Standing out in a digital word

Mes amis,

There is a lot of noise online right now

• The arrest of Tate

• ChatGPT

• Love Island

And with the emergence of the creator economy, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to stand out.

To sound unique in a sea of recycled posts, tweets, videos and content over all the web.

I took the plunge into full-time entrepreneurship back in July.

And since then, it’s been the number 1 problem I’ve been trying to solve.

People want their problems solved, and quickly but to be good isn’t enough anymore.

People want value - they want to be educated, entertained and inspired. 

And, at the start, content did this.

But eventually, they become stale, bland and an annoyance.

Posts became platitudes:

• Listening to Hans Zimmer soundtracks for concentration

• 7 methods to tell a story

• 13 tips you need to accelerate your business

• The ideal morning routine for successful people

• How [insert public figure] does [anything] better than you

I’m far from sinless and I have made a few empty posts myself in the hope of getting a client.

But that’s all it is, empty.

Which leads to more drivel being posted on our feeds.,

Nothing useful or valuable.

You study the game long enough and you realise that everyone does the same thing. 

Only a few stand out.

But how?

By being authentic.

Everyone can have a similar experience, but no one will have a like for like experience.

Your perspective is unique.

But how do you weave authenticity into your content?

By telling stories.

This is how you capture them.

It’s called homework for life.

It’s a concept I learned from the book Storyworthy by Matthew Dicks.

At the end of each day, I note down the most notable thing that happened that day.

Whenever I’m in a pinch to write a post, this bank of stories saves me.

I go to my spreadsheet and expand on a story or couple together some anecdotes for a larger story.

And I created a template for you to use.

You may be wondering. 

“Kennedy, I’m not a content creator… how is this helpful?”

Because everybody is a storyteller.

We tell stories all the time.

When friends ask how we’re doing, we tell a story

When we’re being interviewed, we tell a story

When kids ask question that have complicated answer we tell a story

So take this and start writing down one notable thing at the end of each day.

I’ll be checking your homework next week.

I’ll also be breaking down the components of how to tell an amazing story.

A bientot 👋🏿

Music of the week

I find as I get older I care more about what artists say in their songs and find myself leaning more and more towards listening only to instruments. 

So this week we have something you can chill out to - enjoy!

Podcast of the week

The guys and I are back again discussing life as entrepreneurs and employees. 

Wall of Inspiration

Last Tuesday, I went to a Toastmasters event. One of the speakers, a woman called Phoebe, shared her experience of failing to enter the army.

She had joined Toastmasters to improve her conviction. Which, according to her feedback from the army, she lacked and needed to develop before passing.

You could feel her nerves as she walked in front of a hall of just over 100 strangers but, even for her first speech, she did amazingly and inspired the room.

She received a standing ovation leaving the stage with her face blushing red and a beaming smile. It was heartwarming to share and experience.