Introduce yourself — Who are you? Where are you from? What do you do?
Hi, my name is Lindsay Tan from Opelika, Alabama. I create tools to empower teachers and coaches who are looking to build incredible learning experiences. I do this through my award-winning books, executive design strategies, and internationally acclaimed courses.
How do you see entrepreneurship fitting into the life of someone that has academic credentials?
Academic life is naturally entrepreneurial – to be successful, we have to be self-directed, driven, strategic, and innovative. It makes sense, then, that so many people with academic credentials feel drawn toward entrepreneurship.
How can they use those credentials outside of academia?
There are many ways to harness academic credentials, but these alternatives aren’t part of the roadmap being presented to us in school, so they are often overlooked. Some academics may be interested in a role that lets us develop rigorous testing protocols, manage processes for data analysis, or produce technical reports. On the other hand, our work teaching and mentoring students can allow us to translate complex ideas for the public, inspire others through coaching, develop training for professionals, or create textbooks and resources for the classroom. Even service work can give us experience that can be used to develop business proposals, direct teams, and manage organizational change. We have such a powerhouse of hard and soft skills that it’s surprising more academics don’t seek opportunities outside of academia.
How does the educational system help or hinder academics that want to make an impact at scale?
The current model of many institutions is a hindrance and a burden to academics who want to make an impact at scale. Faculty may attract great opportunities, but there are rarely systems in place to help them sustain or scale them. Worse, our systems of reward narrowly focus on very specific measures of achievement that can make high-impact work yield little weight in promotion and tenure.
Could you touch on why amplifying your platform is important to you?
It’s important to me to amplify my platform because the work I’m doing matters. And it’s not just my work; I know that by reaching further, I can connect people to share knowledge and insights.
What will that mean for you and the communities you are trying to impact?
The world is complex. There’s a lot of information out there and a lot of loud voices, making things even more complicated. Amplifying my platform sounds like I’m just going to shout louder into that turbulent sea of voices. I prefer to think about it as elevating my platform – getting above the water line so my voice can be heard. Anyone can shout louder. Anyone can make it more complicated. It’s my job to make things clear and simple for my audience.
Over the last year, what are some mindset shifts that have been important for you in terms of increasing your visibility, authority, and income?
I had to take a step back from the work I was doing and look at it from an outside perspective. I had to ask myself what it was – specifically – that I was doing better than anyone else. Then, I had to look for new places where I could apply what I do best and which of those places would invest in me as much as I invested in them. For me, that path led me away from my
Who are some of your inspirations (in any medium) behind your work and goals?
I find inspiration practically everywhere. I pull inspiration from the unconventional approaches taken by public figures like J.K. Rowling, Ryan Reynolds, Julia Child, and Wil Wheaton and fellow entrepreneurs like Dr. Sheena Howard, Eloise Stewart, and Ruth Soukup.
In an ideal world where do you see your career and what you are building 5 years from now?
This year, I retired from my tenured position so that I can scale up to work with teams across multiple institutions, building an infrastructure to support entrepreneur academics when they’re looking to overcome challenges. Right now my focus is on coaching teams who want to build high-impact learning experiences and reduce instructor overload and burnout. In five years, I’ll have a suite of resources to help entrepreneur academics – teachers and researchers – who want to improve outcomes and reduce burdens.
Any advice for others who are looking to begin their brand-building journey but are unsure how to start?
If you wait until you’re ready, then you’ve probably waited too long. At some point, you have to stop imagining how great it could be and just start taking action to reach your goals. Get yourself a great mentor who can teach you the next thing you need to know. Don’t expect any one person to be the perfect role model; find role models with specific dimensions you admire. Make yourself a patchwork mentor and accumulate skills as you go.
What have been some of the biggest lessons you’ve learned along the way?
#1: There is no substitution for taking action, and follow-through is the most important form of action. Lots of people have great ideas. Lots of people have opportunities. It turns out that very few people follow through on them.
#2: Just because you can do something – you have the talent, the time, and the know-how – doesn’t mean you have to do it. Even if the whole world tells you you’re brilliant at something, even if you are the best person for the job, you can still say no.
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