Takeaways

Prefer to listen to the audio version?

Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | Any Player

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Connect with Simone Heng

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/simoneheng 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simone-heng-speaker 

Website: https://simoneheng.com 

Thought Leaders Now: https://www.thoughtleadersnow.com

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Additional Resources

ANNOTATIONS – The Newsletter

The edits that got cut from the podcast.

Every interview on EDIT HISTORY runs about 60 minutes. But less than 40 minutes makes it into the final cut. This newsletter is where the rest live.

ANNOTATIONS is where I share the 33% I left behind — and the insights that came after we stopped recording.

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