On Success

When you write about the subject, your task is to remember with crystal clarity how bored you were when you first tried to understand it.

The best way to get a powerful person’s attention: offer to help them.

As chief of staff, I reviewed thousands of requests for Reid’s time/attention/money. It was stunning how few requesters actually offered to help him on something. Amusingly, many requests were framed as if the asking party were doing Reid a favor by giving him the opportunity to... See more

The biggest problem of success is that the world conspires to stop you doing the thing that you do, because you are successful. There was a day when I looked up and realised that I had become someone who professionally replied to email, and who wrote as a hobby. I started answering fewer emails, and was relieved to find I was writing much more.

Do not send me anything longer than you would send to a crush. Some people email me six-paragraph essays about the time they saved a cat from a tree.

I find the most effective way to get someone's attention is to simply give, just like in dating. Hey, I noticed that you read this book on your website. I think you'd like this book too; it's pretty sh... See more

the most important job of the office is “soft work”—the sort of banter that allows for long-term trust and innovation.

I was able to thrive on Substack because it was the culmination of almost 15 years of learning how to reach directly to readers. I’d gained some skills along the way. Even more, I came to Substack totally committed to this way of operating.