I’ve been horribly slack about my “newsletter”. Sure, you can sign up for my free video here or in the sidebar, but I basically send out weekly emails that link to my favorite post or let people know about sales, new services, etc etc. Nothing life changing, nothing that’s really beneficial to anyone but me. And I think that’s why my number of subscribers has plateaued. To be honest, I can’t blame you.
Emails and Emails and Emails! Oh My!
Then on a completely unrelated note, this weird thing started happening. People began emailing me about my thoughts on various aspects of social media. Like how to choose the best domain name and whether it’s okay to tweet anonymously. I would spend at least an hour crafting the perfect response. They thought I was smart! They wanted my opinion! I’d write the best damned email if it killed me.
Then the emails became more frequent. I was getting at least one a day and was having trouble doing my own work. You know, the kind that pays. Which then of course had me feeling like a bitch — I don’t have time for this! I’m a consultant, damn you! People pay for my brain smarts!
And then Internet Love of mine, Catherine Caine, wrote The Benefits of Generosity. She said, “I told you that I would gain more than I gave, and I’m already right about that. Both times giving my skills away has been one of the best things I have ever done.”
Way to make me feel like crap, Catherine!
So I commented on the post, basically saying:
This is definitely something I’ve considered, but I get so worried about people taking advantage. I give away so much content on my website but even more so when people email. It consumes my life, but no one else is benefiting except for me and that specific reader. If people ask questions via email, I answer them. But I’ve never pulled a Catherine and just offered up my services.
Then Catherine responded:
I was really worried about it too, first time around. The thought that got me to act: “The possibility that there are bad people won’t stop me from being a good one”. If a few people took advantage of me, then that’s their bad karma. I wouldn’t lose anything I couldn’t afford to give.
Maybe you could make that incredible helpfulness visible? It sounds like you’re doing a lot of generous work, but since it’s in private chats it’s not getting recognized. Maybe you could have a Q&A day where you share the answers on your website? Then more people can benefit from your advice AND recognize your generosity!
So when thinking about the direction I wanted my newsletter to go, I figured I should just work with what was happening naturally. I was already spending time answering emails and I frequently get repeat questions, so why not format those questions into a weekly newsletter?
It’s not 100% ready to go as I’m still picking the best questions, making it pretty and organizing my life. I also need a catchy name. Laura Roeder has an awesome newsletter called The Dash. I don’t get it, but I like it. Am thinking about calling mine something like Inbox Consulting, or…. I don’t know. I suck with names. It’s basically FREE social media consulting delivered weekly via email. Any suggestions?
Submit Your Questions
If you want to submit a question to be featured in the newsletter, just shoot me an email and you’ll be added to the queue. Wheeee!!!
A Teaser: You’ll learn…
- The perfect opener that popular Twitter users are giving that you just ignore!
- The one place you can find tweeps that will actually follow you back.
- Why being “safe” on the internet is destroying your blog traffic.
Curious enough yet? If you want to be the first to know when it’s launched, just give me your deets below:
Also – if you wouldn’t mind retweeting this that would be AWESOME. I really want to spread the word on what’s going to be a kick ass newsletter…. Spanks!
