Checkpoint #17: The day I realized authority isn’t about how you sound

🧭 1. Logbook Entry

I used to think authority came from sounding smart.
Big words. Strong tone. Confident phrases.

But the more I read, the more I noticed something:

The most trusted voices… don’t try to prove anything.
They just tell the truth.
Clearly. Repeatedly.
They don’t shout.
They resonate.

That’s when I realized:
Authority isn’t volume.
It’s clarity, repeated with care.

🔍 2. What I’ve learned

➊ Authority starts with doing, not declaring
You can’t build trust by performing expertise.
You earn it by showing real work, with real outcomes.

➋ Simplicity signals mastery
The people who really know what they’re talking about…
use fewer words. And more honest ones.

➌ Stories > statements
Don’t just say what you believe.
Tell us how you got there.
Show the moment it clicked.
That’s how you stay human — and credible.

🧪 3. Mini Experiment – Build Credibility Without the Noise

🛠️ Try this:

• Find one recent project, result, or learning.
• Write about it in 5 bullet points:
  1. What was the context?
  2. What did you try?
  3. What worked?
  4. What didn’t?
  5. What would you do differently next time?

Now rewrite those bullets as a LinkedIn post — without trying to sound like an expert.

Just show your work.
The authority will follow.

📚 4. Travel Notes

🔗 “Please stop using ChatGPT to write your LinkedIn posts.” – Stephen Waddington
In this viral post, Stephen warns against the risks of outsourcing your voice to AI:

“Written content produced by AI tends to be low-quality. It lacks context and emotional intelligence…
If you're copying and pasting a LinkedIn post straight from AI, you're pretty much telling people:
A) You didn’t come up with the idea.
B) You didn’t spend any thought on it.”

The message is clear:
If your writing sounds like a robot, your credibility disappears.

🌒 5. Last Trace in the Sand

I used to over-explain.
Add more proof. More data. More phrases like “In today’s ever-evolving landscape…”

But authority isn’t a layer you add.
It’s a trail you leave.
One helpful post at a time.

— The Wraiter

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