Episode Details

Most social impact leaders got into this work because they care deeply about the mission, not because they wanted to be public figures with opinions. But that instinct to stay quiet and let the work speak for itself may be doing more harm than good. Developing and sharing a strong point of view isn't a nice-to-have; it's a moral obligation for leaders in this space.

Episode Highlights: 

[00:01:00] The hesitancy Eric keeps seeing in leaders who won't go public with their thinking 
[00:04:00] Defining "point of view" as a pattern of lived experience, not expertise 
[00:08:00] Eric's origin story: from attention economy manifesto to a new framework 
[00:10:30] Introducing the identity impact gap 
[00:18:00] Why therapy made Jonathan a better leader 
[00:24:00] Devil's advocate: what about pure open-mindedness as a leadership philosophy?

Notable Quotes: 

Eric Ressler [00:11:05]: "The bigger the difference between who you actually are and how you are perceived by the people that you care about reaching, the bigger all of your problems are going to be." 

Eric Ressler [00:29:35]: "People need to do research, they need to develop hypotheses, they need to publish those, not just think about them in their brains."

Resources & Links:

• Seymour Marine Discovery Center — seymourcenter.ucsc.edu
• Kevin L. Brown — Mighty Ally 
• Glen Galaich — Stupski Foundation
• Kevin Starr — Mulago Foundation 
• Skull World Forum 
• Strategy Tier ranking episode - "Most of Your Brand Strategy is a Waste of Time" 

Hosted by Eric Ressler, Founder & Creative Director of Cosmic, with co-host Jonathan Hicken, Executive Director of the Seymour Marine Discovery Center. New episodes every Tuesday.

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