Co-Founder @ The Creator Accelerator. Head of Content @ Chris Donnelly LTD. I talk about AI, Marketing & The Creator Economy

Yo,After 5+ years within the personal branding space. I've helped build and scale personal brands of all sizes from varying industries.Currently, I'm helping Chris Donnelly become the most recognised entrepreneur on the planet.2 years in, we've:- Grown on LinkedIn by 1 million followers (180k - 1.1 million)- Have achieved 400m+ views on LinkedIn - Grown on TikTok by 500,000 (200k - 750k+) - Grown on Instagram by 780,000 (0-780k+)- Have achieved 1 Bn Views across platformsAnd I'm also running the Creator Accelerator with him, so if you're looking to do something similar, join the Creator Accelerator ! Here's a bit of proof to help convince ya ;) Yinka generated over $400,000 in revenue directly attributable to LinkedIn and the TCA systems.Jeff sold $80,000 worth of his offers within the first few weeks of joining the cohort. He also generated 840 new leads and grew his profile by 273%.Christine made $52,000 in course revenue from LinkedIn in under two months, while growing from 6,000 to nearly 11,000 followers. She's now at 42,000.Jon told us he'd made "three absolutely huge sales this week for ongoing work that more than doubles my annual revenue and has easily paid for the course, many multiples of times over."Nimrita had an investor reach out after reading her content. Within three weeks of connecting, that investor wrote a cheque for 50% of her funding round.Farhoon launched a paid community and hit $10,000 MRR in just three weeks. 145 paying members with only 5 churns.Julia landed a $250,000 contract and was flown to NYC for high-value networking opportunitiesIf you want to know more... go here: https://thecreatoraccelerator.co.uk/Oh, and also I almost forgot, I do posting on LinkedIn too and have worked with some of my dream brands (woo), so if you're looking to collab, drop me a DM :DPeaceee 

Josh S.

Don't be that person who has terrible AI output.

Instead, steal 1 of these 8 frameworks:

Thanks Chris Donnelly for the awesome graphic ;)

If you type a vague question, expect a vague answer.
AI is only as good as the instructions you give it.

If you want AI to generate content that sounds like you...
Try writing better prompts (duh).

Learning to prompt properly is a skill that improves with practice.

I've built AI content systems for 750+ founders inside TCA.

Here are the 8 frameworks we use for everything 👇 

1️⃣ R-T-F (Role. Task. Format.)

Best for: Your go-to starting point on any prompt.
Example: "Act as a LinkedIn strategist. Write a hook for a post about lead generation. Include 3 options."

2️⃣ T-A-G (Task. Action. Goal.)

Best for: Quick drafts and fast edits (when you're running out of time). 
Example: "Rewrite this email subject line. Make it direct to increase open rates."

3️⃣ R-A-C-E (Role. Action. Context. Expectation.) 

Best for: Posts, emails, and scripts where tone and voice are key.
Example: "You're a founder marketer. Write a LinkedIn post. Context: I help founders build lead gen systems."

4️⃣ C-A-R-E (Context. Action. Result. Example.)

Best for: Content briefs and any task where showing AI good examples improves the output.
Example: "I'm a B2B founder with 5k followers. Write a post about cold outreach that drives DMs. Example: [paste a decent post]."

5️⃣ S-O-L-V-E (Situation. Objective. Limits. Vision. Execution.)

Best for: Complex problems where you need AI to think with you.
Example: "My webinar sign-ups dropped 40%. Recover them in 2 weeks, but no paid ads. I want 500 registrations. Plan this for me."

6️⃣ D-R-E-A-M (Define. Research. Execute. Analyse. Measure.)

Best for: Strategy, market research, and structured analysis.
Example: "I'm launching a newsletter. Research what formats work for founder audiences. Give me a 4-week plan. Analyse what could go wrong."

7️⃣ P-A-C-T (Problem. Approach. Checks. Test.)

Best for: Stress testing a content plan, campaign, or business decision.
Example: "I've got low post engagement, so I'm going to post daily for 30 days. Test to see if it's working after 2 weeks."

8️⃣ R-I-S-E (Role. Input. Steps. Expectation.)

Best for: Building SOPs, content calendars, and any task that needs a structured process output.
Example: "You're a content strategist with my 4 content pillars. Build a 4-week LinkedIn calendar with 3 posts per week."

It's important you know when to use each.
Because with better prompts, you'll be in the top 1% of AI users.

Pick the task you use AI for the most and find the matching framework above.

Then, rewrite your usual prompt using it.  
Compare outputs, and you'll be blown away by the difference !

Which one will you try first? Drop it in the comments 👇

♻️ Repost to help a founder in your network use AI properly,
And follow me, Josh S., for more on leveraging AI to build your personal brand.

The creator economy is changing how founders grow | I help founders navigate it | 5+ years in the space | Co-Founder of The Creator Accelerator | Follow for posts on Personal Branding, Content Creation & AI

"LinkedIn reach is dead." Seen this a 1230213 times.

Bluntly, it's not. You just need the right approach:

Absolute banger of a sheet from Chris 
(So many nuggets to take from this !) 

Let's be real... 
A strong brand can change your business and life.  

But only if you have the right strategy to scale it effectively. 

You can save time and check out Chris' 19-minute video here: 
https://lnkd.in/eH-YJnnX

Or check out this cheat sheet for the full breakdown:  

1. Your North Star

Your personal brand needs one clear North Star for the next 90 days.

Ask yourself:
What does success genuinely look like 12 weeks from now?

2. The Positioning Triangle

Personal brands win when 3 things overlap:

1. Your expertise
2. A painful market problem
3. Your point of view

3. The Audience Clarity Map

There are only 3 groups you need to speak to: 

- Buyers: The people who will pay you
- Aspirational followers: The people who amplify you
- Learners: Early-stage, curious, watching quietly

4. The Content OS

This is how we structure every content system we build: 

1. Teach – frameworks, tactics, step-by-step
2. Think – opinions, observations, contrarian takes
3. Build – behind-the-scenes, lessons, mistakes
4. Sell – results, stories, clear offers

5. The Attention Engine

Consistency in personal brand requires a weekly execution system.

1. Idea Sourcing (60 minutes)
2. Batch Writing (2 hours)
3. Daily Engagement (15–20 minutes)
4. End-of-Week Review (20 minutes)

6. The Trust Ladder Framework

People buy from you because you’ve earned their trust based on: 

1. Awareness
2. Relevance
3. Authority
4. Proof
5. Action

7. The Content Feedback Loop

Your audience will always tell you what to create next.

Each week, analyse:

- Your highest-performing post
- Your lowest-performing post
- Which topic resonated the most
- Which format could be repeated

8. The 3-Level Personal Brand Funnel

A strong personal brand is built to sell.

Your funnel should follow:

1. Top of Funnel: Content geared towards reach
2. Middle of Funnel: Deeper education (cheat sheets, carousels, etc)
3. Bottom of Funnel: Proof and clear transformations

9. The Growth Scorecard

You only need 5 metrics to know if your brand is working: 

- Number of views
- Follower growth
- Engagement rate
- Inbound leads
- Newsletter signups

Your personal brand should be your biggest asset 
Not a complete time drain.

The difference is all in the strategy you use. 

What part of your personal brand are you struggling with the most? 
Drop a comment below with your thoughts. 

If it's the LinkedIn algorithm throwing you off, that's an easy fix. 

♻️ Save and repost to share this system with your network. 
And follow Josh S. for more on personal branding.

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Co Founder of Searchable.com | Follow for posts on Business, Marketing, Personal Brand & AI

Your LinkedIn profile is costing you opportunities right now...

Because no one knows what you do. 

Cheers to Nader Alnajjar for the sick graphic that solves this.

For nearly 2 years, I've taught 750+ founders inside TCA how to get their profile right.

And the same problem always shows up. 
Visitors land on their profile, can't answer 3 basic questions in 10 seconds, and leave. 

If they don't know who you help, why they should trust you,
And the specific outcome you can create for them...

You've already lost. 

This 6-section framework has the answers:

1️⃣ Banner

- This is your chance to make a great first impression.
- Most founders waste it on a logo or a generic background.

Action: Include one clear message with a CTA, and speak directly to your ideal client.

2️⃣ Profile Picture

- Make this both approachable and trustworthy.
- This isn't a stiff corporate headshot, or a selfie that undersells you.

Action: Get a headshot that shows you're a "warm" professional. 

3️⃣ Headline

- This is the most valuable real estate on your entire profile.
- Stop listing your job title and leaving it there.

Action: Make sure to answer, "What can this person do for me?"

4️⃣ About Section

- Lead with your ICP's pain point.
- That way, they'll realise their problems can be solved.

Action: Show them you get it first before sharing your background. 

5️⃣ Featured Section

- Picture this as the perfect credibility shortcut.
- Include your most relevant posts.

Action: Use case studies, client results, frameworks, and newsletter sign-ups.

6️⃣ Experience Section

- Stop writing it like a job application.
- Rewrite each entry as a mini case study

Action: Follow the framework of challenge → what you did → outcome.

You may be creating great content, but without pointing people in the right direction, you won't convert. 

Every post you publish sends people back to your profile.
If the profile doesn't convert, all that effort is pointless.

So fix your profile first, and then focus on the rest.

My advice? Run this 10-second test right now:

→ Does your banner tell a stranger who you help?
→ Does your headline state an outcome or just a title?
→ Does your about section open with their problem?
→ Does your featured section prove you can solve it?
→ Does your experience section show results, not just responsibilities?

If the answer to any of these is no, that section needs work ASAP. 
Before anything else.

If you want to go deeper on everything covered in this post, 
Chris and I put together a full playbook on how to turn your profile into a lead generation machine.

Inside, you'll find the exact framework we use to help founders fix their profile so it converts visitors into leads.

Luckily for you, it's completely free XD

👉 https://lnkd.in/eEbAgsaW

Which section do you need to work on?
Drop it in the comments.

♻️ Repost to help founders in your network fix theirs.
And follow me, Josh S., for more on LinkedIn strategy.

I don't "create" content anymore.

I built my always-on replacement. Here's how:

Most founders are still writing every post from scratch.

The ones scaling have an agent handling research, drafts, and repurposing.
All before they've even had their morning coffee.

Here's how to build your first AI content agent in 9 steps:

📋 Pick one content task

Research or repurposing, pick one.
Write one sentence: given this input, the agent produces this output.

📍 Map it like a process

Break the task into 4-7 clear steps before you open any tool.
Decide what goes in and what comes out.

🌱 Choose where it lives

LangChain, LangGraph, and CrewAI are solid starting points.
Start simple. Scale up when you need to.

✔ Define inputs, outputs, and tools

Pick your input: a topic, URL, or a transcript.
Then tell it the exact output format you want back.

📝 Write the job description

Your system prompt is the brain of the whole thing. Spend time here.
Include your role, boundaries, style, and examples of your best posts.

💭 Add memory and context

Add recent posts, performance data, tone of voice, and ICP.
Without context, the output will always be generic.

🛡️ Add guardrails

No invented data. Human review before anything goes live.
Guardrails are what make it safe to trust the agent with your brand.

⚙️ Build a simple interface

One input field. One run button.
If it takes effort to access, it won't get used.

🧪 Test on 5 real posts

Compare the output to your own writing.
Score on tone, hook strength, and editing time. Adjust from there.

Most founders think their content is too personal to systematise.

But after a few months of posting, your voice is documented.
Then your best posts become examples. Your process becomes repeatable.

Remember, the agent isn't there to take over your judgment.
It's there to do the mechanics.

Which part of your content process would you automate first?
Drop it in the comments.

To learn more about building using AI for your personal brand, 
Subscribe to The Creator Accelerator Newsletter: https://lnkd.in/eu78xAs2

💾 Save this post to scale your content and make AI work for you ! 
♻️ Repost to help a founder stop doing content manually.
And follow me, Josh S., for more on leveraging AI so that it works for you.

I've wrote over 6798+ posts on LinkedIn in the last 3 years.

And I always see the same mistake...

You're only posting one type of content, and you're still confused why nothing you write sells or converts.

You can't just pick one type of post and hope it sticks. 
Whether that be teaching, sharing opinions, or posting results.

You can't rely on these to help you grow on LinkedIn.

And that's because LinkedIn has 3 different audiences...

1/ People who've never heard of you.
2/ People who know you exist but haven't decided to trust you yet.
3/ People who are already convinced and just need one more reason to act.

If you change up your content based on these audiences, you'll scale rapidly.
And that's a fact :) 

So here are 3 content types that hit every single audience, which every founder needs:

1️⃣ Reach Content

Find people who've never heard of you before. 

- Don't be scared to challenge common beliefs.
- If it doesn't teach in detail, it won't increase dwell time.
- The goal primarily is to stop the scroll. 

Never play it safe.

Content no one disagrees with is content no one remembers ! 
Just don't be an a-hole xD

2️⃣ Authority Content

For people who know you exist but haven't decided to trust you yet.  

- Build authority from the get-go. 
- Teach something a reader can apply from the get go.
- Share frameworks, specific processes, and honest lessons from experience.

Always ask yourself: would someone save this post?

3️⃣ Conversion Content

For people who are already sold and just need one more reason to act. 
We give real outcomes, real names, and real numbers...

For me, and TCA, that looks like:

- Jeff pulling in $80k in his first few weeks.
- Yinka generating $400k in revenue from TCA teachings.           

Founders avoid this because it feels like bragging, 
Or for the ones who do well, it's the only thing they post.

Both kill the system.

If you want to convert, you need to bring all 3 together.

Reach without authority brings people in, but gives them nothing to stay for.
Authority without reach teaches a small audience that never grows.
Conversion without the first 2 is selling to strangers with no reason to trust you.

The right mix for most founders:
50% reach, 33% authority, 17% conversion.

Go audit your last 10 posts. 
See how well you do across all 3.

Which type of content are you posting the most right now? 
Let me know down below ! 

♻️ Save this for later and repost to help a founder in your network ! 
And follow me, Josh S., for more on turning content in revenue.

Josh Sanders

Instead of a £90,000 outdated uni degree

Learn from these people for free instead: 

As we are well into 2026, it's time to improve your feed! 

Here are 54 incredible creators
Who share genuinely insightful and actionable content. 

Go drop them a follow here: 

Self Development:

Thomas Pearce
Dan Goldin
Mark Hyman, MD
Dr. Carolyn Frost
Dr. Neetu Johnson M.D.🧠🩺
Priyamvada S

Business Building:

Chris Donnelly
Matt Gray
Alex Hormozi
Leila Hormozi
Codie A. Sanchez
Dan Martell

Leadership:

Jen Blandos
Dora Vanourek
Mike Leber
Jill Avey
Eric Partaker
George Stern

Artificial Intelligence:

Greg Isenberg
Charlie Lass
Axelle Malek
Anisha Jain
Anna York
Adam Biddlecombe

Marketing:

Elfried Samba
Tom Pestridge
Timothy Armoo
Brianna Doe
Jo Bird ✨
Will McTighe

Career Progression:

Ashley Couto
Ford Coleman
Alec Rickard
Angela Ang
Natalia Cano
Linda Le🌻

📌 Reached the mention capacity
Check out the other creators I tagged in the comments !  

Now it's your turn...
Who's your fav creator on here?? 

Tag them in the comments below :) 

♻️ Repost this to help refresh your networks feed 
And follow Josh S. for more like this !

I’ve written 3847+ LinkedIn posts in the last 3 years. 

Every post has its own goal. Let me explain: 

To build a highly profitable personal brand...
You need to create content across the funnel. 

- Top of funnel - High growth content
- Middle of funnel - High trust-building content
- Bottom of funnel - High conversion-based content.

Here are 15 formats of content 
To grow and monetise your personal brand on LinkedIn:

Growth: 

- In-depth broad topic carousel
- Broad topic cheat sheet
- Resources/tools post
- Reactive trend post
- Viral billboard
- Viral video

Trust building: 

- Lead magnets
- Personal stories
- Your personal tools/systems
- Reactive content with your expertise

Conversion: 

- Testimonials
- Case studies
- Milestone posts
- Niche “how to” video
- Sharing your processes

This will allow you to build an audience that is:

↳ Large 
↳ Engaged in you 
↳ Future customers

Your content strategy should directly reflect your goals. 

For example: 

Goal: More customers as quickly as possible. 
Focus hard on MOF/BOF content.

Goal: Reach more people.
Focus on TOF content. 

Which part of the matrix do you struggle with the most? 
Let me know below!  

♻️ Repost this to help others in your network win LinkedIn 
And follow Josh for more !

The top 1% have an unfair advantage on LinkedIn... 

They think in systems. Here's how you can do the same: 

Most founders overthink posting on LinkedIn.
They stare at their laptop for hours and come up with... nothing.

And the reason is pretty simple: 
You'll stay stuck like this without a good content system.

When founders stop posting, it's normally down to a lack of good structure.

Those generating consistent leads are thinking way less about what to post.

Instead, they're using a 3-layer framework that makes LinkedIn work for them 👇

1️⃣ Content Pillars (3-4 max)

Know which topics you own, and the areas you can talk about for hours.

Find yours by asking yourself:

- What do clients always ask you?
- What could you teach a full day workshop on without preparing?

E.g. Lead generation, personal branding, AI workflows, founder marketing.

Those are your pillars. Pick 3-4 and stick to them :)

2️⃣ Content Types (5 formats)

There are 5 types of LinkedIn posts you can write.

- Educational cheat sheet: a clear, structured breakdown your audience can save 
- In-depth carousel: a longer, in-depth format that walks through a topic 
- Comparison style cheat sheet: a side-by-side format that breaks down a contrast 
- Visualised infographic: a single graphic that makes complex ideas simple
- Stories and lessons: personal wins or failures that show your thinking

3-4 pillars x 5 types = 15-20 content directions at any given time.

The blank page becomes a menu.

3️⃣ Batching Calendar

You only need 3 focused blocks per week.

- Research day: find pre-validated ideas inside your content area. Look at what's already working, then build on it.
- Batch design day: produce your cheat sheets and visuals in one session. Design first, so your writing has direction.
- Writing day: write captions based on the designs you've already built. The hard thinking is done.

Engagement is a daily habit you build alongside everything else.

The whole workflow lives in a Notion calendar so everything stays on track.

Without pillars, your audience never knows what to follow you for.
Forget content types, and every post starts from scratch.

And no calendar means posting only happens when inspiration strikes (which means it often doesn't lol).

Consistency beats creativity, every time.

Because you'll have a bank of ideas ready for when you're running on empty.

Which of the 3 layers is missing from your approach?
Drop it in the comments :D

For more insights on building a personal brand system that works for you, the TCA newsletter is your playbook.

Subscribe here 👉 https://lnkd.in/eu78xAs2

♻️ Save this and repost to help a founder stop starting from zero.
And follow me, Josh S., for more on building a personal brand minus the writer's block :)

The key to high performing LinkedIn content? 

Telling great stories. Steal these 6 frameworks: 

We've all been there... 
Hours spent writing content, all for a flop 

(It sucks lol) 

But it doesn't have to be like this. 
In fact, the best creators all have one skill down... 

They tell great stories. 

Here are 6 storytelling models 
You can use immediately:

1. The Hero’s Journey

Take people from ordinary world → challenge → tests → reward → transformation.

Best for:
Origin stories and case studies.

2. The Golden Circle

Start with WHY, then HOW and then WHAT. 

Because people will always be convinced more by the why. 

Best for:
Brand messaging and pitching.

3. The Fichtean Curve

Stack crisis after crisis. Each one bigger than the last...
Until the resolution.

As tension keeps people reading.

Best for:
Lesson posts and comeback stories.

4. The Origin Story

Before → Turning point → Now.

Show the problem you lived through.
Highlight the moment everything changed.
And then show who you’ve become.

Best for:
Founder stories and investor pitches.

5. ABT Framework (And, But, Therefore)

Set the scene, bring in some sweet tension 
And deliver the payoff.

Best for:
LinkedIn hooks and cold outreach.

6. StoryBrand

Always make your customer the hero. 
You are simply the guide providing the plan.

Best for:
Specigic LinkedIn sales copy (and landing pages).

So if you're stuck with your ideas not landing. 
Give these a go ! 

You may be surprised with their impact :D 

Which framework do you use the most out of these ? 
Let me know in the comments below ! 

💾 Save this for later. 
♻ Repost to help others tell better stories.
And follow Josh S. for more practical breakdowns like this.

Wondering which LLM you should spend your hard earned cash on? 

Look no further... here's the sheet for you: 

A banger comparison sheet from the main man Chris Donnelly

We've been spending months testing every major AI model. 

And they all have different pros and cons. 

But it goes deeper than that... 
The art is knowing which LLM to use for each specific task. 

Here's how the top 6 stack up in 2026: 

1. Claude Opus 4.5 (4.6 new updated hehe) 
The model we rely on most, I spend so long on here ! 

Best for: Strong reasoning and long-form thinking
Downside: Less spontaneous with creative ideas

2. ChatGPT-5.2
Still the most "every day" tool available.

Best for: Strong reasoning and multimodal support.
Downside: Costs increase quickly with heavy usage

3. Gemini 3
Google’s model, now so effective to use. 

Best for: Multimodal understanding across documents and image generation 
Downside: Writing output can feel restrained

4. Perplexity
The fastest way to get high quality research. 

Best for: Real-time search with clear citations
Downside: Limited creative generation

5. Grok 4.1
Strong awareness of what’s happening in this moment.

Best for: Real-time trend and cultural context
Downside: Limited use for structured or technical work

6. DeepSeek 3.2
Open-source, highly efficient for technical teams. 

Best for: Strong quantitative and STEM reasoning
Downside: Limited documentation outside Asia

Each model will serve a slightly different purpose. 

My personal favourite is Claude as I loveee to writ with it. 
But I would encourage everyone to test them and see for yourself. 

The deeper you experiment, the more value each one can provide. 

Which is your favourite LLM and why? 
Drop it down below ! 

💾 Save to study when you have some time free ! 
♻️ Repost to help others understand the different LLMs 
And follow Josh S. for more.

Your personal brand is costing you 1000s of opportunities. 

Don't be blind to it. Avoid these mistakes:

You probably think showing up consistently is enough.

But personal branding is reputation management at scale. 
Every post and comment you share either builds or breaks your credibility.

Those who get this build businesses off the back of their brand.
But the guys who don't... well, say goodbye to lead generation 😬

Here are the 5 mistakes killing your credibility:

🗣️ Generic LinkedIn guru speak

"Combine content to unlock growth."

Vague language shows vague thinking. 

You need to think about it like someone who wants to hire you.
And that's never gonna happen if you don't make yourself clear.

Instead: Replace filler with specific, plain statements about real things you've done or believe. 

🏆 Humble bragging disguised as lessons

"Failed my way to 7 figures" posts make people roll their eyes. 
(I know this, cos I roll my eyes too)

Readers can tell the difference between founders who want to teach and who just want to be seen.

Instead: Lead with the learning and let the outcome speak for itself.

🎯 Posting without purpose

Random thoughts are not a content strategy.
You need to answer "why am I posting this?" before you hit publish.

Instead: Define what job the post is doing before you write it. That's how content becomes a system.

⿻ Copying other founders' playbooks

Studying what's working for top creators is a smart starting point.
Stopping there is the mistake.

Take the formats and topics getting traction, understand why they work, then run them through your own experience and opinions.

Yes, the market already has Gary Vee and Alex Hormozi. 
It doesn't have YOU.

Instead: Use what's working as a starting point. Then add YOUR unique insights.

📸 Treating LinkedIn like Instagram

Professional doesn't have to mean you've got a stiff upper lip. 
LinkedIn has room for personality (I'm a prime example 😜).

But every piece of content should pass the test of whether this makes sense in a room full of your ideal clients.

If it doesn't, you shouldn't be posting it.

Instead: You can be warm and funny while representing your expertise in every interaction.

I see founders making these 5 mistakes on a daily basis. 
Each one destroys the credibility your content is trying to build.

If you're only sharing your wins, people won't get to know the real you.
Be real with your audience and show them how you learned from your mistakes.

That way, you'll build a trust that can't be broken. 

That's what happens when a personal brand is built with intention.

Which of the 5 hits closest to home?
Let me know below.

To learn more about building a personal brand and speaking to your ICP, 
Subscribe to the TCA Newsletter: https://lnkd.in/eu78xAs2

💾 Save this to avoid the mistakes for later ! 
♻️ Repost to help founders in your network fix their brand.
And follow me, Josh S., for more on personal branding and LinkedIn strategy.

Most people will quit very early on LinkedIn: 

Here’s the reason why (and how to avoid): 

They don’t realise LinkedIn mirrors real life.
It’s all about persistence and adaptability.

People watch creators skyrocket in growth...
And assume they blew up overnight.

The truth is completely different.

This is how the journey really unfolds:

1. You define your core topics and have buckets of ambition.
2. You then start posting and put yourself out there.
3. You engage daily in comments and start to build a community.
4. You follow LinkedIn advice from gurus who can't back it up. 
5. And finally you give up when it doesn’t click instantly.

It can be an insanely brutal process. 
But if you stick at it...

This happens too:

✅ You analyse what actually gets results and learn.
✅ You restart and apply the lessons to go again.
✅ You then double down on what works for you. 
✅ Then the growth starts happening.

🏆 And you become a recognised name in your space. 

It’s a wild ride.

And the algorithm is always evolving.
So you’re constantly forced to adjust.

But that’s why LinkedIn rewards those who stick it out.

How’s LinkedIn going for you right now? 
Drop your thoughts below.

♻️ Repost to help those struggling on LinkedIn 
And follow Josh S. for more!

AI can 10x the speed at which you write your content.  

But most people put in the wrong inputs...

They type "write me a post about X" and wonder why it sounds like every other LinkedIn account.

AI can only work with what you give it.
Give it nothing unique, get nothing unique back 🤷‍♂️

And unique content is key if you want to build a great personal brand. 

After building content systems for 750+ founders inside TCA, 
Here's the 4-layer framework that fixes this and lets you stand out from the crowd.

🗣 LAYER 1: VOICE EXTRACTION

Before AI can write like you, it needs to know how you think.
Most founders skip this and then complain AI doesn't sound like them. 

Prompt: "Analyse my last 10 posts. Extract my tone, sentence patterns, and recurring themes. Create a voice profile I can reference for every future post."

Do this once, then update it every few months. Everything else gets easier from here.

⛏ LAYER 2: EXPERIENCE MINING

Your best content comes from real experiences. 

Prompt: "Turn this experience into 3 content angles: a tactical lesson, a mindset shift, and an industry observation. For each, identify the core emotion and the specific audience it speaks to."

1 real experience becomes 3 distinct posts. This is how founders never run out of ideas.

🔎 LAYER 3: PERSPECTIVE INJECTION

Generic advice is everywhere on LinkedIn.
What lands is a specific point of view.

Prompt: "Rewrite this idea through the perspective of someone who believes [your controversial review] and speaks directly to [your specific audience]."

You can add, "make it direct, confident, and free from corporate language."
This way, the content comes directly from you.

✅ LAYER 4: AUTHENTICITY FILTER

Even with the right inputs, AI still goes into robot mode and makes up clichés nobody says.

The prompt: "Review this draft. Remove any AI tells, clichés, and rhetorical questions. If this doesn't sound like something I'd say to a founder over coffee, rewrite those parts until it does."

This step alone will improve your content more than anything else in the process. I get it.
You might want to skip straight to "write me a post" because it's faster in the short term.

But generic content builds a generic audience.
Which means low engagement, wrong followers, and no business pipeline.

The founders spending an extra 20 minutes on a proper AI workflow are getting 10x the results.

Which of the 4 layers is missing from your current AI workflow?

- A voice profile AI can reference
- Your specific perspective and point of view
- Real experiences in your prompts
- A final authenticity check before anything goes live

Start with Layer 1, so you can build the voice profile first.

If you're serious about working with AI to scale your personal brand,
TCA's weekly newsletter is for you 👉 https://lnkd.in/eu78xAs2

♻️ Repost for founders who need better AI prompts.
And follow me, Josh S., for more on using AI the right way.

2021: Graduated Uni with no idea what I was doing 

2026: Co-founder to a $10M business. 

5 years of deep work and figuring things out. 
And it still feels a bit sureal to me tbh. 

If I was to go back and talk to myself back then. 
Here is my fav bits of advice I've picked up: 

1. Find patterens in different industries and apply them to your own. 
2. Never settle. If there's caps on your growth, find another route.
3. Think big. 95% of people cut themselves short thinking too small. 
4. Always take initiative and find a way instead of default asking. 
5. Find execptional people and work very closely with them. 
6. Always pay attention to detail, most people suck at it. 
7. Find a high value skill, and become world class in it.
8. Do random nice things for people consistently.
9. Always keep an eye on standards. 
10. Always take action. 

The last one is the most important. 

Some of these may feel incredibly obvious but this will often be the case.

Because when it sounds so obvious, for the most part, people won't do it. 
Meaning it therefore becomes your biggest advanatge. 

Would love if we could have some wisdommm in the comments below 
today ! 
No AI sh*t just pure life lessons to help others :D 

Happy Friday Legends :D

I've audited 750+ founder profiles...

And the same problem comes up every single time.

Their content could be decent, but their profile isn't.

Founders spend hours on content,
And less than 2 mins thinking about the profile that content leads people to.

Then they wonder why nothing they sell converts (lol).

Your post lasts 24-48hrs most of the time.
Your profile works around the clock. 

So here's the 6-section audit I run on every founder profile.
And luckily for you, it only takes 15 mins!👇

1️⃣ Headline

Don't list your job title and leave it there.
That tells people who you are, but not why they should care.

Fix: Replace it with a value statement.
"I help [specific audience] achieve [specific outcome] without [pain point]."

Time: 2 mins.

2️⃣ Banner

Most founders leave it as a logo or default gradient.
Both are missed opportunities.

Fix: Show what changes for someone when they work with you.
It should communicate your value before anyone reads your headline.
"I help B2B founders generate leads without cold outreach or paid ads."

Time: 3 mins.

3️⃣ About Section

Avoid starting with your background. 

Fix: Open with your ideal client's problem, so they feel understood.
Introduce yourself in the context of how you solve it & close with 1 clear CTA.
"You've been posting every week, but nothing converts. It's time to check your content system."

Time: 4 mins.

4️⃣ Featured Section

It's easy to leave this empty or fill it with your favourite content.
But what it needs is proof that your work can be trusted.

Fix: Show what proves you solve the problem your ideal client came with.
This could be a result, a framework, or a newsletter.
E.g. A post breaking down how a TCA founder went from 0 to 50 inbound leads in 30 days.

Time: 2 mins.

5️⃣ Experience Section

Rewording your CV doesn't cut it (spoiler alert ;)).

Fix: Rewrite every entry around results.
Say "grew ARR by 300% in 18 months" rather than "managed a sales team."

Time: 2 mins.

6️⃣ Contact & CTA

This is the most overlooked section on any founder's profile.

Fix: Add a calendar link to your About section. Make it impossible to miss.
Remove all friction points between someone being interested and someone taking action.

Time: 2 mins.

These are the most important questions you need to ask 👇

→ Does your Headline state a specific outcome for a specific audience?
→ Does your Banner show transformation?
→ Does your About section open with their problem?
→ Does your Featured section prove you can solve the problem your ICP has?
→ Does your Experience section show results?
→ Is there a clear next step for someone ready to talk?

Remember, your content reaches people for 24hrs.
But your profile works every day after.

Which section needs the most attention on your profile?

To learn more about optimising your profile, subscribe to the TCA newsletter: https://lnkd.in/eu78xAs2

♻️ Repost to help founders fix their profile.
Follow me, Josh S., for more LinkedIn breakdowns.

How to make a viral LinkedIn carousel in 9 minutes. 

Using Claude and Gamma: 

Ok so 2 of my fav tools have built a beauttt integration. 

And as data shows carousels perform significantly better than other posts. 
I wanna show you how you the ins and outs for: 

Making an incredible LinkedIn carousel (pronto) 

Try out these easy steps today: 

Step 1: Connect the two tools

- Go into Claude, settings, then browse and search gamma 
- Sign in to your Gamma account 

Step 2: Ensure all of your brand assets are in both tools. 

- Get your fonts, brand assets and colours in Gamma 
- Have Claude trained on your tone of voice and knowledge base. 

Step 3: Research and find pre-validated topics

- Find pre-validated topics and ideas within your content pillars
- Posts that have performed disproportionately well for: 

Either yourself or another creator

Step 4: Once you have found the right topic, expand your thinking 

- Share the idea with Claude and work out how you can differ. 
- Think about improving with your own knowledge and experience

Important note: Never copy an idea directly, think about which alternate angles you can take and how you can offer new advice and information from your own expertise. 

Step 5: Once you have a clear structure, build out the info 

- Start to develop the copy for the carousel slides 
- And think of which type of images you'll be supporting it with 

Step 6: Simply write "Gamma help me create a presentation on this based on my usual brand assets" 

- Wait as it produces the slides for you
- Then go in and check what it creates for you ! 

Step 7: Edit and adjust

- Make sure the copy and images are exactly how you want it. 
- Really try to provide as much actionable value as possible ! 

Step 8: Get that carousel live ! 

- Use Claude to summarise your carousel into an actionable caption.
- Make the caption scannable and well structured with a curiosity driving hook. 

Then post at your ICP most active time. 

And there you have it folks !
Making an incredible LinkedIn carousel in 8 simple steps :) 

Give it a try here: https://lnkd.in/eQcFh84j

Have you tried this yet? 
Let me know below ! 

♻️ Repost this to help your network save their precious time 
And follow Josh S. for more! 

#gammapartner #ad

Brand partnership • The creator economy is changing how founders grow | I help founders navigate it | 5+ years in the space | Co-Founder of The Creator Accelerator | Follow for posts on Personal Branding, Content Creation & AI

We’re hiring a Marketing Manager to join our team.

This could be a career defining move...  

Comment "JOB" below, and I'll send you the full spec personally.

Firstly, do not click "easy apply". 
We're interested in people who actually read the job spec and can follow instructions. 

Here are the key details: 

Salary: £35k - £40k Depending on experience 
Location: London Bridge - Hybrid (in office 2 days a week) 

Huge opportunities for growth:
 
We are 18 months in at $10M revenue and have a very small team.
So you'll be coming in at the early stages !

What is TCA? 

For those seeing this for the first time, we run 10 week cohorts,
Helping founders significantly grow their audience and generate leads. 

Now we are on our 7th cohort (waitlist is now open 👀).

And after 6 fully sold-out cohorts, 750+ students taught
And some of the biggest creators on the platform learning from us... 

The business is growing thick and fast.
Which means we need someone who can keep up.

That's why we’re looking for a kick-ass marketing manager who will help us do exactly that.

Here's what this looks like:

- Writing lead magnets that pull in the right founders
- Building email sequences that convert
- Producing landing page copy that makes the right person feel immediately understood
- Writing high converting webinar decks
- Building out the TCA brand from the ground up 

So if this sounds like a bit of you, here's exactly what were looking for 👇

✅ 1-2 years in marketing, copy, or content 
✅ You are an execptional writer
✅ You're already paying attention to what's working on LinkedIn
✅ You can take a brief and run with it
✅ You can adapt to things quickly and want to grow fast

The learning curve is steep, and that's the point.

You'll be working directly with me 
And learning things most marketers don't see until way later in their careers.

If you don't tick every box, but you know this is where you want to be, apply anyway ! XD

Again, comment "JOB" below, and I'll send you the full spec personally.

Would really appreicate if you could either repost this,
Or tag the person who you think would be great !

I got 10 years of progress in 2 and I did 1 thing to get it:  

Work closely with an exceptional founder.

Heard this advice recently from Daniel Priestley 
And tbh, I have never agreed with anything more in my life.  

Just shy of 2 and half years ago I joined Chris Donnelly. 

At the time, I knew I wanted more from my career
But I didn't know where to start. 

I knew I wanted to work insanely hard, but felt limited in my role.
Then I saw an opportunity to work with Chris, and I knew it'd be the move for me.

And boi did things move at 100mph. 

In the space of 9 months, we scaled his audience to over 1.5 million (from about 200,00) 
And before I knew it we decided to start a business to teach others to do the same. 

In 9 months, I went from personal brand manager to co-founder. 

Still blows my mind now tbh. 

If you're looking for that kind of progress in any kind of role
In most industries that would take 10+ years. 

And I'm not saying any of this was easy...

It took the hardest I've ever worked and multiplied it by like 38 hahaha. 

But wow was it worth it.

So if you're looking for more in your career or life...
Start working with an incredible founder. 

The learning curve will be vertical. 

But your life will never be the same again. 

Always grateful to the homie Chris 

And the teams we have around us are genuinely the best in the world. 

What a time to be alive :D 

Happy Friday Legends 💪

Founder of Dent Global & ScoreApp | Awarded Entrepreneur of the Year | 7x business books | Founded/exited multiple ventures | Mission to develop entrepreneurs who stand out, scale up and make a dent.

18 months ago, Chris and I hedged our bets.

We poured our heart and soul into something special.

And it paid off.

We decided to stop keeping our process private and start teaching it.  

At the time, we'd grown Chris's LinkedIn from 180k to 650k in 6 months.
Doors were opening that we hadn't even anticipated.

So we launched The Creator Accelerator (TCA).
And the results in 18 months were honestly mad:

- 20x ROI for each member on average
- $10m ARR for the TCA business itself (wild)
- Students going from nothing to hundreds of thousands of followers

I'm genuinely proud of the wins we see daily at TCA.   

But going into 2026, something became clear...

LinkedIn reach had dropped, and the algorithm had changed A LOT.  

Having a big follower count wasn't enough anymore.
You needed to convert attention into leads and generate real business returns.

The ones struggling were still optimising for views.

So we made another call.

We refocused TCA entirely on what was actually working 👇
Lead generation, funnel optimisation, and outsized business returns.

The proof was already there. 
Our lead magnets had driven 23,000+ leads in 30 days.

The playbook existed; it just needed to become the whole programme.

So we rebuilt it from scratch.

We created new modules on funnel optimisation and social selling, and a full 10-week programme ranging from profile optimisation to lead generation.

Building TCA has been the chance to create what I wished had existed when I started.

And the 2026 version is the closest it's ever been to that.

What's the biggest shift you're making to your business in 2026?
Drop it below :)

If you're serious about turning your personal brand into your biggest business asset this year,
Subscribe to our weekly newsletter, The Creator Accelerator👉 https://lnkd.in/eu78xAs2

♻️ Repost to help a founder in your network who needs to hear this.
And follow me, Josh S., for more on building a personal brand that converts.

We're hiring a Marketing Manager at TCA!

Here's what you need to know upfront 👇

- Salary: £35k-£40k depending on experience
- Location: London Bridge, hybrid (2 days in office)
- Stage: 18 months in, $10M revenue

If this sounds like a bit of you, comment "JOB" below and I'll send you the full spec personally.

For anyone new here, The Creator Accelerator runs 10-week cohorts helping founders grow their audience and generate leads on LinkedIn.

We're on cohort 7. Every single one has sold out.
750+ founders taught and the business is moving fast.

Which means we need someone who's up for the task.
Cos we have a lot of exciting stuff happening. 

Now the formalities are out of the way... 
Here's what a day in YOUR life, as a TCA Marketing Manager, actually looks like:

Morning kicks off with checking what's converting, what's not, and what needs fixing.

You know what's shipping that day, and nothing gets missed.

Late morning is deep work.

Writing lead magnets, drafting email sequences, shaping landing page copy for a launch.

This is where the good stuff happens.

Afternoons are more collaborative.
Briefing webinar decks with me, reviewing copy, refining messaging.

Fast feedback loops, you'll never be waiting around. 

Late afternoon, you're reviewing performance.
Not just tracking numbers but actually making sense of them and deciding what changes next.

Every day looks a little different. And that's the point.
Because it's the kind of different that makes you really good, really fast.

So, here's what we need from you.

👉 1-2 years in marketing, copy, or content
👉 You can write properly, every single day, without needing a load of edits
👉 You're a LinkedIn nerd XD
👉 You take a brief and run with it
👉 You want to grow fast and don't need hand-holding to do it

You'll work directly with me from day one.
(Lucky you 😉)

There's no hierarchy or micromanaging.
Just good work and a lot of learning. 

So jump on it while you can. 
Even if you think you don't tick every box.

If you know this is the type of environment you want to be part of.
Apply anyway :)

Comment "JOB" below, and I'll send you the full spec personally.

And if you know someone perfect for this, tag them or give this a repost. Would mean a lot!

♻️ Repost to spread the word.
And follow me, Josh S., for more on what we're building at TCA.

Repeatable Client Acquisition & Fulfillment | Our mastermind community helps you convert online income into a real business | Book a call or DM to apply

I'm an operator documenting what I've learned building revenue engines over the past decade.

CEO @ MSP Sales Partners. Managing Partner @ Repeatable Revenue. Former PE-backed CEO. Former Managing Director at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Spent six years building sales systems for Robin Robins (TMT, sold to PE). Built revenue engines for 100+ service businesses.

I write about what I've learned: how sales systems actually scale, the difference between activity and productivity, why hard choices matter more than hard hours, building a business without burning out.

This isn't guru content. It's lessons from the work... what I got wrong, what finally clicked, patterns I see across businesses, frameworks that actually held up under pressure.

I write for three types of people: Strategists thinking about exits and scale. business owners stuck at a plateau trying to break through. Thinkers who want to build intentional lives, not just businesses.

If you're one of those (or all 3), follow along.

Ray J. Green

Whatever happened to Chris Walker?

He was the top B2B marketer and reshaped how the entire market thought about marketing. Built Refined Labs from the ground up and went from $1M to $20M in 18 months. Worked with 350+ software companies. He put demand generation on the map. Created incredible returns for investors and helped hundreds of people accelerate their careers. 

Then he walked away.

Now he's talking about something very different: Frequency.

And no doubt people are wondering, "What the hell? Is Chris a spiritual coach now or something? Did he go on some DMT trip?"

I had him on the podcast this week and asked him some candid questions about this journey.

And he shared some things that may not surprise you if you're a builder. 

He said at the peak — $22M in revenue, 12-14 hour Zoom days, running away on vacation every 90 days and coming back to 1,000 emails — he realized he'd done everything he was "supposed" to do. And it didn't feel at all the way he thought it would.

I related to that more than I'd like to admit.

I left a PE-backed CEO job, moved my family to Cabo, and 18 months later felt the exact same way I did before. Different wallpaper. Same foundation.

Chris has a framework for why this happens — why we keep repeating the same patterns with new circumstances. New job, same toxic cycle. New business, same trap. New relationship, same dysfunction.

In this episode we get into all of it:

→ Why achieving your goals can be the worst thing that happens to you

→ The invisible architecture underneath every decision you make

→ Why Chris believes this will be as mainstream as exercise within 5 years

Whether you buy it or not, this conversation will make you think.

Listen now: https://lnkd.in/esM-S9w7

CEO @ MSP Sales Partners | Man. Partner @ Repeatable Revenue | Ex-PE Backed CEO | Former U.S. Chamber Managing Director

No alternative text description for this image

Something weird is happening in outbound sales right now.

The more AI gets used for cold outreach — calls, emails, DMs — the worse it's getting for everyone using it. And the better it's getting for anyone who sounds like an actual person.

We manage 50+ SDRs making cold calls for MSPs right now. And the ones getting the best results aren't the most polished. They're the most HUMAN.

They pause. They laugh. They say "honestly, this is a cold call" and give the prospect permission to hang up. They go off-script when something the prospect says is worth following.

And people respond to it. Because after getting five AI-generated LinkedIn messages and three robotic voicemails before lunch, a real voice with a real personality feels different.

This is why the "hire cheap, hand them a script, pound out as many calls as possible" approach is failing harder than ever. You're competing against AI with a person who sounds like worse AI.

The SDRs booking 8, 10, even 20 appointments a month in our fractional sales management program aren't reading scripts verbatim. They have frameworks — but they're trusted to be a human within those frameworks. To personalize an email. To riff on a conversation. To respond to a DM like a normal person instead of a chatbot.

That requires a different caliber of hire. And it changes how you think about the entire role.

I recently put together a playbook breaking down three specific SDR strategies behind the MSPs getting outsized results right now — full frameworks, scripts, and campaign templates. These are real-world, actually working right now case studies. 

Grab it for free in our MSP Sales Toolbox at www.MSPSalesToolbox.com.

We manage 65 SDRs right now for MSPs across North America.

We've hired and trained over 100 in the past 12 months. 

And when a new MSP comes into our program, the first thing we do is score them on a report card.

Because we can predict — with a very high degree of confidence — whether an SDR is going to produce or flop before they ever pick up the phone.

There are 5 patterns that show up almost every time someone's getting goose eggs:

→ They hired anyone with a pulse. Cheapest person, barely screened, "just read the script." The difference between a good SDR and a great one isn't 10-20%. It's 2-5x.

→ They think they have a good list — and they don't. Raw vendor data has 30-40% breakage. So take whatever you'd expect from your SDR and discount it by a third.

→ They have no offer. "Will you meet with my CEO for 15 minutes?" is not a pitch. It's a prayer.

→ Their scripts are from 2019. Permission-based openers are working right now. Shorter scripts. More human. If your SDR sounds like a bot, they'll get treated like one.

→ Zero sales infrastructure. No call reviews. No meetings. No accountability. Even a good SDR will decline in a vacuum.

0 for 5 on these? You're going to lose money.

When onboarding clients, we grade all 5. Because we know we have some work to do if they fail across the board.

The good news? Even C's in each of these areas get you positive ROI.

If you have A's, you're baffled what people mean when they say, "Cold calling doesn't work anymore." 

If you want to know what that looks like, I created a playbook with 3 detailed case studies of MSPs consistently getting 10-15 appts a month right now. 

Frameworks, scripts, strategies. 

Grab it for free at www.MSPSalesToolbox.com.

Every call your SDR makes is producing 2 things.

The first one's obvious — either an appointment or not.

The second one most MSPs throw away: Market intelligence.

When a prospect tells your SDR "we already have an MSP and we're happy," that's not a dead end. That's data. That tells you this person has budget, understands managed services, and has already made the buying decision once. They're a future buyer. You just don't know when.

When someone says "we handle IT internally," that tells you something different. They haven't bought managed services before. The sale isn't switching providers — it's educating them on why they need one at all.

Two completely different prospects. Two completely different marketing approaches. 

But if your SDR logs both as "not interested" and moves on, you've lost the distinction — and the ability to do anything with it.

The MSPs getting outsized results from their SDRs aren't just using them to book meetings. They're using every call — including the ones that don't convert — to build an intelligence layer that feeds their marketing for months.

Specific dispositions. Tailored sequences. Content that matches the prospect's actual situation, not a generic drip campaign that treats everyone the same.

Your SDR talks to hundreds of prospects a month. Each one is telling you exactly what they need to hear. The question is whether you're set up to listen.

I put together the full disposition framework and email sequences in a playbook with three SDR case studies.

Free at www.MSPSalesToolbox.com.

If somebody cold calls you and asks for 15 minutes on your calendar, what are they actually asking for?

Your most expensive resource, time.

And I don't know about you, but someone has a better chance of getting my credit card than my calendar. I have more money to give than I do time.

And so do most of the people you're trying to get appointments with. 

Which means the SDR role is a sales job. A real one. They're selling something — and the price the prospect pays is their TIME.

So "would you like to meet with my CEO for 15 minutes?" ins't a very compelling offer on its own. It's an ask with no upside for the person you're asking. 

Sure, you'll get some appointments with that pitch. A blind squirrel finds an acorn every once in awhile. But you won't get consistent returns. Not very good ones anyway. 

The MSPs I've seen consistently book 10, 15, even 20 appointments a month? It's not because their SDRs are smooth talkers with a magic script. They simply arm their SDRs with with something worth "buying." 

A toolkit. An audit. A benchmark study. Something specific to the prospect's problem — where the meeting is worth attending. Because there's some value for the prospect to gain by saying yes and showing up. 

Same SDR. Same list. Same market. If you have a compelling offer to go outbound with, you'll see completely different results.

Because one has something to sell and the other is just asking for time.

I gave a talk on this recently to a couple hundred MSPs — broke down 3 detailed case studies of SDR strategies that are producing 3-5x more appointments than the industry average right now. We turned it into a full playbook with the frameworks, scripts, and campaign templates.

Just dropped it in our MSP Sales Toolbox — grab it free at www.MSPSalesToolbox.com.

Hot lunch date with this pretty lady to celebrate some good heart health news! ❤️

Last year, we found out my son has dyslexia and ADHD.

As a parent, you sit in those meetings with the school and every single one is about what your kid can't do. Three meetings. Four meetings. Not once did anyone say, "Here's what he's great at."

I left one of those meetings and told my wife: I know for a fact that for every one of these things, there's a flip side. And nobody's looking for it. All we hear about is what he's not good at. 

Then I remembered that David Rendall—someone I've known for years—had a lot of content out there about embracing your weaknesses. 

I went to his website and watched one of his speeches. Then had my wife watch. She sent it to other moms. Then we watched it with our boys. 

By the end, my other son said, "I want ADHD."

So, you could say the message landed.

Dave's got a PhD in organizational leadership and he's spent his career proving one thing: your weaknesses are inseparable from your strengths. Every superpower has a downside. That's what makes it a superpower. And every downside has a superpower. 

The problem? Schools, therapists, and managers are wired to fix weaknesses. Nobody's wired to find the strength hiding inside them.

I brought Dave on the podcast and we went deep:

→ Why the people with the most potential are often the ones getting crushed by the system

→ What Paul Orfalea (founder of Kinko's, who struggles to read and write) teaches us about success

→ How my wife and I use our polar opposite wiring to make one plus one equal three

This one's personal. And it might change how you see your kids, your team, or yourself.

Listen now: https://lnkd.in/eHnfYFe2

How many great coaches were great players?

Bill Belichick never played a snap in the NFL. Phil Jackson averaged <7 points a game. Tony La Russa hit .199.

Meanwhile, Wayne Gretzky — the greatest hockey player who ever lived — coached the Coyotes for 4 seasons and never made the playoffs. 

Same thing happens in sales.

Business owners hire their best closer and hand them the manager title. Makes sense on paper — this person knows how to sell, so they'll teach everyone else.

Except selling and managing are 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀𝗲𝘁𝘀.

Your top seller is selfish by design. That's what makes them great. They focus on their numbers, their pipeline, their commission check.

A good manager? They build systems. They transfer knowledge. They coach — and coaching isn't just finding 10 things you did wrong on a call. It's identifying the 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵-𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 that needs to change and following up until it does.

In my experience, best managers were usually good, not great at sales. They usually come from the middle of the pack as salespeople.

Not because they couldn't sell. Because they understood the game well enough to teach it.

Belichick never played a down in the pros. But he understood defense better than anyone who ever suited up.

If you're hiring a sales manager, stop looking for your best closer. Start looking for someone who can explain 𝘄𝗵𝘆 they're good — and prove they've made others good too.

Before your SDR makes another call, try this.

Read the script out loud. The whole thing. Then ask yourself one question:

Would I take that meeting?

Not "do I think someone who needs IT services [or whatever you sell] take it." Would YOU — busy, skeptical, protective of your calendar — stop what you're doing and book 15 minutes based on what you just heard?

If the answer is no, you've found the problem. And it's not the SDR.

I've managed salespeople for 25 years across a dozen industries. The pattern is the same everywhere. When the offer is weak, we blame the caller. We blame the list. We blame the market. "Cold calling doesn't work anymore."

Cold calling works fine. Sure, it takes more skill than it used to to make contact. But it works. I have 60+ SDRs calling outbound for MSPs in our business. It works. 

But what you're offering on the call doesn't.

Because a meeting isn't free.
The prospect pays with their time.

And for most business owners, someone has a better chance of getting their credit card than their calendar. Time is the scarcer resource.

Most SDR pitches don't come close to justifying that price.

The fix isn't playing musical chairs in the SDR seat. Or looking for that magic script. Or paying for 15 more tools.

It's giving your SDR something worth selling — where the meeting is the delivery mechanism, not the ask.

I recently shared three case studies on stage with a couple hundred MSPs — the specific strategies behind SDR teams booking 15-20 appointments a month right now. We turned it into a full playbook with the frameworks, scripts, and templates behind each one.

It's free in our MSP Sales Toolbox at www.MSPSalesToolbox.com.

Someone on my sales coaching call froze mid-question last week.

A prospect had just said something interesting and it was the perfect moment to dig deeper. 

But instead of asking the obvious follow-up, they hesitated, fumbled around, and then moved on to another questions.

Later they told me: "I thought we weren't supposed to ask 'why' questions. I heard it from Chris Voss."

According to Voss, who was a skilled negotiator for some of the most high pressure hostage-type situation, asking 'why' makes people defensive.

And look, I love Voss. Never Split the Difference should be required reading.

But this is what happens when we turn principles into rigid rules for salespeople.

They make conversations weird. 

Look, Voss was negotiating with terrorists.

Actual life-or-death hostage situations where conflict is baked into every interaction. When someone's holding leverage over you, "why" can absolutely make them defensive.

But you're not in a hostage negotiation when you're talking to prospects.

You're in a consultative sales conversation where the prospect theoretically wants help solving a problem.

The issue isn't the word "why."

It's whether you're asking from a position of accusation or curiosity.

"Why do you guys do it that way?" delivered with genuine interest? That's a great question.

"Why would you do THAT?" with judgment in your voice? That creates defensiveness.

The difference is tonality, not vocabulary.

When we follow rules without understanding the context they came from, we tie our own hands. We stop thinking critically about what the situation actually needs.

I recorded a 10 min podcast on this. In it, you have full permission to use "why"—and I explain:

→ When hostage negotiation advice doesn't apply to sales
→ The tonality markers that make "why" questions land well
→ How to ask from curiosity instead of judgment

Full episode: https://lnkd.in/eKMDfgGe

What's it take to really dominate in your field? 

Any field. Golf, sales, MMA, business, fighter pilots. 

Talent? Sure, it matters. But a lot of talented people fail. 

So, what is it? 

Success leaves clues. And I talked to Bob Perkins (ex-marketing chief at Playboy, Pizza Hut, Calvin Klein) about what it really takes to dominate your field.

He shared Tiger Woods' answer to the same question. 

What do you think?

I still can't believe they ran this as a Super Bowl ad. It's the dumbest ad I've seen in a long time. 

It represents every ounce of how AI is being misunderstood and misused in business today. And they paid millions of dollars to put their name on it and broadcast it to the world. 

What this basically says: 

To the employee: I can use AI to be lazy and phone it in.

To the employer: We can use AI to replace all those lazy-asses already phoning it while working at home. 

And, best of all, any idiot can do it with a simple prompt... and voila! Work without work. 

This mindset is exactly why 95% of AI initiatives fail to produce ANY ROI at all. And that's not me speaking, that's MIT. And dozens of other sources. 

Because of this limited mindset around using AI. 
If that's how you're looking at AI, you are missing the boat. 

You're trying to get a little more efficient (or lazy) at the game being played today. Oblivious to the fact that the game is changing. 

If you're using AI to squeeze a little more out of old processes, systems, and jobs, you may see some temporary improvements. 

But you're getting a little better in the “horse and buggy” industry in the 20s, while someone else is building gas stations.

True story.

I increased my VO2 max by 50% in less than 60 days. Without changing what I ate. Without exercising any more. Without doing a single thing differently.

Quick context:

I've tried to improve my VO2 max for a decade. It's one of the key markers of cardiovascular health.

I ran half marathons. I did Muay Thai 6 nights a week. I trained for triathlons. Sometimes all at once.

My VO2 max barely moved.

Apple Health had me at "Below Average" for as long as I've owned my Watch.

So what changed 2 months ago?

I started taking beta blockers.

We discovered a heart condition that's substantially improved by beta blockers, which slow down the heart rate. 

I'm not a doctor, so I don’t know exactly how they work. But  the results speak for themselves.

I changed 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 else. Diet, sleep, exercise — all the same. And my cardiovascular markers are the best they've ever been, and climbing. 

Because for 10 years, I was applying the wrong solution to the problem.

I thought I knew what the problem was. I thought more effort was the answer. But I was treating a 𝘀𝘆𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗼𝗺, not the root cause.

Which means no amount of pushing was ever going to fix it.

It's a good reminder:

If something in your business requires a disproportionate amount of effort and still isn't moving — maybe the answer isn't pushing harder.

Maybe you haven't diagnosed the real problem yet.

When your SDR doesn't book an appointment, what gets logged in the CRM?

For most MSPs, it's some version of "not interested." Maybe "no answer." Maybe nothing at all.

That tells you absolutely nothing. And it wastes the most valuable thing that call produced — the reason they said no.

The MSP in our program booking 15-20 appointments a month doesn't log "not interested."

They log why.

Happy with their current MSP. Locked into a contract. Handles IT internally. Doesn't think they have a problem. Bad timing. Already shopping.

Five to seven specific dispositions. Each one captured in a custom field in the CRM. And each one triggers a completely different email nurture sequence.

Because the prospect who's happy with their MSP needs different marketing than the one who's locked in a contract. The person who handles IT internally needs a different set of stories and case studies than the one who says the timing's off.

"Not interested" gets the same generic follow-up as everyone else — if it gets anything at all. A specific disposition gets months of tailored content designed to shift that exact objection. Subtle, not pushy. Case studies, not pitches. Seeds planted over time.

And when the SDR calls back at the end of that sequence, they're not making another cold call. They're calling someone who's been receiving content that speaks directly to their situation for months.

Same lead. Completely different conversation.

I broke down the full disposition framework — including example emails for each stage — in a playbook with three SDR case studies.

Grab it free at www.MSPSalesToolbox.com.

For outbound, no list is actually better than a bad list you think is good. 

Sounds wrong. But hear me out.

If you have no list, you know you have a problem. You'll go build one, buy one, scrape one. You'll put in the work because it's obvious you have a problem.

But if you have a list from a reputable vendor — thousands of records, company names, phone numbers, titles, all of it looking clean in the CRM — you feel prepared. They sell you on "99% accurate data." You feel like the foundation is set. 

And you hand that list to your BDR or SDR and say go.

Except 30-40% of the contact data on a raw vendor list is wrong.

Maybe the company info is fine. The address, website, standard information.

But the right contact and phone number? Not so much. And those are the 2 fields that matter most on a cold call.

So your SDR starts dialing and 1/3 of the calls go nowhere. Their results look like crap. You start questioning whether they're the right person. Maybe whether outbound works at all.

And the whole time, the diagnosis is wrong. Because you assumed the list was good since it came from [ZoomInfo, Seamless, Apollo, name your vendor]. 

The worst position to be in isn't not having data. It's having data you believe is good when it isn't. Because it sends you looking for problems everywhere except where the actual problem lives.

Every outbound strategy starts with the list. Yes, the script matters. The person calling matters a lot. And the offer they're pitching definitely matters.

But if the data's broken, everything downstream of it is broken, too. 

I put together a full playbook on the SDR strategies producing outsized results for MSPs right now — three case studies with frameworks, templates, and campaign breakdowns.

Grab it free at www.MSPSalesToolbox.com.

Every few years, someone declares a sales channel dead.

Cold calling is dead. Email is dead. Direct mail is dead. Door-to-door is dead.

And then you meet someone quietly crushing it with that exact channel. What happened?

They adapted the tactic. Because THAT is what actually changes. 

I've worked across 12 industries over 25 years. The pattern is always the same. The psychology of how people make buying decisions barely moves.

We still want to feel understood. We still respond to specificity over generic pitches. We still give our attention to people who earn it instead of demand it.

That's been true for decades. It'll be true for decades more.

What changes is the environment. New technology. New screening tools. New noise levels. AI flooding the zone with volume-based outreach. And so the tactic that worked three years ago stops working — not because the channel broke, but because the context shifted and the approach didn't.

The people who declare a channel dead are usually the ones who stopped updating how they use it.

Right now, the SDRs in our program booking 5, 10, even 20 appointments a month for MSPs are still cold calling. Still emailing. Still sending direct mail. They're just doing it differently than they were two years ago. And they'll do it differently again next year.

The channel isn't the variable. Your willingness to keep adapting is.

I broke down the specific strategies, scripts, and campaigns behind those results in a full playbook — three case studies with templates you can steal.

Grab it free at www.MSPSalesToolbox.com.

Most MSPs measure their SDR's performance like a microwave.

Drop prospects an email or mailer. Make a few calls. Measure the immediate results. 

Did we get appointments this week? No? Shit. Try again in 6 months. Start over. 

It's the Hot Pocket approach. Quick, instant gratification.

And when you think about it like this, you'll get "something" — but it might be frozen in the middle and too hot on the edges.

The MSPs I've seen get the biggest returns from their SDRs think about it more like a Crockpot.

They run the same initial campaign everyone else does. They make the same calls. And they accept that 95% of those calls aren't going to book an appointment — just like everyone else.

The difference is what they do with the 95%.

They take a longer term outlook. They're more patient and measure results over a longer period of time. 

Because instead of tossing those leads back into a pile and calling them cold again in six months, they capture the reason the prospect said no, feed them into a highly customized nurture system based on that outcome, and call them back months later with more context, more awareness, and a much warmer conversation.

That callback converts at SUBSTANTIALLY higher rates than the first cold call ever could.

Because now you're calling someone who knows your name, has seen your content, and has had time for their situation to change. 

It takes longer. It's not instant gratification. But the difference between Hot Pocket ROI and Crockpot ROI on your SDR investment is massive. 

I have actual data on this, and it produces 3-5x returns on the next call back. 

I recently broke down this exact strategy — and two others — in a talk to a couple hundred MSPs. We turned it into a full playbook with the email frameworks, callback scripts, and campaign templates.

Free in our MSP Sales Toolbox at www.MSPSalesToolbox.com.

Here's a quick test for whether you hired the right SDR.

Could you hand a few leads from an event and trust them to follow-up without reviewing every message first? 

Assuming they're fully ramped up and trained, if the answer is no — if you wouldn't trust them to modify an email, personalize a message, or respond to a prospect without a script in front of them — you have a problem.

Most likely, a hiring problem. 

Because the SDR strategies that are working right now require exactly that kind of trust.

Multi-channel campaigns where the SDR is calling, emailing, connecting on LinkedIn, sending voice notes, following up on DMs. Each touchpoint references the last. Each one needs to feel human, not templated.

You can build playbooks for this. You can role-play scenarios. But you cannot script every detail of every interaction across five channels over 30 days. The person in the seat has to be able to think. And to be HUMAN. 

And if your hiring criteria was "cheapest person willing to dial" — that person probably can't.

The MSPs getting 3-5x more appointments in the IT industry right now aren't just tweaking scripts and lists. They're raising the bar on who sits in the chair.

I put together a full playbook on the SDR strategies behind these results — three case studies with frameworks, templates, and campaign breakdowns. But they require having the right person. 

You can grab it (and a bunch of other sales tools) for free at www.MSPSalesToolbox.com.

And if you need help finding the SDR who will execute at this level and actually create pipeline, just send me a DM.

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