We recently had the chance to connect with Melanie Benson and have shared our conversation below.
Melanie, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What are you most proud of building — that nobody sees?
The thing I’m most proud of building is the relationship with my *bonus* kids (aka my step sons.) I had a very difficult relationship with my step parents and when I chose to be with the father of my bonus sons, I decided I wanted them to have a very different kind of relationship with me. Both boys have had a lot of unique challenges, one of which stems from autism, that have been very difficult for their father and myself at times, and I’ve had to grow in a lot of ways to have a close relationship with them. But I’m actually quite proud of the relationship, and the role, that I’ve built with both boys.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m Melanie Benson, known as The Authority Amplifier, and I help established expert-preneurs and thought leaders transform their reach and revenue with a Lighthouse Message(tm) — the kind of message that acts like a beacon to high-value clients and opportunities.
Since 2001, I’ve helped experts scale their business into high 6 & 7 figures, and have noticed too many brilliant leaders remain their industry’s best-kept secret — incredible at what they do, but lacking a reliable opportunity pipeline that keeps them visible to new clients and opportunities. My work helps them change that by building their Million Dollar Visibility Stream™ — a collaboration-driven model that positions them as an the UnIgnorable Expert through aligned podcasts, partnerships, and thought leadership.
Today, my top 1%. podcast, Amplify Your Success, and my business, is all about helping impact-driven entrepreneurs turn their expertise into a movement that makes waves. I’m currently focused on Momentum to Millions™ – a high-touch 1:1 accelerator designed to optimize the visibility strategy for premium guest appearances, elevate positioning, and align an expert’s profit path for maximum authority, reach, and conversion. I’m also writing my upcoming book, Un-Ignorable: How to Turn Your Expertise Into a Movement That Attracts High-Value Clients, which captures the exact roadmap for becoming seen, sought-after, and successful — without burning out or blending in.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. Who taught you the most about work?
I’ve been blessed with so many incredible mentors and coaches over the years that it’s impossible to name just one. Each played a unique role in shaping the coach and leader I am today.
In 2002, my first marketing mentor, Adam Urbanski, taught me how to transform my skills into a magnetic message — a message that quickly helped me stand out as a go-to authority in my field.
My spiritual mentor, Rev. Kathy Hearns, became my guide on how to lead with authenticity and grace, helping me navigate challenges that I didn’t know I could handle.
And my NLP mentor and coach, Christopher Howard, gave me the tools and confidence to shed limiting beliefs and patterns, aligning my inner game with my external ambitions — a shift that ultimately allowed me to scale both my reach and my revenue.
Along all of the mentors, I benefited greatly from being involved in high-level masterminds where guidance was given freely, as part of a rising tide effect.
What fear has held you back the most in your life?
I’ve had no shortage of fears in my life, but recognizing each fear that was holding me back as a leader in my business has been the most impactful growth catalyst.
The biggest fear I had was the fear of “getting it wrong” — which I’m sure was a deeply rooted limiting belief and trauma wound from childhood. By facing all of the ways I held myself back, made short term decisions for “safety” and didn’t trust my inner guidance, I’ve been able to unravel this fear and it’s limit over my business and life.
An interesting twist on fear is that it can sometimes morph into a new fear or limiting belief. I’ve recently become aware of a new version of it where a combination of nervous system dysregulation, industry volatility and my own inner attachment to “getting it right” was influencing my own message and business focus and caused me to shrink back a bit — instead of being BOLD.
It’s very easy to allow one little set back to snowball into visibility fear, and lose your momentum. Luckily, I can spot it quickly (and it always becomes valuable content for my podcast!)
Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? Where are smart people getting it totally wrong today?
Smart, capable experts often get it wrong when they rely too heavily on their past reputation and what USED to work, instead of continuing to refine and adapt their visibility and marketing strategies for today’s market. What I call the Expert Bubble can cause them to stall out and become frustrated with slow sales, simply because the market is evolving quickly — but they aren’t adapting to the changes.
Part of that is over-relying on referrals or their current audience to recognize their unique solutions and “why them.” These expert-preneurs haven’t focused on amplifying their message to new audiences, so they’ve never developed their Lighthouse Message ™ or a messaging system that lands for the listener, and they end up winging it, stumbling through interviews, podcasts, and content that doesn’t perform well.
These experts know they are excellent at their work, but because it used to be easy to attract clients, they aren’t seeing the level of ROI that will help them scale their reach (or their revenue.)
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. What light inside you have you been dimming?
I’ve been dimming my own light when I’ve played too safe — holding back parts of my voice, my message, or my ideas because I was worried about how they’d be received. Early in my career, I thought visibility meant self-promotion, and I hesitated to fully step into my authority for fear of being too “pushy” or stepping on toes.
Over time, I realized that holding back doesn’t protect anyone — it keeps the people who need my guidance from finding me and prevents me from fully living into my purpose. The moment I embraced my full Lighthouse Message(tm), leaned into my expertise, and unapologetically shared my voice, my reach, impact, and results expanded exponentially.
Ironically, my own clients often start their work with me because they’ve been dimming their light in some way. Society often is a harsh critic, and fully owning our message, our power and our full authentic voice can trigger others. By owning your message, and doing the inner work to expand the capacity for our work, we can allow ourselves to be more visible.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://MelanieBenson.com
- Instagram: https://Instagram.com/CoachMelanieBenson
- Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/success/
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/CoachMelanieBenson
- Other: MelanieBenson.com/Podcast
MelanieBenson.com/Framework
