Building an audience that actually pays attention

Nobody is going to be impressed by what follows, which is precisely why it has stuck around in my life for so long.

A newsletter, done well, is not a broadcast. It is a slow accumulation of trust, delivered one honest email at a time, and the compounding effect of that trust is something no algorithmic feed can quite replicate or take away from you. An audience that pays attention is worth far more than a list that is merely large. The work, then, is to write so clearly and so specifically that a few people cannot help but forward it to one more.

An audience that pays attention is worth far more than a list that is merely large. The work, then, is to write so clearly and so specifically that a few people cannot help but forward it to one more. A newsletter, done well, is not a broadcast. It is a slow accumulation of trust, delivered one honest email at a time, and the compounding effect of that trust is something no algorithmic feed can quite replicate or take away from you.

A newsletter, done well, is not a broadcast. It is a slow accumulation of trust, delivered one honest email at a time, and the compounding effect of that trust is something no algorithmic feed can quite replicate or take away from you. An audience that pays attention is worth far more than a list that is merely large. The work, then, is to write so clearly and so specifically that a few people cannot help but forward it to one more.

An audience that pays attention is worth far more than a list that is merely large. The work, then, is to write so clearly and so specifically that a few people cannot help but forward it to one more. A newsletter, done well, is not a broadcast. It is a slow accumulation of trust, delivered one honest email at a time, and the compounding effect of that trust is something no algorithmic feed can quite replicate or take away from you.

The work, as ever, is to keep showing up in the unglamorous middle and trust that the compound interest shows up later than you want but right on time. A newsletter, done well, is not a broadcast. It is a slow accumulation of trust, delivered one honest email at a time, and the compounding effect of that trust is something no algorithmic feed can quite replicate or take away from you. An audience that pays attention is worth far more than a list that is merely large. The work, then, is to write so clearly and so specifically that a few people cannot help but forward it to one more. An audience that pays attention is worth far more than a list that is merely large. The work, then, is to write so clearly and so specifically that a few people cannot help but forward it to one more. A newsletter, done well, is not a broadcast. It is a slow accumulation of trust, delivered one honest email at a time, and the compounding effect of that trust is something no algorithmic feed can quite replicate or take away from you.