On Monday’s, I send out a newsletter called “Cool Sh*t To Talk About At The (Home) Office.” Today, I celebrate my 200th edition. TWO-HUNDRED MONDAYS later and my open rate continues to surpass 45%, which, if you didn’t know, is excellent. Just Google the average open rate for email marketing in 2023.
I’ll wait.
Each email is a carefully curated list of conversation starters currently making waves across various industries. I’ve made it a point to do so to ensure my audience is equipped to enter any room, ready to contribute to just about any conversation with the utmost confidence. This is a personal practice that I made a commitment to develop years ago, and one I take great pride in.
When I see a headline, I ask myself, “what’s my proximity to this topic?” and if I don’t know much about it, I study it. Sometimes it’s necessary because of the work I do, but other times, I do it simply to feed my own inquisitiveness. In many ways, a lot of the banter we see and hear online feels very empty because it’s all subjective, and is rarely based on research or fact.
Some of the best advice I’ve received is that you cannot be interesting if you are not interested. And this sentiment has helped me attract some of the biggest opportunities of my career over the last decade.
For instance, as a freelance writer on Forbes.com for the last 7 years, people often ask me how it all began. Well, while there are a few paths that lead to the same answer, the one I’ll share with you today is due to my ability to follow my curiosity.
Back in 2016, while sitting at a IRL round-table discussion with my then editor, I engaged in a heavily weighted conversation about Bill Cosby. I’d been studying the ever-evolving story for quite some time and when I opened my mouth, best believe I had stats, facts, and insights to bring forward. Not only had I read up on the ongoing trial, I easily identified micro and macro themes that instigated a much larger, more important discussion. In addition to this, I also personalized my argument by sharing my own experience with sexual assault and the long-term impact it’s had on the way I see the world.
Mind you, everything mentioned above was not considered as I prepared for this meeting. In fact, I had no idea that I was going to be flying to New York to be a part of this discussion until the day before it was scheduled to take place.
While many would have felt ill prepared, I was ready for anything because I understand the transformative power of actively immersing myself in any book or article I can find. I’m talking about pulling out your highlighter, dog-earing the pages you want to revisit with phrases that spoke to your spirit, underlining words you don’t know the meaning of, all while challenging and asking yourself questions that may go against the intended message. In the end, the goal is to learn new things about something, even if I think I already know a lot about it.
Due to this approach, my editor appreciated the level of thought and detail I poured into my responses. She loved that I was able to contribute–be it big or small–and add valuable insight to a topic most would have shied away from. As a result, I landed my own column on Forbes.com. Within 6 months, my title changed from Contributor to Senior Contributor, which ranked me in the top 1% in their global network of writers. The role skyrocketed my career as a journalist and a celebrity ghostwriter, and it all began because when I open my mouth, I don’t just talk, I actually have something to say.
Which brings me back to the newsletter. As I send out my 200th edition this morning, I want to thank the thousands of you who rock with me every week. I hope that each article/conversation starter sparks your imagination and sets you up for the next big win in your life.
As I approach new opportunities and topics that I hope become my own “next big win,” I’m reminded that business ownership is about grit and staying power. Among many other advantages, know that you can literally beat out your competition just by being consistent; in your learning, and in your commitment to the things that drive you forward. It is my belief that some people don’t stick to anything long enough to master it, and that is why I am celebrating the simple fact that I continue to show up. Today, my audience can trust that when they check their inboxes every Monday morning, I will be there, and that’s a big enough win for me.