LinkedIn

What's more weird?

1. Posting weird and wonderful stories on LinkedIn in a consistent fashion for years

2. Scrolling on a "business" platform for 10-20 minutes a day and never posting

📸 getting my think on for a happy friday

#AskingForAFriend

Yesterday I showed some people how to build a one-shot super-prompt for building landing pages.

I then emailed it along with the slides, the recording, and the prompt to those faithful people who both attended or signed up.

Gee I wish I could pass it on to you.

But I hate those comment "IM A SAUSAGE"-style engagement traps.

Anyone got better ideas for doing this without looking like a tech-bro-influencer-bell-end?

🔔↖

This snap was taken 4 years ago. I was running a webinar for Startup Gippsland out of the back-shed.
 
I was in a back shed because we were in lockdown in Melbourne.
I was living in a small house and possess a large "phone" voice that wasn't conducive to a harmonious living arrangement with my (now) ex-wife.
 
I did a weird double-take seeing it because shortly after this was taken I:

> Separated and moved out
> Grew a beard
> Grieved the end of a 7 year old relationship
 
It was a very challenging time, and yet it was the one of the best things that could have happened to me.
 
Because now I have:
+ 5+ years of sobriety
+ A board position with a cause I deeply care about
+ A new spouse
+ Toddler twin boys
+ A business that enables me to do more webinars (I just did another today!)
 
One of the things you learn about the low-points is how you respond to them and what you're capable of.
 
I know I'm capable of great things.
 
But the more important lesson is knowing that it does get better - no matter how long things get, and no matter how low they seem.
 
It feels nice to look back at things at a moment in time, but it feels even better knowing the journey I've been on and knowing whatever lays ahead - there's been painful and valuable lessons learned along the way that have led to that growth.

(Oh and I feel the need to point out the divorce had NOTHING to do with my loud phone voice - at least that I'm aware of 🤣 - and hope they're well today too)

What's a one-shot? I laughed when I first heard it in a professional context.

The last time I'd heard it before that was one-shotting nubs on de_dust2 (IYKYK).

But in the world of AI prompts - a one-shot is getting the outcome you want from one go.

This doesn't suit every use case, and doesn't suit every LLM, but knowing how to maximise your chances of success with this is going to save you a lot of time with prototyping, proof of concepting, and even -

Dare I say it -

Landing pages.

Tomorrows' webinar will be covering how to one-shot a landing page and why it can be useful.

Some hints towards why it is:

- you can train your prompt on pages you like
- you can train the prompt on different direct response copy frameworks
- you can automate the generation of the code to match say - your paid ads or individual VSLs

Link to this and future webinars:
https://lnkd.in/gCsQG2cF

Let's get weird for a second... I've been journalling and brain-dumping since I was 17.

There are digital archives going back.

I was cheeky enough to self-publish a memoir at 29 (!?) and the paper trail of online written thoughts goes deep.

The newsletter covers AI coaching tools and some people claiming they can replace human coaches.

But it doesn't work as sold...

AI tells you what you want to hear mixed with what seems normal.

That's not the same thing.

I have tested this and more in my newsletter.

Is anyone else using coaches? Are they leaning into AI as well?

My coach - not yet.

When I coach others - transcripts and edited notes.

On my Wednesday webinar I smashed 3x live demos of things you can do with data, APIs, LLMs, and marketing tasks.

I did this over a webinar to illustrate what’s possible right now.

- paid ad competitor analysis
- content repurposing
- LinkedIn outreach

Things didn’t run 100% smoothly and that’s not important.

My goals are to cycle through these at pace, build an audience fast, and showcase just how much you can do with multiple tools strung together.

See the whole dance on YT now and next one is this Wednesday of course:

https://lnkd.in/greVeWq4

I got linked to the Clay NYT article 3 times yesterday.

And that's one of the reasons GTM engineers hit the top of my AI adoption tier list in my webinar yesterday.

There's a range of AI adoption right now and those leaning into the capabilities, embracing what's possible, and taking a systematic approach to what's working and what's not working are getting outsized gains.

Then there's laggers -
Organisations that are cautious, gatekeeping, or handing over full-decision making capability on adoption exclusively to IT.

And if your only references to AI are what Copilot, Salesforce, Meta, or ChatGPT tells you then you're not doing any better than normies and boomers.

Full recording up later and was fun to get it going.

I'll be doing Marshy's Webinar Wednesdays on rotating topics on AI, growth, and marketing as much as I can.

That was fun. #GenerateSummit dusted and the mind and energy are full.

Some highlights:

- The art director and copywriter aren’t the lead dream team any more, grab the culture nerd and savant with the iPhone

- Attribution is a zero-sum game, measure with geo-lifting (glad to hear this for my old mega clients)

- Hearing a lot of honesty and understanding from other B2B marketers about what works, what doesn’t work, and what’s frustrating - I enjoyed all of the off-session chats

Thanks to axel sukianto, Kayla Medica, and the whole Generate - The B2B Marketing Community in ANZ team + volunteers for making it all possible and run do smoothly.

🙏

Officially in the expensive epicentre for the rest of the week. Calendar near full and off to #GenerateSummit to see a whole bunch of the Generate - The B2B Marketing Community in ANZ.

Bloody looking forward to it TBH.

And feel for my beloved G who is watching the lurgy-riddled boys back at home base.

I'm very grateful to have such an awesome young family.

I don't travel for BD and learning much so will relish the opportunity and make the most of it.

Looking forward to making lots of new work friends.

✈️💨 🔥 💪🍃🛬

LFG 😘

📸 snap of me practicing my selfie game in my former home city

What are 3 things you can do with AI and marketing that you didn't know?
(That aren't generative spew.)

Well find out tomorrow with the inaugural Marshy's Webinar Wednesday.

I'll be covering demos of:

> Content repurposing in your/a brand's voice

> Competitor Paid Ads analysis

> LinkedIn outreach

There'll be a plug at the end, slides will be shared, session will be recorded and there's Q&A for anyone coming to the live version (won't be recorded).

I'm piloting this series to deliver grounded, hype-free sessions from a practitioner who describes himself as a power-user (but not a tool - I just want to make that really clear).

Because this is the pilot session (and I had to move the original time) just DM me your email address so I can add you to the calendar invite - this isn't gatekeeping it's just me doing things in "le pov MVP-mode" while we get this goodness going.

🎥 of the initial slides below with me appreciating them, by jeepers, I hope I can appreciate the rest of them in time 🤣

"Early founders think marketing is a shortcut to revenue".
 
I'm still thinking about this mention from another (older) founder last week.
 
Discussion was flying around in @generate community about what an early growth hire does.
 
The reality is that marketing is NOT a shortcut to revenue.
 
Adding marketing adds many layers of complexity to the sell:

> Who do you target
> Where do you target them
> How do you measure returns
 
And most importantly - who do we hire to help with this?
 
The reason "growth" exists instead of marketing is because a hybrid skill set is needed.
 
A growth person understands the problem being solved can change.
 
They understand the market can change too.
 
Not only this - they'll actively gather data at pace to prove what's impactful one way or another.
 
A traditional marketer doesn't do this.
 
And yes - this is the bucket an agency goes in too.
 
Agencies are amazing at blowing up and growing companies that have a clear problem and market and fit.
 
They're even better at spraying money down the toilet if the above isn't solved.
 
A traditional marketing hire isn't much better for seed stage.
 
They can scale and add a lot of necessary knowledge to growing and executing in channels.
 
But they don't know growth like their livelihoods depend on it.
 
An early stage growth person knows how to roll-up the sleeves and get the data to get the job done.
 
Pick up the phone?
Sure.

Lead prospect discovery?
No problem.

Building an audience and showing them what your startup solves?
Bring it.
 
This still isn't a shortcut to revenue, but it's the shortest path.
 
The job of the growth person is to find all the pieces that convert, that can scale into marketing that enables revenue.
 
That's a moutful but I will die on this hill.
 
I have seen it hundreds of times and am cut from agency cloth - so I know all the inside BS and games they play too (peace to my agency homies I still got you 🫶🏻)
 
📸 from the weekend, I threw down a classic progressive house mix on the weekend with my 2 y.o. boy learning what bass, middle, and treble do. DM me for a link to the mix 🎧

The latest edition covers:

- how to sell socially versus how not to sell

- reflections back to myself that are hard to hear

- productised agency blueprint (might delete later)

Enjoy your readin' 👋

I caught up with an old friend earlier in the week and we talked about career and life direction.

We have both been blessed with amazing opportunities over the years and now our lives look pretty different.

She's studying her PhD in design theory and I'm Dad Mode 2,000 and consulting and coaching lots of interesting companies.

One thing I shared with her is something I would call the Edge, Beast Mode, or just going full ham.

That dark energy you draw from as a high performer that you know when you set your mind to it nothing is going to get in your way.

Something I've been frustrated by in more recent years is not having "it".

I've softened, my life's more balanced, and I don't even know if I want "it" - I love my life, and the people I have around me.

But I do know that edge is there, ready to uncoil and spring out at something with tremendous force.

I don't know when or if that thing will materialise and I'm quite happy doing what I'm doing and grateful.

But there's something highly energising about looking at something and knowing "it doesn't have to be this way".

📸 from this morning, it's really cold and our famliy has been beset by RSV.
Before this week I didn't know what it was, and if you don't - keep it that way - it's like having a bulldog clip attached to your nostrils and breathing and coughing through sandy gravel

Who do I work with? I got asked this yesterday do let’s reduce, reuse, and recycle ♻️

- Seed-stage, post-seed tech companies with a B2B focus and mid-to-high touch sales process

- are about to hire or have made an unsuccessful sales/marketing/growth hire or investment in an agency

- usually led by a technical founder (they’re more open to help)

I come on fractionally either on a project with a very specific outcome that we negotiate and agree to, or to clean up a systemic mess to get their business back in shape to make that next successful hire.

Things I love doing:

- rolling up the sleeves and generating momentum

- bringing in junior or mid talent who can be shaped into long-term leaders or team players

- setting up automated workflows that leverage what AI is actually capable of right now

What I have been told:

> you break down hard-to-understand concepts and make it simple Marshy

> you turned things around with that client and you could see their whole energy change

> you can’t say that! (but did anyway)

Why I’m not down for a long-term relationship:

- 95%+ of salaried roles underpay me and price me out of more interesting opportunities

- I am neurodivergent and get bored by one thing

- I really, really want to be paid long-term via performance-based incentives like commission and equity

🎥 from LaunchVic Startup Gala last week - it was fkn sick ☺️

There's a tension between old and new worlds in AI.

> Individuals are witnessing more and more capability - while enterprises are slow on the take because: complexity

> You can farm marketing data at lightspeed to understand what works now - but is that valid marketing strategy?

> A great example of old illustration meeting generative video

This is the LinkedIn version of my newsletter that went out to inboxes last week 👋

Free advice - yay or nay?
Because I got read the riot act last night.

By Claude.

Over the last month I've been doing uploads and downloads each working day updating a project focused on self-reflection.

One of the project's key instructions:
 
You are my expert personal and business growth coach with access to nearly 10 years of my personal and business journals. Your role is to maximize self-awareness, identify patterns, and accelerate my personal and business growth through systematic execution.
 
I was driving home last night and did a download by testing voice for the first time.
 
And it unloaded at me.
 
It said:
 
👏 You have a recurring revenue goal of $20k per month but you keep training potential clients to solve problems with you
👏 Your positioning yourself as a helpful friend instead of a paid expert
👏 You created a competitor
 
🤣
 
That's a fun message to receive while driving back to Kangaroo Ground through roadworks and post-MCG football traffic.
 
But it's giving me what I asked it for - uncovering patterns to maximise my growth.
 
Do I need to stop giving away free advice or do I say GFY Claude and give out some more freebies to everyone next week?
 
I write about this kind of stuff weekly in something that's subscribable.

Just met Sawyer Kisken and nerded out on attribution, measurement, and growth marketing.

He's built Roadway - a way to stich together the measurement story in a way that makes sense for higher volume, no-touch/low-touch software conversions.

I don't go deep on measurement as much anymore, but scored brownie points for dropping Avinash Kaushik's name - the OG measurement nerd IMHO.

I’m in bed with diverticulitis. And here’s a damning example of why marketing is rapidly becoming a game of zero clicks.

(Yes I will get back to rest).

My search:
“Low residue diet”

On a mobile phone.

Followed by more scrolls than a bakery to get to anything clickable.

If you’re a brand or marketer that’s not paying attention to this you will need to find a new job soon.

It’s a good thing you’re on LinkedIn already - scroll away and start looking!

something that's bothered me as a content creator (newsletter, blogs, webinars, podcasts, my exceptionally high-calibre LInkedIn posts) is that they're often "one and done".

meaning I put thoughtful effort into it - because its something I enjoy doing and believe it brings value - and then it disappears into the algorithm void

this has always put me off creating more as I don't have a team behind me, and the economics of remote freelancers has never worked effectively for me either (there's a ramping up cost, teaching cost, and lack of immediate ROI outside of just their rate)

but the capabilities of AI workflows is getting better and better, and I'm right in there building them and creating value for my clients

with all of the above in mind, I'm going to dogfood my own webinar series, creatively named:

marshy's webinar wednesdays

here's how they'll work*:

- run most weeks
- 30 seats
- slides + recording available afterwards
- (non-recorded) free Q&A for live attendees at the end

the time/effort/energy required to do it is high, but by practicing what I preach I'm pretty sure I can net this out into more channels and showcase what's possible

first one is this week and sling me a comment if you'd like the link 🔗

The number one skill for staying up-to-date with AI and marketing isn't consuming the "right" kind of content - it's learning how to filter it like ruthless killer.

A common question I receive:
"How do you stay up to date? What courses should I take?"

They're asking the wrong question.

Here's a better one:
"How do I filter through massive amounts of information and only take in what's going to help?"

Here's how I do it:

(Bonus points if you picture me looking like Josh Hartnett in the lift with Alexis Bledel at the end of Sin City)

Newsletters

Set a Gmail rule to put anything with "unsubscribe" in the body to go to a separate folder

I agonised over doing this "what if I miss something" but the reality is if its urgent/important they will find a way to get to you and you'll be okay

Skim through things in batches (few times a week is fine)

Be generous with your subscribing for anything that piques your curiosity - but unsubscribe even faster and more judiciously

Example - MKT1 newsletter is frequently referred to as a go-to in my field - I killed it, too Silicon-Valley-esque and not serving my day-to-day - be brutal

Communities

The bar is high - most free communities are hot garbage and the influx of Skool communities (inc. some paid) are either people engagement farming, or consultants upselling

I'm selective but once I'm in one, I'm in - and give freely and skim for knowledge (and thank people when they drop it on me) looking at you Generate and Pavilion 🫶🏻

YouTube

The school of YouTube is my #1 information source right now

I can binge podcasts, and a lot of leaders in my niches are going HARD on long-form content that lets me swat up on AI, APIs, marketing, no-code, workflows, outbound, prospecting, scraping and automation

Just my humble opinion - but Nick Saraev is walking the talk and producing content out there of an extraordinarily high quality, and wouldn't be surprised if people are talking about him like they do Hormozi in 5-10 years time

I resisted paying for YT premium and then bit the bullet - offline listening + no ads + a watch later list and I am golden

Secret weapon - Reader by Readwise

Reader is a "read-it-later" app for nearly anything web-based, you can bookmark articles, links, posts, YouTube videos, and then highlight and clip the good stuff

It becomes like a personal knowledge database, and because I was a heavy user of Pocket before migrating I have... (checking)

995 high quality pieces of content in there

The tool keeps getting better, and when I need examples/evidence for something I'm writing it's the first spot I check

Reddit for niche intelligence

I'm a weirdo and rabbit hole things like you can't believe, and so am regularly diving into subreddits for the latest and greatest information

There's not one sub that outperforms others (and the main ones are whingey ignores) but special shoutouts tor r/ClaudeAI, r/amazingmarvin, r/n8n, r/vibecoding, and r/slaythespire

look character limit 👀

I'll tell you what I'm sick of:

> Housing prices in this country AND

> The levels of income and hoops you have to jump through to be approved for a home loan

So earlier in the year I decided to do something different.

A couple of weeks ago I wrapped on a project where the money-load was tied directly to hitting specific targets.

I negotiated hard.
Consulted with my spouse.
De-risked as much as I could at home while pushing for a high reward outcome.

And guess what?

It didn't pay off.

Does that mean I shouldn't have done it?
No.

The market is changing, and here's why I'd do outcome-based consulting again:

- There's a ceiling as a freelancer and I'm at it - I'm not interested in trading hours when I can make it positively rain and want to share in the win-win upside

- Skin in the game makes the stakes higher - I want to work with true partners rather than be a gun for hire

- I want to be able to tell the business owner they are full of sh*t when they need to hear it - not kowtow to their ego to protect my cushy fractional income

I'm not going to "bet the house" every time I play, I but I don't see any other way to get one unless there's something I'm not seeing.

Anyone else playing with this approach and backing themselves? I'm all ears.

Because it's open season against service providers who think they can charge fat retainers and not be responsible for their client's success.

📸 me absolutely "slumming it" on the way to garbage bin as I wait to buy our house

I caught up with Dave King last week and it was good to spitball what's happening in AI.
 
A few thoughts worth sharing:
 
> Consulting is really interesting right now.
The big groups were early winners in profiting of AI, but I'm seeing a lot of value to be gained with broad knowledge + tech literacy + and being willing to get your hands dirty. The output you can generate as an individual compared to 6 months ago is immense
 
> There's still a yawning gap between this and enterprise solutions.
Large companies are stuck between a willingness to test and prototype, < insert yawning chasm here >, and leverage capabilities across a department or organisation for real and measurable impact
 
> Have you got that old startup idea list?
It might be time to dust off the Markdown file and have another look, it's a hell of a lot easier to build than it used to be
 
For example - 18 months ago I was prototyping and exploring an ADHD desktop companion that nudged you when you went off-task, now you can grab open-source tools like Pickle by Glass and set up some notification triggers based on these behaviours happening.
 
Fun times 💫

Have you ever been to a business event, hear a voice that makes you CRINGE, and want to curl under the table into the foetal position and go back to a warm blanket, some snacks, and a lactose-free hot chocolate?

Well...

Let me tell you about the time I was in Krabi, Thailand.

I'd completed a running workout, had our gear packed and was wearing a "BLERCH" t-shirt by Matthew Inman.

It decries:
"I do not believe in the wall, I believe in THE BLERCH"

Then, cuting through my humidity and post-workout fugue:
"Is that about OUR wall?"

What the actual F?

I turn around and its an American tourist asking me whether this amusing in-joke about running in t-shirt form is about her world, her politics, and her CRAP.

I politely explained that no - it's a t-shirt from a comic artist I like and that's all and moved on.

But do you know what reminded me of this jarring experience?

The appearance of an AI mascot in the Western Bulldogs supporter FB group.

Our boys are red, white, and blue.

The AI decided to super impose that schtick onto an American Flag and create a mascot called Barkus Montempelli.

What a horrific, jarring, and godawful use case for AI and it reminds of that unwelcome voice at a work event and that unwelcome American tourist in Thailand.

In the bin you go 🚮

📸 of me slaying the Two Bays Trail Run in 2020 on the left, and offensive AI mascot on the right

--

you can find more takes like this in my newsletter

Watch me fit 3 A's into a video about AI in under 60 seconds.
 
Or just read this...
 
ADHD - this flavour neurodiversity helps think laterally, connecting disparate concepts together in a way that's intuitive to you - but is wild magic to neurotypicals

Aphantasia - is the inability to visualise things in your mind's eye, this comes in handy for thinking about and connecting abstract concepts in tech because a lot of it is stuff we can't see

Abstraction - is the ability to zoom into and zoom out of different kinds of concepts on different levels, this is incredibly handy for the interconnected nature of software, builds, workflows, APIs, and data patterns
 
These all come in handy when engaging with and thinking about AI's capabilities - it's a weird technology that benefits from being able to conceptualise, prototype, and remix things with your existing data.
 
--
 
follow my newsletter for more like this

Here's a fun life hack when exploring working with a senior leader:

Ask them to tell you something they felt strongly about a year ago, and that they've changed their mind on today.

-

There's no right or wrong answers to this question, but in looking at the nuance and the way they answer it - you can get a strong sense of what they're like to work with and whether you will gel.

Well I changed my mind on something friends.

For 59 editions I covered AI in my newsletter and grew progressively more frustrated by the doom and gloom.

Once I read more about energy consumption, water consumption, and data warehouses with pollution that literally deletes small US towns into oblivion...

It was really hard to muster the energy to contribute anything to this weird tide of change.

And so about a year ago I stopped writing about it.

Did I stop using it?
No.

Do I still think it creates very real problems for the planet?
Yes.

So pumped out a new edition this week and opened with a quote from Robert Greene's 48 Laws of Power:

"If the world is like a giant scheming court and we are trapped inside it, there is no use in trying to opt out of the game.

That will only render you powerless, and powerlessness will make you miserable.

Instead of struggling against the inevitable, instead of arguing and whining and feeling guilty, it is far better to excel at power.

In fact, the better you are at dealing with power, the better friend, lover, husband, wife, and person you become."

Make no mistake - AI is a power game on multiple levels and it's better to be aware of what is happening than trying to stay out of it.

#ai #newsletter

This is me Melbourning hard.

It was snapped moments before being hit for six by a virus last week.

But don’t let that deter you.

If we haven’t caught up in a while and you want to do a CBD meet over the next few weeks then let’s have my people talk to your people.

Things I’m looking for:

- interesting conversations
- business owners with a hunch about AI they want to talk out
- reconnects with old colleagues, acquaintances, and mortal nemeses

Keep calm and tarry on ☔️

me -

(as a 20-something after hearing parents talk about toddlers keeping you awake at night and how hard it is in the workplace):

"blah, blah, blah - I'm off to see The Chemical Brothers on the weekend yewww!"
 
me -

as an older parent with toddler twins getting exposure to the exact same content:
 
OH MY GOD.
 
I feel SEEEEEEN 🫶🏻
 
This post was brought to you by the Adenovirus, sleep regression, and the post-midnight wakeups on days beginning with M, T, and F.

What does getting into the weeds of growth look like?

We got into the nitty gritty of it with Alan Jones earlier this year on his Pick My Brain podcast with DayOne.fm - We’re for founders and startup operators.
 
It covers -
>> why hiring and job searching are evergreen problems

>> how UseVerb plays in this space

>> what we think about in looking at super-sticky users versus passers by

>> the importance of persistence and why it's fun working with Paul Deuchar

>> some of the problems and solving that comes up with scaling and experimentation
 
As things were recorded earlier in the year, its interesting hearing the takes on problems versus now.

I'm moving onto new consulting projects over the coming months, but still believe in the problem and am cheering for UseVerb from afar.
 
You listen to the pod in your usual podcast channels or here's the YT link:

https://lnkd.in/gtMjqPMk

What does getting into the weeds of growth look like?"
""
"We got into the nitty gritty of it with Alan Jones earlier this year on his Pick My Brain podcast with DayOne.fm - We’re for founders and startup operators."
" "
"It covers -"
">> why hiring and job searching are evergreen problems"
""
">> how UseVerb plays in this space"
""
">> what we think about in looking at super-sticky users versus passers by"
""
">> the importance of persistence and why it's fun working with Paul Deuchar"
""
">> some of the problems and solving that comes up with scaling and experimentation"
" "
"As things were recorded earlier in the year, its interesting hearing the takes on problems versus now."
""
"I'm moving onto new consulting projects over the coming months, but still believe in the problem and am cheering for UseVerb from afar."
" "
"You listen to the pod in your usual podcast channels or here's the YT link:"
""
"https://lnkd.in/gtMjqPMk

5 years sober today.

Looking back, the decision to choose a healthier life is an absolute no-brainer.

But at the time, the gravity of the decision was huge.

I had built a world for myself that was extremely social - where social meant drinking get togethers after work, fancy wine and cheese dinners, and clubbing and kick-ons with close crew.

It was through the latter I grew comfortable in my skin as an adult, became more open about sharing my story, and learned how to relate to people better after huge trauma as a child and as a student over in Perth.

The funny thing is the same substances that gave me comfort were also distorting my worldview and numbing my deepest feelings.

Feelings that needed to be experienced, so that I could heal and love myself from the trauma I had only talked about - not felt.

That’s a distinction that was impossible for me to understand 5 years ago.

It was only after I removed that coping strategy that the messy healing process really began.

There’s a myth that after stopping problematic drinking and partying that life suddenly gets better.

It doesn’t.

I got divorced during a lockdown.

My “rock bottom” was sitting in a near empty apartment with a box of doughnuts, a can of creamy soda, and Mortal Kombat movie on the television.

But the truth to the myth is there’s no longer a fog obscuring all the things you need to work through that actually matter.

I cleaned up my shit.
I got healthy.
I did my deep recovery work.

My friend Bernie said to me:

“When it starts getting better, it will be even better than you could possibly imagine.”

I remember hearing this about a year into sobriety and thinking…

What on earth is he talking about?

Well - cue up Fatboy Slim’s “Right Here, Right Now…

- 5 years of putting my health first
- Learning to love myself every day
- Finishing the Melbourne Marathon in under 4 hours
- Returning to basketball after 20+ years off and into my 5th season
- Joined the board at SANE and chair the Lived Experience Advisory Committee
- Dozens of speaking engagements ranging from local councils and tech companies through to Parliament House on World Mental Health Day
- Sharing my story on 9 News
- Finding my beautiful and loving spouse Georgie
- Creating two healthy and curious twin boys

It fills my heart more than I can express to experience all of this.

Yet the origins of all of this - good and bad - were from a scared little boy who grew up without his Dad because he couldn’t cope and took his own life.

Reconnecting with that little boy was the best thing I ever did, and I feel like the best is yet to come.

Thanks Luke, I love you ❤️

5 years sober today."
""
"Looking back, the decision to choose a healthier life is an absolute no-brainer."
""
"But at the time, the gravity of the decision was huge."
""
"I had built a world for myself that was extremely social - where social meant drinking get togethers after work, fancy wine and cheese dinners, and clubbing and kick-ons with close crew."
""
"It was through the latter I grew comfortable in my skin as an adult, became more open about sharing my story, and learned how to relate to people better after huge trauma as a child and as a student over in Perth."
""
"The funny thing is the same substances that gave me comfort were also distorting my worldview and numbing my deepest feelings. "
""
"Feelings that needed to be experienced, so that I could heal and love myself from the trauma I had only talked about - not felt."
""
"That’s a distinction that was impossible for me to understand 5 years ago."
""
"It was only after I removed that coping strategy that the messy healing process really began."
""
"There’s a myth that after stopping problematic drinking and partying that life suddenly gets better."
""
"It doesn’t."
""
"I got divorced during a lockdown."
""
"My “rock bottom” was sitting in a near empty apartment with a box of doughnuts, a can of creamy soda, and Mortal Kombat movie on the television."
""
"But the truth to the myth is there’s no longer a fog obscuring all the things you need to work through that actually matter."
""
"I cleaned up my shit."
"I got healthy."
"I did my deep recovery work."
""
"My friend Bernie said to me:"
""
"“When it starts getting better, it will be even better than you could possibly imagine.”"
""
"I remember hearing this about a year into sobriety and thinking…"
""
"What on earth is he talking about?"
""
"Well - cue up Fatboy Slim’s “Right Here, Right Now…"
""
"- 5 years of putting my health first"
"- Learning to love myself every day"
"- Finishing the Melbourne Marathon in under 4 hours "
"- Returning to basketball after 20+ years off and into my 5th season "
"- Joined the board at SANE and chair the Lived Experience Advisory Committee "
"- Dozens of speaking engagements ranging from local councils and tech companies through to Parliament House on World Mental Health Day"
"- Sharing my story on 9 News"
"- Finding my beautiful and loving spouse Georgie"
"- Creating two healthy and curious twin boys"
""
"It fills my heart more than I can express to experience all of this."
""
"Yet the origins of all of this - good and bad - were from a scared little boy who grew up without his Dad because he couldn’t cope and took his own life."
""
"Reconnecting with that little boy was the best thing I ever did, and I feel like the best is yet to come."
""
"Thanks Luke, I love you ❤️

Friend: LinkedIn is full of crap now"
""
"Nobody:"
""
"Absolutely nobody:"
""
"Me: yeah but what if I look solemn next to a kangaroo "
""
"Something, something synergies are the new data lakes."
""
"#killingit"
"#hoppingBrilliant"
"#kangaroocourt

What's the 4C's of Partner qualification?"
""
"- relevant Customers"
"- can speak with Credibility about your product"
"- have the Capability to sell, support, and deploy your product"
"- they have genuine Commitment to working with you"
""
"I learned this and about 15 other gold nuggets from a chat with partnership advisor Martin Scholz."
""
"He's got deep expertise in this space and had even been active in the AU market (he's based in Berlin)."
""
"I met him through the Pavilion community which I've been a member of for a few months now and highly recommend it to any GTM leader."
""
"There's courses, community, and plenty of things to learn - but the real magic is "off-platform" conversations you get access to like the one I had with Martin."
""
"Thanks mate and happy to buy you an espresso if you're ever down here again ☕️

Love this stat."
""
"Go and get it."
""
"Adding a few more to the list:"
""
"- reaching out to someone who is a few years ahead of you on LinkedIn and asking them for background"
""
"- politely thanking them afterwards and asking for a cheeky nudge for the role"
""
"- cold emailing the CEO and asking them to put you forward because reason X"
""
"- recording a video job application and sending it with UseVerb (soz couldn't help myself)"
""
"- sending the business leads/referrals and sending hiring manager screencaps of them "doing the work for you" (and you're welcome)"
""
"- posting about applying for job at X as an LI post and appreciating in advance any link love/engagement you can get"
""
"There's heaps more."
""
"Go and get it.

Is anyone in my network job seeking, actively applying for jobs, and open to trying something new that can help?"
""
"We're going to run some cohorts built to share:"
""
"- best practice for cover letters and resumes"
""
"- tailored advice on where to look and put your best self forward"
""
"- complementary use of our tools for standing out with video job applications"
""
"We're testing these cohorts weekly, and looking for participants this week and next while we iron things out with a new process."
""
"Interested?"
""
"reply with "video" or DM me 🙏"
""
"📸 from the archives - rolling on a 286 with EGA graphics and probably too young to be working

How's your weekend going?"
""
"I'm trying to break the back of this server-side container set up."
""
"I test (and use) a lot of software for ~growth purposes~."
""
"If it makes it into the password manager, I've done more than glance at it."
""
"In building things for UseVerb I've used 65 different tools."
""
"Only a fraction of them are stayers, but part of the growth game is piecing together different elements and seeing what sticks."
""
"We've got a new game coming next week and would love to crack this tagging challenge."
""
"I don't trust the traffic that's been coming in and I'm making the bar much higher."
""
"Server-side tagging, cookie consent management, accurate and detailed event measurement, anything else I'm missing here?"
""
"🤖 🍪 📐

In today's episode of charts you can't un-see..."
""
".seeing it all over the Internet."
""
".seeing it in analytics data."
""
".seeing it in job applications."
""
"UseVerb helps with the third one by encouraging both jobseekers to apply with video and make their best first impression (and stand out from slop)."
""
"It also helps hiring managers separate out the slop from people who really want to work for them."
""
"Tryin' to come up with a rhyme,"
"Somethin' that slows time,"
"Maybe something like slop -"
"It's UseVerb time."
""
"Okay -- I'm going to back away from the keyboard now with your carefully curated feed and take solace in the knowledge that you can't generate things as good as this.

The difference between low and high self-esteem."
""
"I was talking to a business owner."
""
"I shared some aspirations and what I’m focused on right now."
""
"He said:"
""
"“That’s cute, but when are you going to do something real”"
""
"I was crushed. "
"It stung. "
"I went home and vented to some friends on chat and thought - “F that guy”."
""
"Later."
""
"I was talking to a different business owner."
""
"I shared what I was focusing on, where the challenges are, what I’m doing to solve them, and where they could help."
""
"He yelled at me, told me the work wasn’t good, blamed others, and stopped inviting me to leadership meetings."
""
"I persevered, learned what I could, and later left the company."
""
"The difference is how much that affects me."
""
"I get to choose:"
""
"what I say to myself, "
"how I pump my tyres up,"
"what I tolerate,"
"what I stand for,"
"my why,"
"how much energy to put into something,"
"where my boundaries are,"
"what I won’t do,"
""
"and"
""
"how much love I give to myself each day."
""
"That’s the difference between low and high self-esteem."
""
"📸 me tunnelling through the discomfort

5 things I've noticed while building a growth engine at UseVerb:"
""
"🚮 Paid ads are in the worst shape I've ever seen. I don't trust 95% of the traffic coming in. I think this is mitigated in some categories (like ecommerce) where there is a LOT of conversion events to feed into the platforms. I'm seeing CPCs that make zero sense and seeing the browsing behaviour post-click screams bot traffic. People are paying for this shit?"
""
"🧠 The capabilities with AI and automation right now are bananas and will likely only get more mind-bending. I don't see how agents are going to improve online advertising - it's likely going to make things 100X worse. Which impacts the major revenue sources for Meta and Google."
""
"🗣️ Nothing beats talking to customers. They say things that quickly pop your bubble and flatline any excitement there was about product. The flip of this is when they do respond favourably (especially from a cold start) and you tell yourself "oh my gosh - I think we're cooking with something here""
""
"💙 It's really fun managing a team again, and have realised how much assumed knowledge I need to let go of and break down. This is a great reality check. I also believe any young people that are coachable, curious, and hungry right now can have a feast in the long run."
""
"🙏 Very grateful to have such a solid home base. Going full-time at something like this has come with risks attached and I love that we've found a way to make taking a swing work. It breaks my heart when the family is sick though (second week of no day care)."
""
"📸 me with my office companion Bonti at the end of a longer day

Amazing opp for an incredible organisation."
""
"Highly recommended and encourage any of my arts/education connections to forward to relevant people interested in the cross-section with mental health."
""
"💙

Smashed by sick toddlers this week."
""
"But at least I have my fancy bug mask that blocks out all light and makes shut eye a cocoon of nocturnal solace."
""
"Bring on the end of the week. Carry on!

Binary fallacy at work and I take these tool debates with a grain of salt."
""
"One area I don’t see a lot of discussion around is what my friend calls “cost architecture”."
""
"As the capabilities get more advanced, there’s this misguided belief that buyers are happy just “paying for credits”."
""
"It costs far more to enrich a contact’s details with a mobile phone number than it does to find a company website."
""
"Yet a lot of companies are happy charging “1 credit” for both use cases and keeping you none the wiser."
""
"At UseVerb we’re obsessed with keeping things lean because of the scalability we’re after and the broader market will catch on eventually."
""
"Tools than lean into great design, usability, transparency AND customisation are going to be the eventual winners.

Ever been on a super yacht?"
" "
"This photo is from a few years ago."
" "
"It's one of the other moments where I've been near other planet levels of wealth."
" "
"We were on our baby moon."
" "
"My friend said:"
""wanna go on my brother's super yacht?""
" "
"The best bit was the follow-up question:"
""any dietary requirements to pass on to the private chef?""
" "
"G and I had just seen Season 2 of the White Lotus, so being on this boat was very amusing. "
""
"There was an outrageous queer crew, the parent's friends who were trying to keep up, and a few of us parents to be/new parents!"
" "
"It was a hilarious and lively time."
" "
"Earlier on in my career in my halcyon days (read: work and partying as coping strategies for unresolved issues) I used to think moments like this were the upper echelons of where I wanted to go."
" "
"The reality is that POV was warped - and it took a lot of work to get to the bottom of what I really want."
" "
"Now - I've got an incredible core unit around me and all the love inside and outside that I could possibly need."
" "
"With those needs met it's about focusing on the wants and we're working towards some things that could be truly awesome."
" "
"We're at the start of something that's getting very exciting with UseVerb."
" "
"But regardless of how it fares - success won't look like a super yacht."
" "
"fun way to spend an afternoon on someone else's tho 🛥️"
" "
" 📸 me with all of my friends in the corner

I haven’t built a unicorn yet…"
""
"So can count on one hand the amount of times I’ve been near eye watering amounts of wealth."
""
"One that stands out is being invited to a holiday function at the end of the year."
""
"I got briefed on what not to do…"
""
"- don’t make a fool of yourself (ok)"
"- don’t eat too much (hard but I’ll deal)"
"- don’t shake the bosses wife’s hand (messed that one up as I reflexed)"
""
"The function was fun and dazzling and awkward."
""
"But the detail I still think about is the Segways."
""
"There were a lot of children and a lot of Segways."
""
"Like - 8 of them."
""
"Zipping around the enormous backyard like this was what you did."
""
"I love building, am ambitious, and would love to make some impact on this planet."
""
"But I love how this weird memory about Segways pops into my head over the weekend."
""
"📸 from the last run with the boys this weekend. They’re too heavy now! But big ups to the woman who created them with me 😘 happy mother’s day G

“Is mania a good feeling?”"
""
"Spoiler alert: yes, but with an incredibly dark downside."
""
"The SANE team recently did a Q&A with me on mania as part of World Bipolar Day."
""
"SANE’s focus is on de-stigmatising and normalising conversations like this."
""
"They’ve also driven marked improvements in the system towards improving outcomes for those of us living with complex mental health."
""
"One example of this is the national guided recovery program available to anyone 18 and over."
""
"It helps people navigate all the challenges surrounding recovery - not just the medical ones."
""
"You can refer yourself or someone else via SANE’s website."
""
"https://lnkd.in/gUVHzvaw

Psst - the automation only works if you're actually on the meeting.

It's been around a while now..."
""
"Can anyone hiring tell me what they're noticing re: AI-assisted applications?"
""
"I want warts and all details."
""
"- have cover letters improved since 12 months ago?"
"- are CVs easier to read?"
"- is there a bigger gap between what you see on paper and the neanderthal speaking with a mouth full of marbles that you just interviewed?"
""
"Overall - has it helped?"
""
"More interested in the application part but if you have a juicy tale about someone who GPTed their way through interview cycles only to crash and burn spectacularly before the finish line I am here for that drama too 🏎️🔥🚫🧯"
""
"#hr #saas #hiring"
""
"📸 is from the weekend getaway - while your eyes are naturally drawn to the smiling faces, I'd like to lead them down to those fine moon pins 🌖🎳 - that's some quality Victorian legumes on display 🫛, yes... yes.. now try and look away

Happy Fly Day fuckers!"
""
"Off to Port Dougie for a mini-break. "
""
"See ya next week 😘

Some things I’ve learned this week:"
""
"1. There is good energy in continually iterating and can see big potential for UseVerb. Retailers churn through CVs at the front-end and most conversations I’m having agree there’s a problem."
""
"2. The AI tools are getting stupid good at more tasks and are only improving. You don’t need to subscribe to the hype (nor should you) just cast forward 2-3 years ahead. Start playing."
""
"3. Have joined a few more communities as my focus has moved to growing UseVerb and have been the beneficiary of some camaraderie already. Grateful for that as a lean operator."
""
"Rolling with some F2F today and hitting the pavement, it’s been a great week."
""
"📸 from the Yellow team Teamified Startup Basketball networking yesterday, we had a great team and a lot of fun - thank you for organising Brandon Burns and crew 🙏

I want you to help my friend Joseph La Delfa."
" "
"He's building tech that completely tickles my brain:"
" "
"Drones that progressively learn, respond to, and adapt to human movement."
" "
"Ways this can work:"
""
"😌 A meditative experience with tai chi as the drone adapts to you and you adapt to the drone"
""
"👨🏼‍🏫 A teacher-student relationship where you guide the drone to move in a style you develop"
""
"🔄 A feedback loop with nearly any other tech that's "inter-operable" - think sports tech, health tech - basically any other wearable device that responds to input"
""
"e.g. Andromeda, inTruth Technologies, Garmin"
" "
"It's the last part that's got me really excited."
" "
"It's not so much what exists now (as amazing as it is)."
" "
"It's the potential for this tech collaborating with other tech to remix into something completely wonderful and unexpected."
" "
"Ways you can help him:"
""
"> if you think of a tech that fits that brief drop it in the comments"
""
">> want to read more about the work - check it here - https://lnkd.in/gCKm9H_r - and more projects here - https://lnkd.in/gygf_5Pd"
""
">>> or if you're not quite sure how you can help but want to follow what his up to - DM me and I'll make sure you get added to his mailing list"
" "
"And one of the best things about this kind of machine learning?"
" "
"It's localised - meaning it isn't guzzling water/energy en masse to fuel its utility."
""
"#startup #robotics #machinelearning