What really separates successful people from everyone else?

Hey all,

It’s almost exactly 2 months until Christmas, isn’t that wild.

The temperature is finally starting to drop in Dubai and the outdoor activities can commence. I’ve got a full day kite surfing lesson booked in pretty soon, so any pointers you might have, do send them over!

I’ve thought a lot this week about what really separates successful people from everyone else. Mainly because I’ve heard 1,000 reels this week of people saying ‘reducing the time between an idea and execution’ is the key to your success, which I think is a great take, but what mindset shifts need to happen to allow that time to decrease?

I've worked with 200+ founders who wanted to become recognized authorities in their space. Some became household names in their industry within 90 days. I’ll be honest, others are still invisible two years later.

The difference isn't their product, their market, or even their messaging.

It's not intelligence, connections, or resources. Almost every founder today has access to the same tools: LinkedIn, podcasts, YouTube, email lists.

The resources are there. So why do most founders stay unknown while a select few become the obvious choice in their market?

It comes down to mindset. Specifically, how you think about visibility, authority, and strategic positioning.

Today, I want to share the 5 critical mindset shifts I've observed that separate recognized founders from everyone else. These aren't just observations, they're the exact reframes that took me from unknown to working with some of the world's top entrepreneurs.

If you're feeling invisible, overlooked, or like everyone else is moving faster than you, this could be the wake up call you need.

Most founders: Grind out daily posts hoping the algorithm will smile on them.
Recognized founders: Strategically position themselves alongside established voices their ideal clients already trust.

When I started Recognized, I could have spent years building my own audience from scratch. Instead, I leveraged podcast appearances to borrow credibility from hosts who'd already built trust with my ideal clients.

That's what we call borrowed trust marketing.

The shift: Stop trying to build authority from scratch. Start borrowing it strategically.

Most founders: Treat podcast appearances as vanity metrics or "nice to have" exposure.
Recognized founders: Build systematic funnels that turn borrowed authority into predictable revenue.

We analyze over 10,000 podcasts every month across 30 data points. The difference between a founder who gets leads from podcasts and one who doesn't? Strategy and profile funnel.

It's not about getting on the most podcasts. It's about getting on the right podcasts, in the right order, with the right positioning, and a conversion system on the backend.

The shift: Stop treating visibility as a nice-to-have. Start building infrastructure that turns attention into revenue.

Most founders: Wait until their website is perfect, their offer is dialed in, or they "feel confident" before putting themselves ‘out there’.
Recognized founders: Use strategic attention to refine their positioning in real-time. (literally using appearances to hone their messaging in the market not in their mind).

The best founders I work with aren't the most polished when they start. They're the ones willing to iterate in public, get feedback, and adjust as they go.

The shift: Stop waiting for certainty. Use action to create it.

Most founders: Spread themselves thin across LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, newsletters, and podcasts.
Recognized founders: Dominate one strategic channel and become the obvious expert there.

When you try to be everywhere, you become known nowhere. The founders who break through pick their battlefield, whether that's LinkedIn, podcasts, or YouTube, and go all in.

We built Recognized entirely through strategic podcast placements. Not because podcasts are "better" than other channels, but because we committed to mastering one vehicle for borrowed authority.

The shift: Stop chasing every platform. Start dominating one strategic visibility channel.

Most founders: Believe they need 100K followers before anyone will take them seriously.
Recognized founders: Understand that one appearance in front of the right 1,000 people beats a million random followers.

Once you understand borrowed authority, everything changes. You don't need to spend years building your own audience, you need to strategically position yourself in front of audiences that are already primed to buy what you sell.

That's why our Podcast Profile Funnel works. We identify the 20-30 shows where your ideal clients are already paying attention, then systematically place you there with messaging that converts.

The shift: Stop grinding to build your own audience. Start borrowing audiences that already trust the voices in your space.

These mindset shifts aren't just philosophical, they're operational.

When you combine:

You don't just become "more visible." You become the recognized expert prospects actively seek out.

Most founders will stay invisible because they're trying to build authority the hard way, posting daily, hoping for virality, waiting for the algorithm to notice them.

Recognized founders take a different path: They borrow credibility strategically, show up where their ideal clients already pay attention, and build conversion systems that turn borrowed authority into predictable revenue.

The resources are there. The podcasts exist. The audiences are waiting.

The only question is: Will you shift your mindset and become recognized?

Reply ‘Info’ and me and my team WILL help you,

Catch you soon,

FP