LinkedIn

We’re teaming up with the Premier League to bring one billion-plus fans closer than ever to the game they love.

Excited to share two advances that bring us closer to real-world impact in healthcare AI:

SDBench introduces a new benchmark that transforms 304 NEJM cases into interactive diagnostic simulations. AI must ask questions, order tests, and weigh costs, mirroring the complexity of real clinical decision-making.

MAI-DxO is a model-agnostic orchestrator that simulates a panel of virtual physicians. It achieves 85.5% diagnostic accuracy—four times that of experienced doctors—while cutting diagnostic costs.

Together, these advances offer a blueprint for how AI can help deliver precision and efficiency in healthcare, and we're looking forward to working with healthcare partners and the entire ecosystem on these advances making a difference.

https://lnkd.in/gd5nd4qF

Looking forward to how this will benefit developers everywhere!

From retail and government services to healthcare, AI innovation is accelerating across every industry. Incredible to see the breadth of progress across the Netherlands during my recent visit.

Read more about these examples here: https://lnkd.in/gb4iwA3v

We got a sunny snap in front of Parliament House with fellow SANE board member Kirstie Allen before heading to the airport."
""
"Missing from this snap is our fantastic CEO Rachel Green and Chief Digital Officer Anna Gelling."
""
"There was lots to talk about in Canberra with MPs and staff."
""
"- the guided service program has run with over 8,000 referrals since it started in 2021"
""
"- its a psychosocial support service providing all the kinds of help you need outside of clinical while getting life back on track. How do you get back into the workforce? How do you disclose your ill health? Has anyone else been through this?"
""
"- ITS WORKING. The program is independently measured and is delivering statistically significant increases on recovery scores (RAS), quality of life (Re-QOL), and reductions in psychological distress (K10)."
""
"The worst part? "
""
"We need to increase access and funding to this program so it can continue delivering impact for people in dire need of help within a system that’s straining."
""
"Hence the trip ✈️"
""
"It is also a very different picture to 20 years ago."
""
"In June 2005, I was recovering from an acute episode in a forensic hospital with a new bipolar diagnosis."
""
"I was lucky to have an incredible support network that helped me navigate the system and work towards getting better."
""
"But recovery shouldn’t require luck - it’s hard and people deserve all the help they can get - especially the kind of help that’s digital, innovative, and independently proven to work."
""
"So we will keep pushing for the kind of support SANE’s program deserves 💙

Here's a hack that helps keep me stay focused on tasks."
""
"This is doubly important as someone running their own thing."
""
"Here it is:"
"I use a text editor to draft and outline nearly everything."
" "
"If I don't - I'm at the peril of the Internet distraction machine."
""
"Composing an email when there's other emails and tabs to read? 🚫"
"Using Google Slides when there's comments and other faces in it? 🚫"
"Also just using Google Slides... 🤮"
" "
"I digress."
" "
"Having a clean and utilitarian text editor that I can open up and just get started is game changing."
" "
"I can draft emails."
"Outline steps."
"Draft very important LinkedIn posts."
" "
"The default text editor for Mac is heinous."
" "
"So I coughed up my hard earned cash for Typora. The markdown functionality means I can pretend to be more techie and codey than I actually am."
" "
"It also helps me draft my newsletter (of course) because the Markdown copy+pastes into ConvertKit favourably."
" "
"I thought it might be helpful for other easily-distracted types -- believe me when I say I have researched the crap out of this."
" "
"📸 of me in action with Typora, for some reason LinkedIn hates it when I just straight screencap - so enjoy my pearly whites 😁"
""
"#lifehacks

Dimitri (Jim) Antonopoulos and I have been friends for many years and started working together in 2023."
""
"TANK produces high-calibre, high-impact work and it’s been a pleasure collaborating on thoughtful projects with clients that understand and appreciate deep and thoughtful work."
""
"The services landscape is changing. "
""
"Multi-year retainers are things of the past. "
"There’s been increasing commodification of services - clients want more agility with which suppliers they do and don’t bring in, and for how long."
""
"This fragmentation makes it hard to stay across "what is great work?" and even harder to ensure great work is executed within your organisation."
""
"How do you produce great work when your team is expanding and contracting? "
"Where do you grow and develop your own skills?"
"Who understands your decision-making and can help you guide and refine this trait over time?"
""
"We believe there is a need for this."
""
"So Dimitri, myself, Damian Karaula and Nikos Psaltopoulos are offering on-demand leadership for such organisations."
""
"Get access to senior expertise outside of your day-to-day that can advise and assist with growth, partnerships, people, operations, and design."
""
"Engage for as long as you need support, and not a moment longer when you don’t."
""
"More here:"
""
"https://lnkd.in/gyFKV3iF"
""
"#fractional #leadership #freelance

Adding the finishing touches for the presentation for The Startup Network tomorrow lunchtime."
""
"If you've ever wondered how to get paid ads going on a business this workshop is for you."
""
"Last minute tickets available here - https://lnkd.in/gVNCYTPZ"
""
"Looking forward to sharing the goods 💪

It’s easy to forget to take leave when you work for yourself."
""
"I remembered to and took a few days off from Friday morning."
""
"One of the best parts?"
""
"Making this hearty chicken and vegetable soup with our crockpot."
""
"June is slower for me, and I’ll take a longer break at the end of the month."
""
"It’s been quite the year 🥲

I replace a lot of decisions with rules to make my life easier."
" "
"Daniel Kahneman told Shane Parrish that replacing decisions with rules is surprisingly effective at helping us achieve goals."
" "
"I picked this up from Shane's book: Clear Thinking. "
""
"I took away a lot from this book - if the amount of highlights I took on my Kindle is anything to go by."
" "
"Here's some of my "rules":"
" "
"⅔"
"The Two-Thirds Rule: "
"If you're sober at an event that features alcohol and having a good time, just leave two-thirds through the event. There's absolutely nothing to be gained from staying. The gap between boozed and non-boozed is now too big. You don't have to announce it, apologise, or make excuses. Just ghost and you can thank me later. I have seen this movie before and stayed past the end-credits."
" "
"⏭️ ⏭️ 🚫"
"Don't skip two days in a row: "
"You can have an off day and not train - it happens to the best of us. But don't skip two days in a row. Go for a walk, shoot hoops, or do something else that's easy if you have to - but don't skip two days of exercise in a row - that wrecks the training system."
" "
"🛌 > 📧"
"If there's strong feelings, sleep on it, before sending it: "
"Nothing is gained from sending a strongly worded email, letter, SMS, message, or comment in the heat of the moment. Sleep on it. As I was going through my divorce, there were things I wanted to say and make amends for. I wrote a letter and then put it in a drawer. The next day there was still some "hhnnnggg" so I slept on it again, and again. On the fourth day I posted the letter and it felt good. I lost nothing by waiting, but avoided saying something I might regret by doing so."
" "
"Sure - a Nobel laureate thinks this is good practice."
""
"I also learned it's crazy-good for ADHD - I'm prone to poor decisions all-of-the-time."
""
"I do think I mitigated some of this before being diagnosed because I had hundreds of these rules in my head."
""
"My partner is quite bemused by these but the systems work."
" "
"I'm tempted to go full-turbo on this in areas of my life that I think need improvement."
""
"> Where are decisions getting made?"
"> What rules can I introduce to mitigate poor ones?"
"> What outcomes will this unlock?"
" "
"📸 of me holding the book cover up via my phone on Kindle app"
" "
"#goodreads

I’ve admired the work SANE has been doing for years."
""
"I’m also fortunate to have benefited from understanding and the right supports while navigating my own complex mental health issues."
""
"SANE understands this, and is growing it’s impact to help more people who need understanding and help."
""
"I’m pleased to join the team and serve."
""
"https://lnkd.in/gaZDEMxs

We’re on again!"
""
"This year in the pleasant surroundings of Mirboo North."
""
"If you’re an aspiring founder within the area - we’re going to go out of our way yo equip you with as much knowledge, action-taking, and energy to launch it off the ground."
""
"I love helping my home region and have many friendships from the people we’ve worked with over the last 4-5 years."
""
"Any questions lmk 🚀

Hey Matt - thanks for seeking feedback from the community."
""
"My name is Luke. Anyone that's known me for longer than a year tends towards my nickname - "Marshy"."
""
"I often just say I have "lived experience" with mental health and get a nod. I once had someone poke back - "doesn't everybody?" - which was true, but didn't feel like unpacking the depths of my lived experience for that person there and then."
""
"There's a concept in queer and kink (and I'm sure many other worlds that I'm not as familiar with) about "outing"."
""
"You don't."
""
"It's my choice to reveal my sexuality, just like its my choice to share what I'm into and not into with people I feel safe with."
""
"The same goes for my mental health."
""
"When I meet an employer, potential client, mentee, or person at a BBQ I don't say - "hey I'm Luke I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder 20 years ago"."
""
"Because there's much more to me than a diagnosis that helped at the time but doesn't help my recovery today."
""
"Outing is something I manage more openly than most."
""
"The blessing/curse of writing a book about my lived experience is that its very discoverable and I'm comfortable with that openness."
""
"But even with a warts and all book out there about bipolar disorder and bisexuality I would still prefer to be asked how I like to be addressed."
""
"I'm a real person, a father, a spouse, and an enthusiastic centre/forward in our over35s basketball team."
""
"There's much more to me than a diagnosis at one point in time that no longer serves, but often stigmatises."
""
"Thanks for asking as its discussions like these that normalise things for more people."
""
"And working through mental health challenges of any size - is super normal."
"

Did you know HubSpot's share price is nearly 20X the original price in 2014?"
""
"I think one reason for this is the increasing popularity of lead magnets."
""
"A lead magnet solves a narrow part of a larger problem."
""
"Your business makes the majority of its revenue from solving larger problems."
""
"The challenge is potential clients don't understand the larger problem."
""
"They just want the solution to the narrow part."
" "
"Examples:"
"📉 I want to lose weight quickly - not transform my health, diet, and lifestyle"
"💰 I want leads now - not change the way my business markets and sells itself"
"🏠 I want to know how much I can sell my house for - not I want to put my property up for auction"
" "
"The equivalent for coaching and consulting used to be a "discovery session" where someone could jump on a call with no obligation, strings, or expectation of purchase."
" "
"The challenge today is that people don't want to jump on a call with you."
" "
"They're tired. 😴"
"Smashed with deceptive ads. 📢"
"An LinkedIn InMail box flooded with pitches for 15 guaranteed appointments each month. 🤦🏼‍♂️"
" "
"When you're offering a call alone - you're simply associating yourself with all the the rest of the crap out there."
" "
"So how do you solve for this?"
" "
"Give people a chance to get to know you with your own lead magnet. A piece of digital collateral that helps your customer's narrow problems and gives them a chance to get to know you."
" "
"It could be:"
"✅ A cheat sheet for meal prep Mon-Friday"
"✅ A blow-by-blow guide for generating leads within a customer's existing network"
"✅ A property value calculator with watch-outs, call-outs, and your industry expertise built into its messaging"
" "
"Let them try before they buy you."
" "
"Software world lives and dies by this approach."
""
"It's now the same for agencies, consultants, small business owners, and coaches."
""
"Plus it makes it a hell of a lot easier for people to refer you."
""
"They can also get on your mailing list, connect on LinkedIn, or learn more about you before asking for more help."
" "
"What do you think? Have you noticed the same thing as a provider or someone buying services? How are you sussing them out?"
" "
"📸 of a middle aged man doing a lay-up on a basketball court"
""
"#marketing #sales #tips

Spot the odd one out: writing, video, marketing, and music."
" "
"I was curious about which one is attracting the most interest when paired with searches with "AI"."
""
"I thought "music" was going to be the least interesting because we've got such a strong emotional connection to music and I don't think that will interest in that is going to change anytime soon."
" "
"The charts in the GIF show Google Trends search interest in each of the terms worldwide over the last 5 years."
" "
"While "AI marketing" enjoyed a lot of hype earliest, it's now far less searched for than video, writing, or music."
""
"Paired on the same chart - video is far ahead of the others."
" "
"I saw a recent Gartner survey mentioning marketing budgets are at a 5-year low and that leaders are expected to do more with less."
" "
"Broad search trends like this aren't super telling, but I do believe people are craving more authenticity in their messaging."
""
"Polished production and "channeling the right message" are getting replaced with talking heads, reviews, adn communities craving something more real."
" "
"Have you played with any AI tools in one of these categories?

Last night I saw another post lamenting (another?) wave of tech layoffs and reminiscing about what once was."
""
"This is a crappy experience for the individual and I am not arguing otherwise."
""
"But this is one of the best things that can happen to the planet 🌏"
""
"Rightly or wrongly, big tech has had disproportionate access to some of the world’s top talent."
""
"Talent that then gets tasked with incrementally increasing what a big advertiser spends, or fine tuning the design of a menu option to increase overall stickiness by 0.03% compared to the control group."
""
"These are not hair on fire problems."
""
"But this talent has been paid disproportionate amounts of money to stay put and protect their companies advantage by squeezing platforms for all they are worth."
""
"Internal jokes used to range from being unable to shake off the shiny golden handcuffs to I can’t believe we’re being served stir-fry chicken again today our personal chef is terrible."
""
"I say this with utter certainty because I’ve walked away from this charade twice and have worked out of dozens of these offices around the world."
""
"If you’ve been laid off (or it’s coming shortly), here’s the good news. You’re up. "
""
"The world needs you and we don’t have the luxury of time to get this shit sorted."
""
"Take stock of your skill set, get humble, and do what you need to do. "
""
"Here’s some prompts but I know you’ll do it your way - that’s why they hired you:"
""
"- Terra.do is a global training and job sharing platform for people wanting to work in climate change. Go soak it in."
""
"- The nonprofit sector can be painful but there’s also a lot of people who care about the world that can benefit from what you have to offer. Park your salary expectations at the door. One way around this is contracting to get the higher temporary rate but also ensure you can deliver impact for them. There are recruiters available for senior hires in this niche and they’re not hard to find."
""
"- Hit your network. No not the usual people that are going to place you in the same-same-but-different roles, the ones outside the techno-bubble. There’s a whole cross-section of sectors that need help. Interesting ones that intersect with purpose include ESG, social enterprise, government programs, and corporate accelerator and social impact initiatives. Ask questions and shutup and listen first."
""
"I’m still on the journey and have no more offer to you. I will say something has shifted and I’m closer to my spiritual centre than I ever was."
""
"And I know I didn’t know I had a spiritual centre while at a global sales conference nailing beers in a baseball stadium while Will.I.Am and Bruno Mars played a private concert."
""
"Go and find your centre 🙏

Behind on my newsletter - I'm human! - back to normal scheduling soon."
""
"But I wanted to share an experience I had with my coach yesterday."
""
"I catch-up with Dale same time every week for half an hour. "
""
"He is patient, helpful, and knows when to let me waffle and get it off my chest and when to interrupt and keep things on track."
""
"Yesterday we had a few minutes left and I was winding him up (I want to respect his time too - as I know he is flat out!)"
""
"He said - "wait a sec" - and referenced something I'd said in passing about income/house-buying in the early minutes of our conversation and then he proceeded to add 5 different builds on what I said that were stupid-levels of helpful."
""
"In the last 3 minutes of a conversation."
""
"Where he had already helped me plenty."
""
"That is very hard to find and I'm glad I did."
""
"Have a great weekend 👋

Fun-fact: I now know who wins in a noise competition between a home office and 1-year old twin boys."
""
"So I started co-working @ Melbourne Innovation Centre a few weeks ago to work in and have noticed an IMMEDIATE difference."
""
"🎧 < The noise cancelling headphones could only do so much!"
""
"The last few weeks have been teething hell 🔥 so its also good to have a sanctuary for doing work."
""
"I miss the play breaks at lunch, but I do receive the biggest beaming smiles when I arrive home from my 10-minute commute so it's not all bad."
""
"I'm also now a mentor for the Digital Solutions program also - so if you are a small business owner looking for some extra support - it's now possible to register and book 3x subsidised coaching sessions with your good self (that being me)."
""
"Check the comments 😉"
""
"📸 from just now in my new digs

Have you ever looked at an emotion wheel?"
""
"The first time I did it took me by surprise."
""
"It wasn't something I'd say out loud, but my feelings as an adult used to move between "good" and "bad"."
""
"An emotions wheel points to all the variants within emotions and enables far more depth and understanding."
""
"Was I really taken by surprise or was it shock?"
""
"I feel it was shock because it wasn't until hitting my early-to-mid 30s that I realised I'd been navigating life with one arm tied behind my back."
""
"My feelings are clues. "
""
"They're not me."
""
"They're not good or bad - they're bits of information that pop-up and surface to help inform my world view."
""
"Sometimes they pop up because of something happening to me right now."
""
"Sometimes they pop up because of things that happened to me while I was a child."
""
"The best thing I can do is heed those feelings and look after myself in a way that helps me love myself and be of service to others."
""
"What this isn't:"
""
"🚫 Attaching judgment to what's coming up e.g. good/bad"
"🙅🏻 Trying to "fix" it"
"😡 Something I need to react instantly to"
""
"Improving my emotional vocabulary has taken time. "
""
"Therapy, shadow work, support groups, and time have helped me navigate the wheel with more sense of purpose and intent - and its made navigating life and the workplace a hell of a lot easier."
""
"Its connected me to a "body intelligence" that's helped me make more informed decisions and trust what's surfacing up more often."
""
"For example, I was considering a coaching offer over the last couple of weeks that would have required a substantial level of investment."
""
"On paper it ticked all the boxes I was looking for, came with a guarantee, and was someone I've followed for a long time."
""
"But my gut was signalling "no", and didn't go away after a few days of sleeping on it."
""
"I did some more asking around and investigation and was comfortable saying no to the offer with faith that I'm making the right call."
""
"Today, I can feel uncomfortable and still be very happy with how my life is unfolding."
""
"--"
"I'm Marshy 👋"
""
"I'll be looking for more coaching clients second half of the year so let me know if you'd like to go to on my mailing list to be notified.

I made a snap judgment a couple of weeks ago that wasn't fair."
""
"I recognised it because I used to make these sorts of fast calls all the time. "
""
"My friends and I saw Hannah Gadsby as part of Melbourne Comedy Festival."
""
"(Sidebar: she was so piercingly funny and the Q&A finisher was razor-sharp)."
""
"We'd had a late dinner and my friend and I got a late train to the outer 'burbs. We were swapping TV show recommendations."
""
"At a later stop a woman came onto the train who was obviously distressed and having a hard time. "
""
"She was with 4 kids under 6 in their pyjamas and backpacks and I felt nasty judgment on the inside:"
""
""What is she doing?""
""It's past their bed time""
""It's so cold tonight - those poor kids""
""
"A few stops later the woman and kids got off."
""
"I felt uncomfortable about what popped up, and made a mental note to reflect on why."
""
"A few days ago the why popped into my head."
""
"The kinder way to look at this situation - and much more likely to be true - is that this was a mother in distress."
""
"Nobody chooses to take that many young kids onto a train at 10pm unless there's something really challenging going on."
""
"I'll never know what the challenge was. "
""
"It could have been violence at home, a family emergency with no vehicle, or something else."
""
"What I do know is that it's always better to let go of those snap judgments in the world around me."
""
"They're heavy, toxic, and don't come from a place of kindness."
""
"Automatic scripts like this used to pilot my life. "
""
"Over time I've learned to let go of them quickly and that became easier over time."
""
"So in reflecting on it today I hope it helps someone else stop and pause to look at the reality of a situation."
""
"📸 from a work trip to Sydney a month or so ago"
""
"-- "
""
"I'm Marshy 👋"
""
"A freelance coach, marketer, and consultant."
""
"I work with founders, business leaders, and nonprofits.

"Why is nobody else frustrated with this?""
" "
"Is probably a thought you've had while navigating a neurotypical world."
" "
"Well over lunch this Thursday you're invited to hear from panel of neurodivergent people who will put words to these frustrations and share what works for them, what doesn't, and touch on strategies that get you feeling and operating at your best."
" "
"Hosted by bMightie, I'll be on the panel and joined by:"
"- Rabia Khan (moderating)"
"- Charles Clapshaw"
"- Mohamad Chaaban "
""
"If you'd like the link to the event slide into my DMs and I'll ping it back."
" "
"Thanks!

I like to punch out a LinkedIn post Monday morning first thing to get that sweet, sweet early start to the week engagement 💥🥊"
""
"But instead you get this post-lunch post instead."
""
"Is anyone in my network working on an exciting project?"
""
"Because I have questions."
""
"What is making it exciting?"
"Do you get to do a lot of this style of work?"
"How did it hit your desk?"
""
"Rules:"
"- It must be exciting"
"- You must not include a link"
"- I feel like I need a 3rd one to make this more professional"
""
"I am not sharing any current exciting projects - they're doing a lot of other things like helping causes, supporting clients, and earning a crust - but I can't use the word exciting and rules are rules. "
""
"(It will change)."
""
"Over to you, dear future commenters 🙏"
""
"📸 from parkrun on the weekend with my two coaches and I just love emanating health and prosperity early on a Saturday morning

Sad news in the last 24 hours and a gentle reminder it’s okay to ask for help with your mental health.

A common argument I hear against posting on LinkedIn:"
""
""I shouldn't have to promote my work""
""
"Have you ever spoken to an NFP who is wondering if their impact program will still be live next Financial Year?"
""
"I've met academics with PATENTS and PhDs who aren't sure they'll be able to keep doing what they're doing after the funding stops."
""
"The days of meritocracy are long, long gone."
""
"The reality is you have to sell your work in a lot of situations."
""
"You have to sell it into departments, into stakeholders, into your boss."
""
"The best operators do this unconsciously and adapt as conditions change."
""
"Like it or not - LinkedIn is a part of that mix too."
""
"You can share what you're interested in."
"You can share work you like."
"You can use it just to pump other people's tyres up."
""
"But the important thing is to use it."
""
""I shouldn't have to" is a losing thought wrapped up in a limiting self-belief tortilla 🌮"
""
"Instead of fighting with reality (soz) just go with it."
""
"You never know what opportunities might open up because of this."
""
"--"
""
"I'm Marshy👋"
""
"I wrote a book about learning marketing last year called Start Marketing. "
""
"I want to do a revision soon but looking for some more feedback - if you'd like a free copy and/or to help DM me.

I had a good chat with Mickey Rummery before and thought it was a good template for a partner chat."
""
"Here's how it goes:"
""
"➡️ 1. Catch-up on what's been going on in life"
""
"➡️➡️ 2. Talk about where the current focus areas are - what are you focusing on, why that's important to you, and current projects and what's on the horizon"
""
"➡️➡️ 3. Share anything helpful related to what was shared above (intros, links, events, people they should talk to)"
""
"➡️➡️➡️➡️ 4. Who the ideal fit for them is - top 3 things to look out for"
""
"This happened on autopilot and conversations like this happen all the time. "
""
"I'm prone to forgetting things, so I make notes as I go and save them in a Markdown file that gets saved in a folder each week."
""
"That way when I talk to someone and think:"
""
""Who is that former recruiter that's doing interesting consultative human-centred design projects now?""
""
"*search "Weekly notes folder""
"*search "human-centred design""
"*find Mickey"
""
"Hey - you should talk to him 😉"
""
"Simples 💫"
""
"--"
""
"I'm Marshy 👋"
""
"I'm planning a Wednesday lunchtime webinar blitz with a series of topics including career development, personal development, personal branding, maintaining your mental health toolbox, and what I learned from speaking to 20+ adult knowledge workers with ADHD."
""
"DM me to get an invite before the event pages go up.

Some of the things being done by leaning into booming channels and experimenting at scale are mind-blowing 🤯"
""
"And usually pulled off by fresh ideas and young energy too."
""
"Park the objections and soak up some new marketing perspectives on owning your founder voice."
""
"Get there next Friday and learn."
""
"Thanks The Startup Network for continuing to put on such focused events 🙏

Here's how I screen for time wasters ⏰"
" "
"I need a process because I like to be generous with my time."
" "
"I know what it's like to not have the answers, be knocking on the door, or want something bad that you'll give it your all if you're given that one opportunity."
" "
"So I say "yes" to queries, brain picks, and research calls or ask the person to contact me later."
" "
"Here's the proces:"
""
"1) Take the meeting at a time that suits me (booking link)"
""
"2) Be as helpful as possible within the timeframe (good human)"
""
"3) Ask the person to connect, update me in X amount of months, or some other small ask (easy ask)"
""
"A booking link, being a good human, and an easy ask."
" "
"The latter is to stay informed."
" "
"I've taken time out of my day to help you, and that time is an investment."
""
"The least you can do is keep me updated, what worked for you, or whether you've learned something else and gone in a different direction."
" "
"Top performers do this habitually."
" "
"Here's some I've received in the last 6 months:"
" "
""Thank you again for our amazing lunch club call. It had a profound impact on me professionally and then personally""
" "
""I just wanted to express how impressed and grateful I am... it has changed my enthusiasm towards approaching potential new clients, and for this I say thank you""
" "
"It goes the other way too, I put a task in my calendar for 6-18 weeks from the conversation in the morning to let the person know their advice was welcomed."
" "
"People love it:"
" "
"e.g. "I can't tell you how happy it made me to read your email!""
" "
"I hear crap like "I don't like networking" or "the market is really hard right now" but the reality is its really simple to be a good human, and little actions like these go a long, long way towards cultivating that goodwill you're so desperate for."
""
"📸 snap from a F2F workshop yesterday - it was great to use actual post-its instead or Mural post-its for a change 😃"
" "
"--"
" "
"I'm Marshy 👋"
" "
"I love writing and do a lot of it on LinkedIn and my newsletter. "
""
"If you'd like something longer you can check out my two books on my website (one on marketing, one on mental health).

I've got a friend and old colleague who is looking for part-time technical roles in deep-tech/health-tech/social impact."
""
"He's smart, capable, and I highly recommend him."
""
"Hit him up Ray Yamamoto Hilton if you've got any leads 💫

At 12.05am on the 27th February there were over 40,000 visitors to the Workplace Gender Equality Agency website."
""
"This was one of the facts I learned last week."
""
"Alongside themes like:"
""
"Do organisations actually need more skills?"
""
"What’s happened since Australia’s gender pay gap information was released?"
""
"How are companies tackling hybrid working intelligently?"
""
"These came out of the #AvatureUpfront at the Four Seasons Sydney."
""
"I was there with my Digital Affair hat on."
""
"Connecting with other partners and companies to learn more about what they’re focused on snd also sharing how DA thinks about employer branding."
""
"It was great to meet some new faces and socialise a new way to measure that branding that is in the works as well."
""
"Thanks for having me Avature 👋"
""
"— "
""
"I’m Luke Marshall. "
""
"Sometimes I consult with clients around employer branding."
""
"If you’re in a brand that’s considered Link Humans in the past, please grab me for a quick chat. "
""
"I think we can pilot a new tool with you.

I got this screenshot in my inbox over the weekend."
" "
"I did a little fist pump and was pleased."
" "
"100 subscribers Marshy?"
" "
"Why would you be excited about that?"
" "
"It's a reward for patience 😇"
" "
"As an experienced marketer - I know how to grow businesses."
" "
"I look at Google Analytics like its tea leaves, and divine where the opportunities are, what can unlock what, and create a pathway for growth."
" "
"But can I do that from scratch? "
"Can I chip away at something deliberately and consistently? "
"Can I do what it takes to show up each week and write something because you know it's worth doing?"
" "
"That's a different ball game 🏀💨"
" "
"I'm still figuring it out, but I love doing it, and have felt my understanding of AI and what's possible increase dramatically since starting."
" "
"Now let's see if I can get to 1,000! 🤘🏼"
" "
"--"
"I'm Marshy 👋"
" "
"I write a newsletter about AI each week focused on what's happening and what I've found."
" "
"All previous newsletters are on my site and available to read - beacuse I like the idea "learning in public".

I had a shocker the other day."
""
"Fixed up a cup of peppermint tea and couldn’t find it."
""
"Look up Lukey boy."
""
"Ah, there it is!"
""
"If you squint you can actually see the tea bag tab sitting next to the cup awaiting boiling water."
""
"I love the work I do, being able to work from home, and being a new father."
""
"But sometimes life doesn’t click 🙃"
""
"—"
""
"I’m Marshy 👋"
""
"I’m looking for a few people to talk to who have secured a job they love via back channels."
""
"If you fit that bill or know someone like that DM me 🤙

I've noticed some expenses aren't questioned by the scaling business owner."
" "
"Our contracts need to be water tight - get an experienced legal professional."
" "
"Our financials need to be clearer - get an experienced accountant."
" "
"Our marketing needs to be more predictable - oh, no-- WE GOT THIS 💪"
" "
"I think it's because unlike the other professions, every founder thinks they know marketing."
" "
"They've paid attention to what gains attention, admired it, and think they know how to pull off the same thing."
" "
"Here are some common mistakes I've seen as this plays out:"
" "
"🤥 Talking about brand when what they need is traction. "
"99% of startups don't need a brand. Nobody outside of their bubble knows who they are. Listed companies build brands. Startups focus on activity that gets customers and drives repeat purchase."
" "
"🙄 Grossly underestimating costs of production. "
"Because we see popular ads all day - it's easy to assume we can just pay someone to do the same thing for us. It's not as easy to see the years of planning, the hand-selected talent that who crafts the thing, and the media dollars that go behind it."
" "
"😧 Hiring a specialist in one channel from a referral. "
"They go to their network for a referral and are passed on a . Without understanding what channels will work for what (and there are dozens) - a lot of time, money, and resource can be spent on a channel that will never work."
" "
"I'm still employed when all of the above happens."
""
"It's just the longer way to hit my desk."
""
"The jobs I usually work on are clean-up jobs."
""
"Money has been wasted and they come to an experienced marketing professional to do things the right way."
""
"Because despite my experience - I'll never be as recognised as an accountant or lawyer 🤷🏼‍♂️"
" "
"--"
" "
"I'm Luke Marshall."
""
"I'm a consultant who used to work on global brands and now works on startups on nonprofits."
""
"The former because it's fun and challenging, the latter because I like helping causes."
""
"I'm a premium service, but also offer free services for challengers and social enterprises."
" "
" 📷 from me having a basketball break with my boys

Here’s how I make new meetings go better."
""
"Be excited to meet the other person."
""
"Earth shattering I know."
""
"It doesn’t matter what the meeting is about:"
""
"- intro from an old colleague? Great to meet you!"
""
"- potential time waster? Let’s dance my friend."
""
"- complaint about your online course with more detailed feedback? It’s a pleasure to get closer to the problems compadre."
""
"The dynamic of new meetings immediately shifts when you bring this attitude."
""
"You would be surprised by how easy it is, and how little some people do it."
""
"Good things happen."
""
"📸 from last night’s #deep30 challenge with Starter Story, I’ve done about 15 interviews and plugged in 2,300 words on an mvp"
""
"—"
""
"I’m Luke Marshall."
""
"I network a lot. Face-to-face coffee meets are my tool of choice."
""
"I’m in Sydney for a few days this week with a couple of gaps if you’d like a quick catch-up ☕️

Can I get your advice on something?"
" "
"One of the things I love doing as a consultant is wheeling and dealing."
" "
"Working with business partners to create win-win-wins."
" "
"Sometimes they fizzle (one did last week)."
""
"And sometimes they POP 🎉"
" "
"Once a good one gets going, it stays going, and takes a lot of the pressure off as a business owner that hunts for projects."
" "
"I want to walk you through one of these and if anything about it jumps to mind hit me up."
" "
"Picture this:"
"➡️ Business partner and I get sign-off on a marketing transformation project for a scaling business"
"📉 Key staff departures, adjusting conditions since COVID, and an understanding that the marketing function just isn't working"
"😳 We get involved and on Day 1 the CEO tells us - I'm leaving and here's the new CEO"
" "
"That's where we started last year."
" "
"Many more challenges along the way popped up."
" "
"But my business partner and I are very good at what we do."
" "
"We also have the benefit of a network we tapped in as we corralled and marshalled the project forward."
" "
"9 months later the business is in far better shape, getting far better leads, and has a clear pathway towards its next stage."
" "
"Their new CEO has done brilliantly."
""
"There has been multiple big issues to tackle, and because my partner and I have driven the marketing improvement, it's enabled them to focus on solving other key challenges."
" "
"My partner and I think we've got something here."
""
"A solution for scaling businesses that are looking to go to the next stage but need senior, sharp, and focused decision-makers that can size up a marketing department - make the necessary adjustments and changes - and offboard."
""
"The goal is to take these scaling businesses and prepare them for the next stage of their growth."
""
"We've been noodling and doodling on a shared doc and thinking about how to spin this into an ongoing turnkey solution we can go to market with and help more businesses."
" "
"I don't normally post like this but thought I'd throw it out there to my network to see if anything comes back. Thanks! 🙏"
" "
"📸 of me pretending to ponder this morning - the actual pondering usually looks less smirky"
" "
"__"
" "
"I'm Marshy 👋"
""
"When I'm not posting anonymised case studies about our work I'm out there helping nonprofits and startups do their marketing more effectively."
""
"These projects come in via referral but I offer FREE advice to anyone within my extended network just because."
""
"If you want to let me know what you're up to feel free to comment below or DM me - I'm in a chatty mood today 🤣

I love running for lots of reasons 🏃🏽‍♂️💨"
" "
"It's hard."
" "
"It's a discipline you measure yourself on."
" "
"It's accessible."
"That means it's not golf. Skiing. Or rowing."
" "
"All you need is a pair of shoes and a willingness to apply yourself."
" "
"I recommend running to everyone, and appreciate it's not for everyone."
" "
"I'm still blown away by how effective the Couch 2 5k program is. "
""
"It can take someone with next to no ability at all, and turn them into a 5k runner."
" "
"I know because a long time ago I started with that program."
" "
"I highly recommend it!"
" "
"📸 from the weekend with the boys doing their first parkrun Australia in Diamond Creek"
" "
"--"
" "
"I'm Marshy 👋"
" "
"I help startups tune-up their marketing."
" "
"I often work with founders who have tried a few things, get frustrated, and are looking for a senior leader who can set things straight.

A weird thing happened last week."
""
"⚡️ Michael Batko threw down this epic post about talkers versus doers."
" "
"I read it and was like:"
""
""#$!@ - I FEEL SEEN""
""
"The fact is I used to be a gonna."
""
"I'm gonna do this, and I'm gonna do that."
" "
"When I was writing my first book, I fell into that trap."
""
"Then one of my dear friends said one day:"
""Is that the book you always talk about but never do anything with?" 🔥"
" "
"I reeled with bubbling gonna."
"The burn - it was so spicy."
"How? What? No!? RAHHHH."
" "
"And then I went beast mode."
""
"🚊 I caught regular 2.5 hour train rides out of Sydney and back on weekends and finished"
""
"📈 Started a crowdfunding campaign on pozible with a 90-day deadline and worked backwards"
""
"📗 Raised the publishing (& delivery) cost money, had a launch party, and shipped the book"
" "
"I also got to donate the profit to a documentary maker who made a short film on suicide prevention called "Keep Me Safe Tonight"."
" "
"I know the power of taking action, but even after all of these years there's still gonnas that pop up."
" "
"So back to Batko's question on his (now offline) post:"
""
""Genuinely curious - what idea is stills stuck in your head and you want to make it a reality?""
" "
"My answer was I want to build an ADHD goal machine for adult knowledge workers."
""
"We've adapted to work from home. We work online. Yet the way the internet and software are built is to be as distracting as possible. Advertising revenue, software usage stats, and any number of tools, apps, and sites all INCENTIVISED to capture your attention."
" "
"This is absolutely crazy so Batko said - see if you can talk to 20 of these people."
" "
"So far I've booked 24 meetings and interviewed 7."
" "
"If you'd like to stay up-to-date on this (or identify and want to be interviewed) just let me know."
" "
"I don't know if this will go anywhere against what else is on my plate but won't die wondering."
" "
"📸 from earlier this week - I'm moving this project forward as part of Starter Story's #deep30 challenge - seeing how much we can get done with 2 hours of committed unassailable time each day against it and have to take a photo as proof

Here’s what I do when I experience brain fog:"
""
"1. Stop what I’m doing, as this will only compound its impact"
""
"2. Take a break, away from my desk"
""
"3. Any of - have a snack, water, stretch, or walk around the block"
""
"4. Have a think about the task, and whether there’s anything about it that needs to change. Is it boring? Do I have to do this? Why is this important? Can I crank up some techno to get through it"
""
"5. (Optional) Call an outreach buddy - sometimes it’s necessary to vent "
""
"6. Return to the task in a new position - seating or standing "
""
"I find it hits in the afternoon sometimes despite all the things I do to help prevent it. "
""
"But sometimes it will still come and the best thing I can do in those moments is be kind to myself and ride it out with the process above."
""
"Brain fog is common with #ADHD but can happen with many other things too."
"It’s more common for me when working from home."
""
"I also offset this by working at StartSpace or 1-2x a week."
""
"📸 from the home office where the magic happens, the Pipersong chair lets me wiggle into many positions too which helps focus

I encourage you not to read this post."
""
"There's a very good chance you'll expand it and you'll find it underwhelming."
""
"You'll read a short anecdote, and think - hmm, that's interesting - and continue going about your day."
""
"My friend and old colleague Hilary Harrington is a sales gun and shared what she does when she's at a friend's event."
""
""Okay let's get this out of the way..."
""
"You know I'm a sales person. "
""
"You're probably thinking I'm going to sell you something. "
""
"I want you to know that I'm here to learn some new things and of course I'm going to try and find ways to help you, but that's because I can't help it."
""
"If that's a problem for you just let me know, otherwise let's just enjoy this event.""
""
"Rather than hide the fact she worked in sales, Hilary completely owned it and with the best of intentions."
""
"You may as well get the thorny blockers out of the way so you can get on with it."
""
"A lot of founders I talk to struggle with this."
""
"If you're leading a business you're head of sales."
"If you have a head of sales you're still head of sales."
""
"You own the business and are responsible for identifying and serving customers really well with the tools you have at your disposal."
""
"Owning the yucky stuff is liberating and helps negotiations too."
""
"Christopher Voss puts it another way in "Never Split the Difference"."
""
"By simply listing all the curly things you think you want to hide and saying them before the other person can - you completely disarm their power."
""
"It can also work in copywriting."
""
"For example:"
""
"You do not want to read this post."
""
"It's going to click and expand and underwhelm you."
""
"You'll read a short anecdote - think 'huh' - and then continue going about your day."
""
"Use wisely and don't say I didn't warn you 😉"
""
"--"
""
"I'm Marshy 👋"
""
"I help with pitching, advise on marketing, and write about the AI space."
""
"I'm looking for 3 social enterprise founders who are seeking to build more corporate partnerships - I have a short course I'm testing and can give them all of the material, and answer any of their questions for free - all I ask for is a bit of feedback at the end."
""
"DM me.

I used to be a massive audio book snob."
""
"I DEVOUR books, I'm not some floater that can't READ."
""
"I'm sure glad I let go of that silly."
""
"Here's 3 audiobooks I've enjoyed the absolute living bah-jeezus of, with the last one being my all-time most read:"
""
"📕 The Storyteller - David Grohl"
""
"You didn't see that one coming with my erudite posturing did you?"
""
"Well shame on you."
""
"I'm not a huge fan of normie music, but as I learned more and more about Dave Grohl and his values, I realised I wanted the full story."
""
"During the release of his book, Dave mentions that he got approached to have his story ghost written many times. He refused all of these as it didn't feel right, and he knew he would share his story one day."
""
"So it's straight from the horse's mouth. Going into his childhood, what early touring as a struggling musician was like, his perspective on Nirvana, and what it's like being a father."
""
"It hits you in all of the feels and hearing his laugh and self-deprecating humility on audio makes the tale all the more richer."
""
""
""
"📗 Thinking in Systems, Donella Meadows narrated by Tia Rider Sorensen"
""
"I love thinking about systems."
""
"Leverage, stock, the parts, how the sum of the parts is different, and the interconnectedness of all things. "
""
"I originally read Donella's prescient primer and both loved and struggled with its density."
""
"The book does an amazing job of breaking down complex ideas into simple anecdotes, but it was still hard going."
""
"Hearing the book in audio both broadened my understanding of the subject matter, and helped things settle in more deeply from a different angle."
""
"Highly recommended and just so kick-butt from a female science writer in the 90s."
""
""
"📘 The War of Art, by Steven Pressfield"
""
"This book was already in the annals of all-time."
""
"I remember aching when Seth Godin (smugly I thought) mentioned getting a copy of audio recordings originally read by Pressfield on the Tim Ferriss podcast."
""
""I must have this!""
""
"But at the time they were nowhere to be found."
""
"One day the book appeared on Audible and I re-listen to it at least once a year - it's that good."
""
"Steven talks about the Resistance. And it's a malevolent force that will eat you up and spit you out."
""
"It's sole purpose is to completely and utterly destroy your creative calling and you can't do anything about it other than fight back."
""
"It's the proverbial kick up the posterior you didn't know you needed."
""
"📸 from this morning as I wait for my 9am"
""
"--"
""
"I'm Marshy 👋"
""
"I nerd out on writing but also do stuff that earns money. "
"Such as helping startups make sense of their marketing. "
"Or selling copies of my book for startups trying to start marketing."
""
"Catch you on the flip side 🧢

Want to read about a bigger FAIL than this picture?"
""
""
"I heard some failure stories this morning and wanted to share one of mine."
""
"I was leading a team that was really, really good with social ads."
""
"The local Facebook team loved us because we'd start working with a client and they would grow."
""
"This growth would be delivered with smart strategy, fast-learning and hungry talent, and world-class social creative skills that would produce stuff that was born for the feed."
" "
"We onboarded a consumer-tech startup that was beginning to scale, and we were confident we could blow it up even more."
" "
"✅ We applied best practice."
"✅ Set up campaigns and ad sets to test and optimise towards."
"✅ Our creative looked amazing."
" "
"The work tanked."
""
"We gave it more "learning" time and it tanked even more."
""
"Extra client meetings were set up to allay fears, and we sat there while a co-founder tearfully shouted at us "you're destroying our business"."
" "
"Adding to this was my own home troubles and my own place in the business starting to make less and less sense."
" "
"Here's what I learned from that situation:"
" "
"💫 Take the emotion out of it and apply a long-term view. "
""
"One of the other co-founders understood that they couldn't keep doing what they were doing (managing the ads themselves) as it was unsustainable and the team was stretched. He was committed to finding an alternative solution and was prepare to bide time investigating our solution or alternatives. He kept the rest of the team calm while we tried to solve things for them."
" "
"🔨 A specialist never knows more than a business owner. "
""
"We were convinced we knew best as they'd had success with social ads and we knew social ads better than most of the market. But things were obviously tanking and while we couldn't see it right away, the business owner's intuition was right in this situation and they were right to raise the alarm."
" "
"👓 We all have blind spots. "
""
"The client had built up their social and paid social following through authentic, home-made ads with low production value. Our ads were polished, sizzly motion video that didn't resonate with their audience at all. Most of our clients were big brands - where a high level of production is expected. Their audience didn't expect that and it clashed."
" "
"If we were able to decouple our expertise (and egos) the data would have showed this too."
""
"Lesson learned."
" "
"Funny post-script - that company is still going strong and powers our boy's bedroom come nap and bedtime ❤️"
" "
"I'm glad it worked out 🙏"
" "
"📸 by Dad trying to inexpertly snap a shot of Glow Dreaming device without waking kids up from nap time"
" "
"--"
" "
"I'm Marshy 👋"
" "
"I've made 20 years of mistakes so you don't have to do the same."
"I work with nonprofits and startups who need an expert in marketing and tech."
""
"I also run this "try and never buy" initiative called big fast value calls where you get to book a call, get advice, walk away, and never pay."
""
"Have a happy hump day ⛰️

“But I can’t write…”"
""
""
"I hear this from just about every business owner and freelancer who ever pops a meeting in to pick my brain 🧠 "
""
"Do you remember English class at school? "
""
"I was one of those nerds that relished every second of it."
""
"What’s that got to do with posting on LinkedIn?"
""
"Well - here’s a little formula you can steal from those days that can help you if you get stuck."
""
"It’s TEEL."
""
"Topic sentence: what’s the idea you want to share? Put it in a bold sentence. It should stand on its own and invite the reader in."
""
"Explanation: if you’re going to build on that idea what’s it going to be? You worked hard for that readers attention so be sure to goddamn reward them for it."
""
"Example: are you shooting from the hip or backing it up with substance boy? Inject an anecdote, data, or colouring in with personal experience."
""
"Link: remember that idea you shared so long ago? Deftly sweep your words back to the idea or pirouette into a set up for the next one."
""
"You can write - just plug in some TEEL and fill in the gaps."
""
"You will be better off than before, and more importantly better than ChatGPT 👏"
""
"You’re welcome."
""
"—"
""
"I’m Marshy 👋"
""
"When I’m not proselytising with prose, I’m helping startups make sense of their marketing and helping nonprofits communicate more impactfully."
""
"I also advise anyone in my network for free. No strings attached.

Do you know of any social enterprise founders or small NFPs wanting to learn how to pitch to corporates?"
""
"I've built a short course with 12+ videos, how-to instructions, concepts and principles to make the whole process easier to begin and get traction in."
""
"The content is suited either to a early-stage founder wanting to learn this skill further, and could also work with a hungry team member who wants to help their cause as well."
""
"It teaches:"
""
"💥 How to bring value to corporate stakeholders and provide them with what they're looking for upfront"
""
"⚡️ A crash course on the tools and what not to waste time on"
""
"💥 The rules of the game and how things work over time"
""
"⚡️ How to start a cold relationship and what with"
""
"💥 What roles within corporations are most likely to be able to help you"
""
"I believe the world gets better when we persuade more corporates to partner with more change makers."
""
"This course is designed to help grease the wheels in that direction."
""
"I'm still in testing, but the initial pilot went well. "
""
"I'm looking for 5 more orgs I can share the course with no strings other than the desire to get feedback."
""
"Let me know or tag someone!"
""
"Muchos appreciatos 🙏

I read a LOT of startup growth stories and they tend to sound Silicon Valley-esque."
""
"Let me tell you what that reads like:"
""
"“Yo so we had this wellness-flavoured post-crypto fintech that was burning through runway. I had a hook-up with this VC type near Palo Alto who had a yoga studio so we did this mad yoga party and gave them signup codes after corpse posing.”"
""
"If you’re a startup in ANZ - that’s nowhere near what your growth trajectory looks like."
""
"The market is smaller."
""
"There’s less funding."
""
"And (fortunately) there’s much less tech bro."
""
"That’s why I’ve teamed up with 🚀Gemma Clancy and Bridget Cull at Stella Startups to research what it takes to grow your startup with marketing in ANZ."
""
"We’ve designed a survey, will follow it up with deep dive interviews, and release the knowledge into the ecosystem for the betterment of all."
""
"We’re looking for partners who can:"
""
""
"1. Advise on the survey design "
""
"2. Assist with distribution channels to collate enough respondents "
""
"3. Collaborate and sponsor to help us raise the level of production we can put into this work"
""
"If you fit the bill and want to know more slide into my DMs."
""
"Also - if you’re a startup who wants to participate and receive this knowledge when it’s ready then hit me up and we’ll put you on the list."
""
"📸 snap from earlier in the week of me doing a different kind of work with the two best personal trainers in the world "
""
" —"
""
"I’m Marshy 👋"
""
"Outside of startup surveys I am a co-founder of a new startup (🤫), coach founders and business owners, write a newsletter on AI, and advise startups and NFPs on growth."
""
"I’m good at what I do and don’t come cheap - so I also offer free advice to anyone who needs it via my big fast value calls 📞

It went something like this:"
""
""Hey folks, I've started 5 or so businesses and now run an investment group. "
""
"A lot of it manages itself now and I'm bored and got some spare time, so I'm offering chats to any founders and business owners in this group to see if I can help.""
""
"This was how I met Dale in a local startups Facebook group."
""
"He started a waste management company and focused on doing better than anyone in that category. "
""
"The business outperformed the market but Dale burned out."
""
"He then turned things around with a strict systems focus and grew his business, then businesses, then group with this same level of focus."
""
"We chatted and Dale called BS on what I thought was my problem, and then I applied what he said. "
""
"A couple of months later he said he is going to start helping out on Messenger regularly with a weekly check-in and voice notes and here was the price."
""
"That was a complete no-brainer to me and I've been working with him ever since."
""
"Here's some things he's shared along the way:"
""
"🏎️"
"Once you start putting in the work with this sort of focus, it starts coming back to you in spades. It might not be what you expected - but things start clicking more easily and the momentum builds."
""
"⊬"
"If you think something is too hard or impossible - prove it. I still remember him saying "prove it" with a smile. I'd just fed him a sob story about my unique experience and it's very hard to replicate what I do because it's a mix of strategic experience and hands-on. So I audited my time and invoices to demonstrate as such. My time divided up into 5 neat buckets where at 70% of it could be delegated. I shared it with him at the end of the week. He laughed "this always happens"."
""
"💯"
"Find your limit, then find a way to consistently set it to 80-90%. Redlining is unsustainable and over-glorified. When people are relying on you its also irresponsible and unnecessary risk."
""
"I had so many misgivings at the start:"
""
""This guy is rough!""
""
""He doesn't work in tech so it's different""
""
""He is oversimplifying things""
""
"Yet this was all my own crap."
""
"Dale's been nothing but helpful at every step of the way. "
""
"He's reminded me to have fun. "
""
"He's helped me hyperfocus on what I can control and also hyper stay away from what I can't."
""
"I admire how he goes about it. He's terrible at sitting still and "did the mai tais on the beach" and hated retiring. We've been swapping notes my whole Summer while he's been travelling around Europe skiing with his partner."
""
"It's his story to share, but there's also far more depth to his character than my first impressions and judgment allowed for."
""
"Anyway he's expanding what he does so if you want me to put you in touch just DM me."
""
"--"
""
"I'm Marshy 👋 "
""
"I'm building a startup, advise startups and nonprofits, provide marketing coaching, and write a newsletter about AI."
""
"I offer free advice to anyone in my network with a technology challenge, and you can visit my links to find out more.

A long desk. A tall bookshelf with lots of gold embossed books. An older man sitting behind his desk smiling and patiently listening to all of my woes."
" "
"This is how I used to fantasise about mentoring."
" "
"It doesn't work like that at all."
" "
"And if you find yourself in such a room - good luck, because it sounds like you're visiting a suburban lawyer's office."
" "
"Here's how I go about mentoring:"
"➡️ Find leaders and peers I enjoy swapping notes with"
"➡️ Catch-up with them every now and again"
"➡️ Continue this process to infinity"
" "
"What it does for me:"
"📈 Helps me clarify my thinking by sharing it with someone I respect"
"📈 Helps me check in with my feelings as I talk about opportunities, challenges, and what I'm working on"
"📈 Keeps the lines of communication open with someone that I can keep an eye out for and continue helping"
" "
"I've also mentored old staff, people I've met at conferences, and people who have taken an interest in something I've put out there and continued to keep in touch with."
" "
"The value of such relationships is intangible and compounds over time."
""
"📸 is a still from a pilot course I built teaching non-profit/social enterprise leaders how to pitch to corporates more to come soon"
" "
"--"
"I'm Marshy and write regularly on here 👋"
""
"I advise clients on marketing and tech, coach startup founders, write a newsletter on AI, and am working on a new venture with a small team."
""
"I have a book recommendation for everything - if you're after a reco let me know :) 📗

Today I'm going to give you a method for figuring out whether a marketing supplier is selling you a steaming pudding 💩."
""
"This technique works as a back of the envelope calculation to give you confidence its worth investing in."
""
"A first-time founder can apply it through to a seasoned business owner. "
""
"It also works for agencies, departments, and consultants."
""
"Put two questions against their offer."
""
"1) How much does it cost to get this customer?"
"and"
"2) How much is this customer worth to me?"
""
"A good supplier knows the range of answers to the above two questions. "
""
"They don't know the ins and outs of your business like you do, but they know how much it costs to create and produce assets that attract interest and help convert customers."
""
"Example"
"Let's say it costs $100 of Google Ads to get bookings for your Chiropractor practice. That's the cost per booking. "
""
"As you play with other methods - Facebook, TikTok, flyer drops, joint ventures - you've got a reference point for how much it costs to get a booking. You know most customers will book again, but if a supplier can't perform around that number - or is promising a much lower number - give them the flick. "
""
"It's a highly commoditised marketplace with finite audiences in each area - your marketing costs are fixed within a range and to perform better you're going to need to innovate/deliver better service and find other ways to beat the market."
""
"That's when the numbers become important - you need to know them so you compare that against what a supplier is offering."
""
"Here's the way to check"
""
"➡️ If supplier offer is FAR LOWER than the cost it takes to get a customer, they're offering you steamed pudding 💩 don't waste your time"
""
"➡️ If a supplier offer is 5-30% of the value your customers are you're playing in the right mix"
""
"There's other things to look for and happy to advise if you're in the thick of. it."
""
"But this should stop stupid things like spending $500 on a video expecting 100s of customers or paying $4,000 for a "corporate partnerships funnel" if each deal is worth hundreds of thousands of dollars."
""
""
"--"
""
"I have this wild theory that if I keep giving things away for free it's going to help in the long run."
""
"One of the ways I give things away for free is big fast value calls."
""
"15 mins of coaching on my areas of expertise - marketing, sales, technology, AI, career development, and personal growth - with a no pitch policy. "
""
"🤳🏼 from last week - I work in the city 1-2x a week in StartSpace and showing off my pearly whites on LinkedIn tends to do well

Work with what you've got."
""
""
"During my time at Google - we were always encouraged to "be scrappy". "
""
"This meant working within your means and doing things in a way that demonstrated hustle and resourcefulness instead of spending first."
""
"Later on the entire global sales organisation was flown to Las Vegas for a conference that still boggles my mind to this day (think Bruno Mars private concert in a stadium)."
""
"But you don't need an eye-watering travel and entertainment budget to do good work."
""
"Reframing is the act of taking your experience, playing it back, and recognising how it helped you get to where you are."
""
"It applies to everything - good and bad."
""
"If I didn't have such a bad experience leaving Google I wouldn't have met my ex-wife."
""
"If I didn't go back into a media agency after Facebook I wouldn't have made some wonderful friends and people I still mentor."
""
"If one client didn't chew me up and ask me for a $100,000 refund when our technology broke I would never have gained the depth of experience I have dealing with clients today."
""
"You also don't need a cavalcade of war stories from working with blue-chip clients, marketing egos, and tech bros."
""
"This is a slide from a pitch I made in 2006 trying to get into the AFA's graduate program."
""
"What does being a paper boy at 12 tell you about someone who wants to work in advertising?"
""
"It turns out a lot."
""
"Learn to work with what you've got - it's a very rewarding path that only becomes evident once you've looked back."
""
"And yes young Luke managed to weave Western Bulldogs colours into his pitch ❤️⚪️💙"
""
"--"
""
"I write regularly on LinkedIn and you can follow or send a connection request."
""
"If you'd like to read more I also have a newsletter with insights on AI and what's coming."
""
"And if my post resonated with you let me know - I love hearing from people both old and new.

I've calculated it to be about 1 time every 5 weeks."
" "
" "
"This is the frequency of requests per year I get for mid-to-senior professionals who are looking to start out with consulting and are curious about how to get started."
" "
"I always take a meeting and try to pay it forward."
" "
"My reason for this is that when I started over 10 years ago I could have used some kind words and pointers."
" "
"Over 10 years ago I remember getting my first verbal agreement to work with the startup pozible and then calling my business owner friend with:"
" "
""Okay, now how do I raise an invoice?""
" "
"I trust that those I help will do the same for others in the future."
" "
"There's a LOT to learn and I wouldn't have it any other way. "
""
"It's more engaging, flexible, and my pipeline of interesting projects is massive."
" "
"It's also draining, scary, and you have to continually hunt and deliver value because if you don't you won't eat."
" "
"Here's some quick points I've shared that come up very frequently:"
" "
"☕️"
"You need to network. If you hate that word you're in the wrong business. This can be a conversation every week, or 10 conversations every week, but it needs to be consistent."
""
"These aren't sales calls."
""
"You're taking an interest in people you've worked with or are interested in, learning about what they're focused on, and trying to identify ways to help them."
""
"These will lead to sales calls over a period of time if you do enough of them - but your job is to have consistent conversations."
""
"🧾"
"Figure out your billing and what you charge. Hourly jobs are going to eat you alive. I have a minimum term of engagement and you need the same - the time it takes to kick-off, do something, answer questions, and seek business is expensive - hourly jobs will kill you."
""
"🐻‍❄️"
"Your job in the first year is to SURVIVE. That's it. It's the hardest year. You're going to flub what you say, burn new client relationships, and freak out about bills being paid. The good news is once you get a handle on it, the second year is easier, and the years after become more fun. It's still hard but so is working for the man while he cashes in on you being chained to a desk."
" "
"I'll keep taking meetings of course and happy to help where I can."
""
"But it felt like a good time to make some PSAs because it's evident a lot more people need to hear this."
" "
"Thanks for coming to my TED talk."
" "
" "
"📸 taken after Mum went out for a well-deserved friend's dinner - if you think consulting is hard just wait until you have twin boys 😘"
" "
"--"
" "
"I'm not looking for projects but often get requests outside my scope."
""
"If you're looking for work it's worth connecting for this reason, and if you're looking for vetted specialists in tech, marketing, social media, sales, or operations to hire - I have a formidable network and am happy to point you in the right direction.

Today I'm going to argue what your career can learn from the world of kink."
" "
"In the kink world: "
"Boundaries are explicitly and frequently communicated."
" "
"I like this. "
"I won't do this. "
"There is a hard-limit and no-go zone on this. "
"I'm open to this, but only if you're upfront and check this thing first."
" "
"Friends I've met from this world are confident, clear about what they want, and seem to have a lot of fun in the process."
" "
"Now: "
"Let's flip this back to your career."
" "
"Ask someone what they're looking for next and you'll get vague answers."
" "
"I'm interested in something along the lines of... "
"I guess I could work at something that size. "
"I'm just looking for something that aligns with my passions."
" "
"I've got a truth bomb for you darling - if you're wishy washy with what your passions are - HOW ON EARTH is your future employer going to align that with you?"
" "
"The world rewards clear communication."
" "
"Work out your career kinks."
" "
"What do you ache for?"
"What are your no-go zones?"
"What pain are you willing to tolerate in order to get the rewards?"
" "
"Answer those questions yourself - and be ruthlessly honest."
" "
"Satisfaction on the other side awaits."
" "
"The world isn't going to gift you anything."
"But when you're clear on what you want it finds ways to make it happen."
" "
"p.s. I wanted to take an amusing photo to support this metaphor but all I could come up with this gag."
""
"--"
" "
"I've got plenty of projects on my plate and not looking for more."
""
"But I LOVE coaching."
""
"I'm offering free big fast value calls to anyone in my network."
""
"My intention is to keep offering these until I can't meet demand any more."
""
"There's no pitch."
""
"Details on my profile.

Persistence is criminally underrated."
""
"I hear people point to spam and say - I don't want to be like that!"
""
"But that's a very different thing."
""
"Taking a determined and continuous interest in working with someone carries its own energy and its own rewards."
""
"The value of it goes up when everyone is scurrying around freaking about the latest thing."
""
"You can get anywhere you want to go with persistence."
""
"So go get that thing that's scaring you."
""
"Keep showing up."
"Keep being interested."
"Keep that focus."
""
"It opens doors you didn't even know existed.