Published author, ghostwriter, novelist, poet, comma maximalist. I teach you powerful rhetorical tricks to improve your writing and get paid online.

Join 3,800+ people reading my daily emails on writing (and get three free gifts as a thankyou) by scrolling back up and tapping my featured link.

James Carran

The worst writing productivity advice I've ever seen:

"Take a break every 30 minutes."

Are you crazy?

Get in flow, stay there as long as you can, then stop.

You'll write 10x more this way.

Craftsman Writer. Published author, ghostwriter, novelist, poet, comma maximalist. I teach you powerful rhetorical tricks to improve your writing and get paid online.

How to become an amazing writer in 8 easy steps:

1. Read
2. Read
3. Read
4. Read
5. Read
6. Read
7. Read
8. Write

All there is to it really.

I'm going to settle this right now:

If you can count it, it's fewer.
If you can't count it, it's less.

"There were fewer emails to read."
vs
"I had less work to do."

Easy.

You can't write something worth reading until you've lived something worth writing.

Shorter isn't better.

Don't write: "He was mean."

Write: "He'd cheat a widow out of her last coins, just because he could."

Show, don't tell.

Even if it takes longer.

Delete "that".

Don't write "He thought that it was a good idea."

Write: "He thought it was a good idea."

Cleaner, and easier to read.

(If it breaks the sentence, put it back.)

Read a real book.

X-Twitter rots your brain and spoils your writing.

So do most self help and business books.

Pick up a classic novel instead.

You'll write better.

By age 30 you should have realised writing is the most powerful skill in the modern world.

It's wild how many terrible writers make amazing money because they just keep putting themselves out there and never doubt their ability.

Something to think about

Writing is a skill, not a talent.

You can learn.

You can improve.

Everything is online now.

Everything is writing.

Never neglect it.

The world belongs to the writer who writes even when nobody will ever read it.

Sometimes I write at night.
Sometimes I write in the morning.
Sometimes I write at lunch.
Sometimes I write on my phone.
Sometimes I write at the desk.

The important thing is writing every day, not where or what time you do it.

Writer's block is just a fancy word for laziness.

Avoid negatives.

Never write "He wasn't the best of shots"

When you can write "He was a bad shot"

Your readers brain will skip the negative, then have to go back and correct it, which jars them out of the reading trance.

Rephrase it.

Stop overthinking.

Write it. Edit it. Publish it.

Move on to the next thing.

1/100 aspiring authors will start writing.
1/100 of those will finish the book.
1/100 of those will publish.

It doesn't take much to beat the average.

People say coffee can't replace water but I think they just don't drink enough coffee.

🌎 On a Mission to Eliminate 1 BILLION Pounds of Plastic Annually! 👉 Let’s connect today!

I'm dedicated to eliminating BILLIONS of pounds of plastic by making circular compostable packaging a reality for every brand.  We've made circular compostable packaging solutions easily accessible, and help brands get them effectively composted, powering sustainability impact to drive brand value and financial success.

With 25 years at the helm of Elevate Packaging, I have pioneered and led the charge in providing world leading, reliable, high-quality compostable packaging solutions for the leading sustainable brands.

Our mission is to make it easy for your business to seamlessly move beyond traditional plastics to circular compostable packaging, making sustainability an easy choice and a big win for your business.

Leveraging my deep expertise in strategy, technology, and business innovation, I've identified and developed market leading solutions to reduce packaging waste, introducing industry-first compostable products and enabling circular packaging systems.

As a speaker, investor, and a key contributor to sustainability councils, I strive to lead by example in both my professional and personal life and promoting a healthier planet for future generations.

Let's make a difference together!

Rich Cohen

I’m looking for a #Chicago-based Digital Marketing & eCommerce Manager to help take Elevate Packaging into its next phase of growth.

As you may know, I founded Elevate Packaging in 2000 with the belief that packaging could perform at the highest level while also eliminating #plastic and supporting a truly #circular economy.

After more than 25 years of building deep expertise and leadership in circular compostable solutions, we’re seeing accelerating demand from brands and partners who want credible, scalable solutions and we’re ready to grow with them.

This role is a chance to have real ownership and real influence. 🌟 
You’ll lead our digital presence and e-commerce experience, evolve our #CRM and email systems, shape how our authentic story shows up across search and emerging #AI discovery, and work closely with me and our sales and operations teams to translate complex ideas into clear value for customers.
We’re moving quickly, thinking creatively, and building with intention, and if you’re excited by #growth, #autonomy, and the #opportunity to help shape a category-defining company, I’d love to connect.

Digital Marketing and Ecommerce Manager #hiring #sustainabilityjobs #chicagojobs #technologyjobs #ecommerce

The shift from toxic plastic continues advancing.

This is a huge move and indicates the beginning of a wave of change we will be experiencing.

Compostable solutions are commercially available and enable a smooth seamless transition to better sustainable equivalents.

Check out Elevate Packaging for ready-right-now solutions and quick supply.

View company: Plastic Pollution Coalition

MAJOR VICTORY ⚖️  for plastics legislation in Canada! CA Federal appeals court allows plastics to be labeled as “toxic,” and affirms there is enough evidence to continue to address the plastics crisis through policy. #PlasticPollutes #BreakFreeFromPlastic #PlasticLaws

Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gNzH8wWW

I'm speaking at B2B Online Chicago 2026, to join me click here https://lnkd.in/gt7Yfv_9 #B2BOnline #B2BOnlineChicago

Have you noticed the fear and anxiety regarding #AI replacing humans and their jobs?  I'm sure you have.

The million dollar question is: 'What will humans do now?'

I have a very different perspective about AI.

I've lived through tech fearmongering firsthand a few times.

In the mid-'80s I played a central role in driving technology transformation from mainframes to PCs and client-server computing.
IT executives and programmers panicked: "Now our business colleagues will develop their own apps and access data on their own, leaving no more IT jobs!"
Spoiler alert: Technology and software developer jobs exploded more than ever before.

Then in the 90's I recall the hand ringing of how 'the internet' would immediately eliminate jobs: "E-commerce will kill all retail jobs!"
Yet we see now how warehouses boomed and digital marketing surged.

AI job fears are overstated. 
As in the past there will be a shift in what work we do and how work is done, and as before, we will adapt.

#Disruptive technology has always created anxiety but has introduce new opportunities and humans have adapted. 
👉 Automobiles dramatically reduced horse and buggy work but birthed mechanics and highway/road construction
👉 Electricity ended tons of manual work and changed the lighting industry (candles, oil lamps) but launched a huge range of useful appliances, such as dishwashers, clothes washing machines, refrigerators,  etc, which eliminated many other jobs, while creating other new jobs.

At Elevate Packaging, AI is enabling our e-commerce and custom #circular #compostable packaging manufacturing and distribution business more than ever.

It has enabled us a platform for growth and  creating new exciting career opportunities. 

AI streamlines and improves flows from sales to production to delivery.

It helps our customers enable #EPR: automated traceability reporting, fee-optimized designs, rebate forecasts.

Opportunities emerge. Roles evolve.

Our outstanding all-human #zerowaste ambassadors (sales team) can focus more than ever on building authentic human relationships with our clients and businesses that seek to eliminate #plastic and develop circular packaging solutions. 

We will let AI crunch the EPR calcs and manage production integration.

Productivity fuels #sustainability.

AI is Tech. Tech amplifies us.

As we enter 2026, with the looming health threat of #microplastics it's clear that we’re entering a new era of #plasticfree #sustainability... where performance, purpose, and planet are no longer at odds.

At Elevate Packaging, that’s been our focus  quietly but relentlessly from our founding in in 2000.

We don't focus on headlines; We are #leaders, #pioneers, #engineers, and #innovators focused on building #effective sustainable solution systems.

We’ve engineered world-class #compostable materials that reliably outperform plastic thru our vertically integrated, circular supply chain designed for consistency, scalability, and real impact. ♻️

Our customers confirm they cannot find a better [name-the-packaging-Elevate-offers] than from Elevate Packaging, where  [name-the-packaging] is our disposable gloves, stand up pouches, coffee bags, child-resistant packaging, tape, stretch wrap, cello bags, etc etc.

From the very beginning, we took a different path. ➡️

Instead of chasing sales, we invested in engineering, circular authenticity, and integrity with a clear mission to eliminate wasteful plastics and replace them with solutions that truly restore the planet. 🌍

True sustainability is not about compliance or marketing.
‼️ This is such an important point, and the basis for today's gross misdirection in the industry by the perceived incumbent leaders of compostable packaging compliance.

It’s about #systems #leadership.  It's about redesigning how materials flow so business performance and planetary health move in the same direction. 💡

Elevate isn’t just a packaging company. We’re a sustainability company, proving that #Circular design + #Performance + #Purpose does scale together. 🌎

The next phase is all about partnership.
If your #sustainablebusiness is ready to move beyond incremental change and help build a regenerative future with #zeroplastic, let’s connect and make it real. 💚

I'm embracing #Neuroplasticity!

I was deeply impressed by #Olympic #champion Eileen Gu, and her gold-medal dominance left me in awe - Nueroplasticity is her big advantage.

When it comes to building a world-class #circular #sustainable company I look for every tool possible to help drive sustainability impact and success.

This is how I/we can rewire our brains for peak performance through focus and practice.

At Elevate Packaging, by applying that same relentless mindset to build world-class circular compostable systems with our passionate, brilliant team, we're engineering sustainable solutions that outperform plastics and deliver #plasticfree packaging to brands so we can collaborate to restore the planet.  

Eileen's success proves what's possible for all of us! 🌟

Let's bring Olympic-level excellence to sustainability! 🥇🌍

Founder and CEO at Thrive Global | Passionate about Health and AI

Do you ever wonder what happens inside the mind of an elite athlete? 

I absolutely love this perspective from gold medal freeskier Eileen Gu on the power of our mindset and belief system: "You can control how you think. And therefore, you can control who you are." 

Athletes don’t just magically create routines and habits. They’re supported by coaches who use the principles of behavioral science to set them up for success. That means using techniques to reduce decision fatigue and lower stress. Through neuroplasticity, the small choices we repeat every day can strengthen our neural circuits and rewire our brains to make certain behaviors more automatic, which is exactly what Gu has trained her mind to do. 

As Gu said, “With neuroplasticity on my side, I can become exactly who I want to be.” 

What was your favorite moment of the Winter 2026 Olympics? Let me know in the comments!

B2B Distribution has been making a quiet shift.

As I was preparing trending topics for leading a roundtable with distributors at the upcoming B2B Online, I’ve been thinking about something many B2B distributors are beginning to notice.

Customers are asking more often for packaging that is:
✅  #Compostable
✅  #Plasticfree
✅  #PFAS-free
✅  Compliant with emerging packaging regulations, like #EPR

This shift is not just consumer driven.

It is coming from brands responding to retailer requirements, sustainability commitments, and new legislation.

For distributors, this raises an interesting question.

Will sustainable packaging remain a niche category, or will it become a standard product attribute, like recyclable, recycled, food-safe, or FDA compliant?

B2B e-commerce leaders understand that distributors who win are often the ones who recognize new product attributes early and structure them into their catalogs, like Zoro.com, before competitors do.

Curious to hear from other distributors:
👉 Are you seeing sustainability show up more often in product searches, RFQs, or procurement requirements?

#B2BDistribution
#SustainablePackaging
#CircularEconomy
Lena Jawdat Angelica Cieslak, MBA
Modern Distribution Management (MDM) Distribution Strategy Group

B2B distribution sustainable compostable recyclable EPR eco-friendly biodegradable 

taplio

The Battle

James Carran

Rich Cohen

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance ScoreJames Carran's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreRich Cohen's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

James Carran

Rich Cohen

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}James Carran's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreRich Cohen's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreJames Carran's LinkedIn Performance