They Stole My Talk. Here’s What I Did Next.

Her slides looked oddly familiar.

Same table. Same column headers. Same…… wait a second.

That was my chart.

The one I created. The one I’d tested, shared, and improved over the course of countless keynotes.

And there it was, projected on the large screens bookending either edge of the stage, being presented by someone else just hours before I was scheduled to speak at the same event.

Now, it would be one thing if I was quoted or cited or referenced. But no, this speaker took my work as her very own.

Let’s call it what it was: a copycat.

This was not the first time some of my work, particularly on multi-generational researc,h had been knocked off. It certainly won’t be the last.

• A national magazine once ran an article with the exact same title as my book and then used my research almost word for word without credit. It was nothing shy of plagiarism.

• A publicly traded company invited me to pitch them on corporate training and a corporate keynote engagement… Shortly after beginning talks, they declined my services. I later found out they took large excerpts of my book (approximately 40 pages worth), word-for-word, to create their own internal training videos.

• And what most recently stung, people I respected, trusted, even collaborated with… cloned a project I had been working on for some time. They had early access to provide feedback on my private pre-release work. Later, in a bragadocious social media post, I learned that shortly after I had entrusted them with new material, several of those I trusted got together and knocked off my work and made their own version.

Alrighty, this is not a vent session for me. That’s not why you’re here reading. So let’s get to it.

This is an opportunity to talk about what do when copycats come, because they will.

There’s this colloquialism that imitation is flattering. And sure, it can be. But when you’re the one doing the thought-work, when it’s your ideas being borrowed without attribution, flattery feels a lot more like theft.

So what do you do when you’re copied?

Let me offer four hard-won truths:

1. Keep Running Forward

I tell a story in one of my keynotes about racing my son up the stairs. He had the lead until he kept looking over his shoulder to see where I was. That hesitation cost him the race.

It’s the same in life.

If you spend your time focused on who’s behind you (or who is copying your work), you’ll lose momentum. Worse, you’ll veer off course.

If a plane takes off from Los Angeles and is just two degrees off course, it could end up in New York instead of Florida.

Tiny distractions now can take you far from where you’re meant to go.

So stop watching the copycats. Keep your eyes on the prize. Keep creating new content, researching harder, innovating rapidly. Run your race. Produce the best quality work that you can produce.

2. Leaders Get Copied, Copycats Don’t

If no one’s mimicking your work, you probably haven’t made a dent yet.

It’s a hard truth.

Leadership, by definition, is follow-worthy. And if your content is worth repeating, you’ll likely get copied. It comes with the territory. If your message resonates, people will likely reshare it. It doesn’t mean it’s right. But it does mean you’ve made an impact.

Plato, Aristotle, Socrates…none of them trademarked their frameworks. But they shaped civilization. We have them to thank for much of the way we think in the Western world to this day.

So while the copycats keep copying, you stay focused on being copyable. Sometimes they will forget to credit you, but ultimately, if you keep leading, you will amass the followers.

3. Relevance Isn’t Static

Here’s the beautiful irony:

At that conference where my work was used without credit… I still got on stage and delivered newer research with more current data. You see, in fact, one of the key components of that previous chart has since been disproved and inaccurate. I’m not saying my work is perfect. I put out the best information available at the time. But the world changes. New insights are uncovered.

So the irony? They copied my past work. But I was already presenting the future.

When you’re doing the original, hard work, when you’re out there testing, speaking, and iterating, you will always be more relevant than the person who borrowed your slides or your content that you put out yesterday.

Copycats can mimic content. But they can’t replicate creativity. It is also hard for a copycat to have true domain knowledge and expertise. The individual who knocked off my article wrote a series for that magazine. And each article was worse than the last, misinterpreting data and even contradicting her own writing. She was relying on the crutch of my work…in many ways, people are leaning on the crutch of ChatGPT these days, but that’s a whole different conversation.

4. Let Them. Then Lead Anyway.

Mel Robbins calls it The Let Them Theory: when someone wrongs you, let them. When they copy you, let them. When they undervalue your contribution, let them.

And then? Keep going.

The truth is, some of the folks who copied me never gained traction. No real audience. No lasting voice. No following. Because there’s a difference between using ideas… and living them.

But others? They found success replicating my frameworks or processes.

And honestly? I hope they did some good in the process. I hope the message still mattered, even if it was mine first.

Because here’s the reality: there is nothing new under the sun. So even when I get excited about something so-called “original,” chances are I am just reinventing the wheel or looking at things from a slightly different perspective. I am not really coming up with anything so revolutionary or groundbreaking. So in reality, we all are standing on the shoulders of thought leaders and thinkers who have come before us.

I create content, speak, and write, to help inspire positive change. And hopefully, in someone else using my work, whether properly cited or not, that’s exactly what is happening. The world is a little bit better because of that insight.

After all, that’s leadership. Giving to make the world a better place, regardless of credit.

And that’s what real thought leaders do too.

The Drop

If you’ve ever been copied, knocked off, or had your ideas lifted, you’re in good company. And you have a choice:

Obsess over who’s watching you…
Or stay focused on where you’re going.

The speakers, writers, and thinkers who last aren’t always the ones who shout the loudest.

They’re the ones who keep walking toward purpose,
one original step at a time.

And that’s worth remembering.

Until Next Time…Speak Goodr or Forever Hold Your Speech,

Have you read my USA TODAY bestselling book, Speak Goodr? If not, check it out today!