Dropped by my LinkedIn and found this in my messages:
"Hi Visakan, if you were the Head of Content for a company operating in a very competitive space, say CRM or Project Management, how would you ensure your content gets more visibility?"
hold my beer, I still got this
"Hi Visakan, if you were the Head of Content for a company operating in a very competitive space, say CRM or Project Management, how would you ensure your content gets more visibility?"
hold my beer, I still got this
earlier was asked for advice on getting hired by a startup
me: first try to establish a relationship with someone working there. (coffee if possible.) sincere, directed flattery + a thoughtful question that signals that you're interested + interesting. then ask for a referral
me: first try to establish a relationship with someone working there. (coffee if possible.) sincere, directed flattery + a thoughtful question that signals that you're interested + interesting. then ask for a referral
when I used to be a Professional Content Guy, I would hire freelancers fairly regularly
and I got tonnes of unfortunately ineffective emails from people
people gave me all sorts of details that weren't very useful, and often left out the stuff that I was actually looking for
and I got tonnes of unfortunately ineffective emails from people
people gave me all sorts of details that weren't very useful, and often left out the stuff that I was actually looking for
my biggest worry is that a writer is going to waste my time – ie that we'd end up embroiled in some sort of tedious back-and-forth of edits that take up so much time and energy that I might as well have written the article myself. I actually tolerated good-but-late writers (shh)
a writer having their own personal blog or fan-site or project is a HUGE positive signal. it could be about obscure memes or weird sex stuff. i don't care. simply knowing that you run your own website is hugely reassuring; I can trust my baby with you when I know you have one too
I don't actually need to know about your personal life history, your dreams, etc. I'd actually be much more interested to know that you took the time and trouble to look around my site. Point to an article or two of mine, have an opinion on it. Congrats, you're top 1% material
You DON'T have to write me a full article – that's a lot of effort on your part, and you make it awkward for me if I want to say no. Don't make me dinner, just gimme a cupcake!
"I'd like to write about X and Y. Just say yes and I'll start working on some quick outlines" = 😍
"I'd like to write about X and Y. Just say yes and I'll start working on some quick outlines" = 😍
In general, hiring someone is always risky business. So getting hired is in many ways a game of de-risking. You want to signal that you are someone who is responsive, proactive, considers the needs of the person/org hiring you... that's *already* a dream hire for lots of people
I think at the heart of it all, to me, my sincere belief is that the most powerful thing you can do is convey that you know how to take ownership of something. That's why I've been happily feral for 6 months – I've been busy working on my own things
