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How I create impactful content even when I’m not the expert

You don’t have to be the smartest person in the room to create content your audience loves. If you’re like most founders and executives, you’re busy running your business and don’t always have the time (or expertise) to create content that truly resonates. That’s where discovering for your tribe comes in. In this article, I’ll show you how to use this approach to share valuable insights with your audience, even when you’re not the expert yourself.

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Takeaways

  • You don’t need to be an expert to create content that adds value.
  • You can position yourself as a learner, researching and curating knowledge for your audience.
  • This approach works well for executives who are pressed for time but want to connect with their audience.
  • LinkedIn is a massively underutilized platform for this style of content, offering a great opportunity to stand out.
  • A simple step-by-step framework to start creating discovery-style content.
 
Reading time: 6 minutes
 

What I’ve learned about creating content when I’m not the expert

Let me guess, you’re an executive or a founder with a lot on your plate. You’re leading a team, building your business, and solving problems every day. But when it comes to creating content, maybe you’ve hit a wall.
I’ve been there too. You know you need to show up online, whether it’s LinkedIn, Twitter, or your newsletter, but it feels overwhelming. Maybe you’re thinking:
  • “I don’t have time to write long, polished posts.”
  • “I’m not an expert on the topics my audience cares about.”
  • “I can’t figure out how to stand out when everyone else seems smarter or more experienced.”
That’s when I discovered a simple but powerful solution: I don’t have to be the expert. Instead, I’ve learned to create value by becoming a guide for my audience. I research the topics they care about, summarize what I’ve learned, and share it with them.
This approach, which I call "discovering for your tribe," has completely changed the way I think about content. And I know it can work for you too.
 

Why discovering for your tribe works

Here’s what I realized: your audience doesn’t expect you to know everything. They’re not looking for you to be the world’s top expert. What they care about is whether you can save them time and help them solve their problems.
By stepping into the role of a curator or researcher, you can do exactly that. Instead of spending years becoming an expert, you can spend a few hours digging into the work of people who already are. Then, you take their insights, simplify them, and share them with your audience.
This works because:
  1. It saves your audience time. They don’t have to sift through books, interviews, or data because you’ve already done it for them.
  1. It builds trust. Being honest about what you don’t know makes you relatable. You’re not pretending to be something you’re not.
  1. It’s easy to execute. You don’t need to come up with groundbreaking ideas, you just need to find them and make them accessible.
 

Real examples of discovery in action

This strategy isn’t just theoretical. I’ve seen it work over and over again for others, and I’ve used it myself. Here are some real-life examples of how people are using discovery to create high-value content:
  1. Samit Garg on Twitter Samit doesn’t have decades of business experience. But he’s built a loyal audience by sharing insights from the best in the business. For example:
      • He studied all 23 years of Jeff Bezos’ Amazon shareholder letters and shared the key takeaways in a thread.
      • He curated lessons from Steve Jobs on startups, marketing, and entrepreneurship.
      • He analyzed Bob Iger’s leadership at Disney and shared nine startup lessons.
Samit isn’t claiming to be a Bezos, Jobs, or Iger. Instead, he positions himself as someone who’s learning from them and sharing what he’s found. His audience loves it, and the engagement (likes, retweets, comments) proves it.
  1. Mental models and frameworks
      2. Another approach I’ve seen is curating mental models or existing frameworks. Instead of reinventing the wheel, you take proven concepts and package them for your audience. For example: “Five mental models every founder should know.”
  1. Industry-specific takeaways
      2. Imagine you’re a seven-figure founder. You could write a post like, “I studied every keynote Gary Vaynerchuk gave to build his nine-figure business. Here are my top 15 takeaways.” You’re not claiming to be at Gary’s level, but you’re offering something incredibly valuable: a Cliff’s Notes version of what he’s done.
       

How I use this approach to create content

I know what you’re probably thinking, this all sounds great, but how do I actually do it? Here’s the process I follow whenever I create discovery-style content:
  1. Pick a topic your audience cares about.
      2. Choose a subject that’s relevant to your audience. For example, if your audience is made up of startup founders, look for insights on scaling, leadership, or fundraising.
  1. Find the experts.
      2. Identify who’s already a leader in that space. This could be a well-known entrepreneur, author, or thought leader.
  1. Do the research.
      2. Dive into their books, interviews, speeches, or other resources. Look for patterns, key lessons, or actionable insights.
  1. Simplify the message.
      2. Distill everything you’ve learned into bite-sized takeaways. Your audience doesn’t have time for a 10,000-word analysis, they want the highlights.
  1. Share it honestly.
      2. Be transparent that you’re learning alongside your audience. You don’t need to pretend to be an expert, just focus on the value you’re delivering.
       

Why LinkedIn is a huge opportunity

Here’s something I’ve noticed: while Twitter is full of discovery-style content, LinkedIn is wide open. Most people on LinkedIn stick to traditional thought leadership posts. But that’s exactly why this approach works so well.
When you create discovery-style content for LinkedIn, you stand out immediately. Posts like these grab attention:
  • “I studied 10 years of [industry trend], and here’s what you need to know.”
  • “Leadership lessons from [famous CEO] that every founder can use.”
  • “Five strategies from [expert] to help your business scale.”
These posts position you as someone who adds value without trying to claim you know it all. And LinkedIn’s professional audience loves actionable, digestible content like this.
 

Why your audience will love it

When you use discovery to create content, you’re giving your audience something they can’t get anywhere else. You’re saving them hours of research, helping them make better decisions, and delivering it all in a format they can quickly absorb.
As a founder or executive, you’re probably used to solving problems for your customers or your team. This approach is just an extension of that, it’s about solving problems for your audience. And here’s the kicker: as you keep discovering and sharing, you’ll start building your own expertise over time.
So, if you’ve been putting off content creation because you don’t feel like the expert, don’t let that stop you anymore. Start discovering for your tribe. Your audience will thank you, and your brand will grow because of it.
 
Whenever you’re ready, here are two ways I can help you:
 
  1. I can handle your LinkedIn for you: You’re busy. I get it. That’s why we take LinkedIn off your plate entirely. From creating content to managing outreach, we drive visibility, build authority, and fill your pipeline with qualified opportunities, so you can focus on growing your business. Here’s my Calendly.
  1. Get Flow AI: The AI Tool for LinkedIn (like no other). No time to write posts? Flow AI converts your ideas into high-performing LinkedIn content in just 60 seconds. Built with a proven strategy, it takes all the headache out of growing your audience, drive traffic, and generate demand, without lifting a finger. You can start free here.
 
 

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Written by

Tom Gray
Tom Gray

Co-founder at getflow.co