Alarice's Authentic Journeys

How many times have you heard, “you need to increase your eminence?” Then you thought to yourself, how?

Well, let me help demystify this for you.

Let’s start with the actual definition of “eminence.” According to Collins Dictionary (which I think it is a reliable source), eminence is the quality of being very well-known and highly respected.

Now that you have the definition, let’s discuss how you become “well-known and highly respected.” In other words, how can you create value at the highest levels.

First, you must understand that your value is determined by how much value you create. But, you can only create value if your market knows you exist and knows the capabilities and expertise that you can bring to meet their need.

Three steps to understand what your market values:

1. Understand who your market is
2. Understand what your market wants and needs
3. Understand what your market values

Once you have understood your market, what they need and value. Next, you can think about what capabilities you have to offer value. To build your capabilities, consider some of the below ideas to get you started.

1. Reflect on Past Experiences
   • Review Successes: Identify projects, tasks, or roles where you’ve excelled.
   • Identify Patterns: Look for recurring themes in what you’ve enjoyed and succeeded at.
   • Consider Challenges: Reflect on moments where you overcame difficulties—what skills or traits helped you?
2. Seek Feedback
   • Ask Trusted Peers: Request input from colleagues, mentors, friends, or family about your strengths.
   • Request Structured Feedback: Use structured feedback tools to gather insights from multiple perspectives.
3. Identify What Energizes You
   • Analyze Your Flow State Activities: What activities make you lose track of time?
   • Understand Your Motivation: Focus on tasks you do for enjoyment, not just external rewards.
4. Analyze External Recognition
   • Recognition: Note instances where others formally acknowledged your contributions.
   • Unique Requests: Reflect on what people frequently ask you for help with—this indicates perceived expertise.

Now that you understand your market, your capabilities, you need to create awareness among your market. Now you put your voice out there, share your knowledge and areas of expertise with the market. Some ways to do this include the following:

1. LinkedIn – share your perspectives, comment on articles or posts (don’t just like the post) or create your own content.
2. Blogs/Vlogs – this is a chance for you to create on your own space to share your voice. Take the time to experiment with each, and see which has the greater reach and impact with your market.
3. Videos – short videos can be a great way to capture your audience’s attention and this is most often used as a medium for teaching others
4. Conferences / Speaking Engagements – don’t just attend a conference, but see if there is an opportunity for you to be on a panel or be a featured speaker
5. Podcasts – this is a great way to share your expertise, whether its guest speaking on one or starting one of your own (check out my recent podcast experience from last year)
6. Training – lead a training on a particular area of interest and teach others. Many people often learn by doing, and training others is a great way to do this.

I hope this was helpful as you start or re-start your eminence journey. After all, building eminence takes time and you must start somewhere. The key is to keep going. You can always shift in the areas of expertise you share with your market along the way.