Growth Ghost

Growth Ghost: the leading coaching program for aspiring freelancer writers, 9-to-5ers, and digital writers. Teaching writers how to land high paying clients, scale their online ghostwriting business, and build a life they no longer feel the need to escape from.

50+ students served. Multi 7 figures in revenue generated for students. 

https://www.growthghost.com/optin1736208224612

Partner

Ghostlii Inc

The leading ghostwriting agency for founders, coaches, and personal brands.
50+ clients served. 200,000,000+ total impressions. 7 figures of revenue generated through social media content.
https://ghostlii.com/

Co-Founder

Centre for Arts and Technology

College Instructor

College teacher turned ghostwriter | Scaling founders, coaches, and consultants to $100K+ /mo | Writing to build wealth and better self | 98,000 on Twitter (X)

Taylin John Simmonds

My first ghostwriting client made me rich. Not with the money they paid me. But with the mindset shift they created in me.

When I first started, I’d see other ghostwriters online landing clients and think:

"Good for them. But could that ever be me?"

I acted on blind faith that if they could do it, so could I.

(Some Tony Robbin's sh*t, you know?)

But for six months, nothing happened.

No clients.
No money.

No proof it would work for me.

It made it hard to keep going when the only evidence I had what that it was possible for someone else.

But then, I landed my first client!

$0.50 per follower, which came out to about $3,000 a month.

That small win radically shifted my mindset.

I was no longer acting on possibility.
I was acting on probability.

A week later, I signed another client.

Within a few months, I was making over $10K a month from ghostwriting.

Looking back, this shift wasn’t just financial.

it was psychological.

Because when you get your first “yes,” everything you once doubted about yourself disappears.

You realize this isn’t just possible for others.

It’s possible for you.

That’s the moment your life changes.

Not because of the money but because you're no longer held back by disbelief.

—Taylin

♻️ Repost. Follow Taylin John Simmonds for more on how to earn as an AI assisted ghostwriter without sacrificing income or your love of hard shell tacos.

College teacher turned AI assisted ghostwriter | Helping writers, creatives, and storytellers earn on the internet | 2 billion impressions | $4,000,000+ revenue generated | All in on Substack

In the last 60 days, I've gained 943 newsletter subs from organic content on Substack. No lead magnets. No trendjacking. Here's how I did it:

Most people on LinkedIn have no idea how f*cking incredible Substack is right now.

It's like LinkedIn 2023, only better because you attract subscribers instead of followers.

Imagine this:

You write a short social post—just like you would on LinkedIn—and it gets you 500 newsletter subscribers.

No lead magnet.
No DMs.
No funnels.

You write a newsletter that goes semi-viral, and it brings you new 80 subscribers, $1,000 in customer sales, and 2 podcast invites.

All from a newsletter that went viral on a social media timeline.

Then you launch a paid newsletter, where people happily pay you for your deepest work, and suddenly you’re earning $100 per day from content you’re already writing.

This isn’t theoretical.

Those are all real wins from my Substack.

I’m growing faster on Substack than I ever did on LinkedIn—just by repurposing my old content and adapting it to Substack’s culture.

My newsletters are going viral.

They’re attracting new clients, podcast invites, and collaborations every week.

My paid newsletter alone is on track to gross $4,000 this month.

This is insane.

If you’re a business owner, get on Substack.
If you’re a creator, get on Substack.
If you’re selling courses or digital products, get on Substack.

This platform is insane and it’s still early.

If you’re thinking about migrating, but aren't sure how Substack works, just comment "Substack" below.

I'll shoot over my free growth guide so you can make the most of Substack while it's easy.

Because once everyone figures it out, the easy growth window closes.

—Taylin

I didn’t start believing in myself because I had results. I started believing in myself because I ran out of reasons not to try.

Back in 2022, all I wanted was to make a living as a creative writer.

Not a novelist or a journalist.

Just someone who could write online and get paid for it (if it was even possible).

But everyone around me was saying the same thing:

"Writers don’t make real money."

Still, I kept seeing people on Twitter doing it, and a small part of me hoped that if they could pull it off, maybe I could too.

So I gave myself permission to write for one year straight.

After work.
On weekends.
After eight-hour days teaching college classes.

And I did all of that without earning a single dollar for 6 months.

No clients.
No validation.
Not even much traction on my posts.

Just a lot of self-doubt, 5-9 exhaustion, and the constant fear that I was wasting my time.

Then another ghostwriter referred me a client (thank god).

On the call, the client agreed to pay me fifty cents per follower.

When the Stripe invoice came through for $3,000, it pretty much broke my mind.
It was more than I made in a month as a teacher.

And that moment was all it took...

I finally had proof this path could work (for me).

Within 30 days, I landed two more clients and hit around $10K per month.

Looking back, the biggest shift wasn’t the money.

It was realizing that when you don’t have evidence something will work for you, you have to borrow evidence from people it already worked for.

That borrowed belief keeps you going long enough to get your own proof.

And once you get your first yes, it gets a lot harder to quit.

—Taylin

♻️ Repost. Follow Taylin John Simmonds for more on how to earn as an AI assisted ghostwriter without sacrificing income or your love of hard shell tacos.

Many of LinkedIn’s biggest creators just joined Substack.

Are you going to join them or get left behind?

Whenever a new social platform is easy to grow on, the big creators quietly migrate there first.

They don’t talk about it.

Because they want to grow fast while the growth is easy.

Right now, Substack is that platform.

But why is it easy to grow on?

It's easy to grow on because there is more attention than quality content.

That means when you post something, it gets shown to more people and it stays visible for far longer.

On LinkedIn, my posts last roughly 3-7 day.
On Substack, my posts go viral for up to 40 days.

But how long will this easy growth last?

6 to 12 months (max).

Recently, Justin Welsh joined Substack.
Dan Koe joined Substack.
Dan Go joined Substack.
Naomi Kins joined Substack.

And if I had to guess, Lara Acosta will join soon too because she just launched a newsletter course. Which makes sense for her to sell on the platform.

It’s no coincidence.

All the big creators are moving quietly to Substack because it’s easier to grow and easier to go viral.

I’ve personally gained 1,000+ newsletter subscribers in the past 60 days from short Notes that take me two minutes to write.
I've landed 3 podcast appearances with top Substack creators.
I've gotten more inbound leads from Substack than LinkedIn.

Can a new creator easily do this on LinkedIn without jacking trends?

Not in 2025.
And it won't happen in 2026.

So you have a choice:

Wait around debating whether to join or make the move while growth is still easy.

I missed the early growth window on LinkedIn because I was too focused on X.

I’m not making that mistake again.

That’s why I’m all in on Substack.

P.S. I’m putting together a free Substack Growth Course that breaks down how I'm growing on the platform (because it is different from LinkedIn).

I'll be publishing it only on Substack, so if you want access when it drops, you can subscribe here: https://lnkd.in/gb6dr2mF

—Taylin

How to grow fast on LinkedIn. Don't. Just write on Substack instead. In 30 days, I gained 729 newsletter subs + $3,000 with a paid newsletter.

It got harder to grow fast on LinkedIn over the past year.

So I ran a five-month experiment to see what would happen if I went all-in on Substack, tried to grow, and launched a paid newsletter.

What happened surprised me.

Once I figured out how the platform worked, I started gaining 500–700 newsletter subscribers per month organically.

Think about that.

When was the last time you pulled 500+ newsletter subscribers on LinkedIn without a viral lead magnet or trendjacking?

This was all organic.
No lead magnets.

Just repurposed content from LinkedIn & X.

My most viral Substack post was literally a LinkedIn post I copied over. 
It brought in around 100 subscribers by itself.

If you’re already writing LinkedIn posts, there’s zero reason not to post them there and let the platform hand you free subscribers.

Then I launched a paid newsletter.

In 30 days, 48 people subscribed.

The dashboard says $6,260 annualized, and the actual cash received was around $2,000 USD.

But here’s the wild part:

People started DMing me asking for other things they could buy.

Now they want me to start a writing community.
I sold $1,000 worth of ghostwriting courses I don’t even have publicly available.
I booked 2 consulting calls worth $3,000–$5,000 each.

So in one month of a paid newsletter, I’ll probably end up with $3,000–$7,000 of additional revenue—completely outside of LinkedIn.

This is why I’m posting about Substack so aggressively.

It’s one of the best attention arbitrage opportunities on the internet right now.

It feels like early Twitter.
It feels like early LinkedIn.
And people on LinkedIn are completely sleeping on it.

They’re not growing on Substack.
They’re not using a paid newsletter as an intro product to sell courses, coaching, or services.

It’s insane.

And the excuse is always:

“I don’t have time. I’m focused on LinkedIn.”

That’s exactly what I used to say—right before LinkedIn got hard.

I’m not making that mistake again.

If you try Substack for 30 days, you’ll be shocked at how much faster you grow your audience and your business.

I put together a free Substack growth guide—you shouldn’t have to pay for the basics. 
I’ll link it at the bottom of this post.

I’m going to keep FOMO’ing you into existence until you finally get on this platform and take advantage of it.

You probably have 6–12 months.

Stop grinding on LinkedIn for 100 followers a month.
At least give Substack a shot.

Free Substack growth guide: https://lnkd.in/gffnDFcD

—Taylin

I’m building my paid Substack newsletter to 500 subs in public. I launched 7(ish) days ago. The update: Paid subs: 24; Revenue: $1,079.25

I looked at the market—most people price their paid tier at $5/month.

Then I asked myself:

“What would I need to offer to price mine 4x higher?”

My answer came in two parts:

1) Value proposition

Help new writers earn $1,000+/month writing online

2) Deliverables

* Weekly custom GPTs & prompt flows (the same ones I’m using now)
* Biweekly manifestos (more in-depth than most people’s courses)
* AI-assisted writing manifestos
* Monetization roadmaps on money models, offer stacks, and marketing ecosystems
* Monthly live Q&A calls (no selling, just having fun and shooting the shit)

With this setup, I can grow revenue 4x faster per subscriber.

That’s what I recommend to new writers with smaller audiences—you don’t need a ton of subs, just high trust per sub. (More on that another time.)

This week’s marketing breakdown (rough numbers):

I built no hype. Did no prelaunch.

Just woke up, decided to launch a paid tier. And launched it by end of day (my attempt at not overthinking it haha).

* One scrappy launch newsletter → 4 subs
* One email to previous buyers → 7 subs
* One email to subscribers with 4–5 star activity scores → 5 subs
* Two paid newsletters with paywalls → ~5 subs
* One Substack Live with Landon Poburan → ? subs

Hard to track where the rest came from.

Next steps:

1. Finish the new AI workflow for writing long form content (relevant to LinkedIn as well)

2. Release the next roadmap: *How to get 100 paid subscribers on Substack in 3–6 months*

3. Host one Substack Live per week to build trust faster (some fun collabs coming up)

That’s it.

If you found this valuable, let me know. It helps me decide whether to keep doing this series weekly.

PS - Substack feels like early Twitter with a newsletter option. It's an arbitrage opportunity for the right creators/founders who get in early. 

We're looking for a few founders or coaches who want us to grow their presence on Substack. Done-for-you content creation and lead generation. Send me a message if that's you.

—Taylin

I just learned this crazy idea from a Harvard Psychiatrist: It’s called Cognitive Drain. And it’s why most people are exhausted 24/7.

Every single:

* Undone task
* Unrealized goal
* Unfinished project

Is causing your brain to leak mental energy.

Basically, your brain is a dusty PC running Windows 99 with 100 tabs open.

No wonder most people are so burnt out.

They're not tired because of working too much.

You’re tired because of *thinking* about too much.

Psychiatrist, Dr. K says there are only two ways to get your energy back:

1) Relieve - finish, delegate, or delete a task

2) Grieve - accept you'll never do it and let it go (goodbye my dream of being a famous DJ)

Grieving might sound dramatic, but it's what unburdens your mind.

If you’re still clinging to a version of yourself who “should” have achieved something by now, that’s energy trapped in a closed loop.

If you're still day dreaming about a goal you haven't worked towards in years, that's wasted focus and mental bandwidth.

Exhaustion doesn’t only come from doing too much.

It comes from carrying too much sh*t in your head.

You might not need to rest more.

Just try thinking less. Committing less. And grieving more (I recommend a weekly journaling practice).

It's the only way to free up bandwidth for what truly matters.

—Taylin

♻️ Repost. Follow Taylin John Simmonds for more on how to earn as an AI assisted ghostwriter without sacrificing income or your love of hard shell tacos.

My lil' writing biz did $200K in its first year. Every year since, I’ve done multi–six figures. How you can do the same (steal my strategy):

1. Start with a validated offer and good positioning

If your offer is too different, no one buys it.

If it’s too similar, no one remembers it.

I’ve made both mistakes:

a) Creating a course so similar to competitors that no one bought it
b) Launching a community that was so different no one wanted it

The sweet spot?

Find 5 successful people in your niche:

a) Validate what's working—steal the similarities amongst their offers.

b) Position with what they're not doing—find what they’re *not* offering and make that your edge.

2. Become your own case study.

Don’t expect clients to trust you before you’ve proven results for yourself.

Treat yourself like your first client.

* Learn the skills
* Get yourself wins
* Document everything in public

Authority is built, not borrowed.

3. Create long form content to build trust

Sorry, but you won’t win by posting only on LinkedIn.

That’s awareness, not trust.

Trust is built with long form:

* Newsletters
* YouTube
* Podcasts
* Lead magnets (that don't suck)

If you don’t have a place to send people deeper, you’ll lose to those who do.

4. Serve beginners and experts, not the middle.

Build only two clear offers:

a) A low-ticket, beginner friendly product under $200 to attract beginners and earn trust.

b) A high-ticket program ($3K–$20K) for advanced clients where you can go deep and deliver huge results.

That's why my 2 core offers are:

a) Paid Substack on how to write assisted by AI ($19 /mo or $149 /yr)

b) Ghostwriting coaching program for those looking to transition our of their 9-to-5s ($3,000+)

No middle, no mess.

Just building trust. And upselling to high ticket (where the real money is).

That's it.

Just do these few things, really well, really consistently.

That’s how you go from zero to six figures in a year.

And if you skip my mistakes, you’ll probably do it faster than that.

Where are you at in this roadmap?

—Taylin

♻️ Repost. Follow Taylin John Simmonds for more on how to earn as an AI assisted ghostwriter without sacrificing income or your love of hard shell tacos.

I have 37,892 LinkedIn followers. I earn more per month from my 5,724 subs on Substack.

What? How?!

Too many people still believe the “big audience = big income” myth.

I did too.

I optimized for LinkedIn virality earlier this year.
I wrote posts I didn’t like.
I told myself the money would show up once the numbers got big enough.

Spoiler:
It never did.

I didn't realize what actually happens when you chase audience size:

You create content for dopamine, not depth.
You grow followers, not trust.

You’re “known,” but not believed.

And without belief, nobody buys.
Nobody invests.

Nobody respects you as an authority.

So I decided to try a different strategy on Substack and this is what I learned:

You don’t need a big audience.
You need high trust per follower.

Because one person who trusts you is worth more than a hundred who barely register your existence.

I have 100,000 followers on X. 
37,892 on LinkedIn.

I have 5,724 subscribers on Substack.

Guess where most of my money comes from?

Substack.

Because that’s where I write what I actually care about:
Creating your life's work.

That’s where I build trust instead of reach:
Publishing hour long podcasts (you might like them).

And trust converts at a level many “big audience” people never experience.

When someone trusts you, they buy the expensive thing.

They tell their friends.
They get excited to work with you.

You don’t need thousands of customers.
You need a few hundred believers.

Stop trying to get famous.
Start trying to get trusted.

That's the real game where you can actually win.

PS. In the past 30 days, I got 700 new newsletter subscribers from organic content on Substack.

If you don't want to miss out, here's a free guide on how to do the same:
https://lnkd.in/gffnDFcD

—Taylin

Unleash The Knowledge, LLC

• LinkedIn Growth Agency for Entrepreneurs, Executives, Coaches, Consultants, and Agency Owners to join the Top 1% of LinkedIn in their industry so they can close high-ticket deals.
• Digital community of 180,000+ readers promoting self-education through non-fiction books to create more lifelong learners. 
• Developing creative strategies to get books into more hands 
• Consulting with authors on how to turn their book and knowledge into a business.

Founder & CEO

Pavilion

Pavilion is the leading community for networking and learning with other GTM leaders worldwide.

Executive Member

I help Agency Owners, Coaches, and Consultants Join the Top 1% on LinkedIn in 90 Days to Earn High-Ticket Clients | Feat. in Forbes | 500+ clients | 2x D1 Basketball Conference Champion

In March 2020, I left a $22,500/yr job working for UConn Men’s Basketball.

I bet on myself.

On paper, I was on track to build an incredible career with a championship program.

However, my heart wasn’t in it anymore.

6 months prior to leaving, I started a simple Instagram page.

I called it Unleash The Knowledge.

Most people thought I was crazy but I saw the long-term vision.

4 years later, I run a multi-6-figure business from anywhere in the world, all off my laptop.

My Instagram page is now at 127,000 followers, all from starting from 0.

I’ve worked with 500+ authors, coaches, consultants, and founders.

Some of my past well-known clients include: 

- Rick Ross, Grammy-nominated Rapper
- Jim McKelvey. Co-Founder of Square
- Kara Goldin, Founder of HINT Water
- Terry Virts, NASA Astronaut

Today, I help Founders, Consultants, and C-Suite join the top 1% on LinkedIn in 90 days.

If you want to grow your audience on LinkedIn and attract your dream clients using organic social content, here are 3 ways I can help you today:

1. Follow me on LinkedIn, for daily free content

(scroll up and hit the bell to get notified)

2. Get my 30 Free Templates to craft client-attracting content in less than an hour

(go to https://www.authorityauthoraccelerator.com/opt-in-page-6348)

3. DFY LinkedIn Content Writing & Growth - for founders, consultants, and c-suite who want direct support to join the top 1% on LinkedIn and accelerate lead flow to start attracting more clients online.

DM me “DFY” and I’ll get you details.

Thanks for reading this far.

To your success,

Owen “LinkedIn Growth Guy” Sammarone

Owen Sammarone 🚀

I sat on stage in Boston last weekend.

Nearly 200 people staring at me.

I was on a panel with 3 other guys who built massive audiences around non-fiction books.

And something clicked...

Most founders hide behind their content.
They post tips and frameworks but never share the story behind them.
They're terrified to step on a stage and speak their truth.

Here's what I realized: 

Your story is your unfair advantage.

No one else has walked your exact path.
No one else has your failures, breakthroughs, and lessons.
And when you share them, in person, on a stage, in front of real humans, everything changes.

The BookThinkers event in Boston proved this to me.

Here's four lessons I learned from speaking to nearly 200 purpose-driven professionals:

Lesson 1: The energy in the room is different than online.

You can't fake the immediacy of a live audience.
I saw it in their eyes when I shared my journey.

Lesson 2: Speaking on stage forces you to refine your message.

You can't ramble like you do in a post.
You distill fast and learn what actually lands.

Lesson 3: Sharing your journey builds deeper trust than any framework.

People didn't want my 5-step blueprint.
They wanted to connect with someone who's been where they are.

Lesson 4: This ignited a bigger vision for me.

I want to speak on more stages in 2026.
I want to connect deeply and refine my message until it's razor-sharp.

Your audience needs to hear your story, not just your advice.

If you've been thinking about speaking, sharing your journey, or showing up more publicly, do it.

The stage is waiting.

Thank you to Nick Hutchison and the BookThinkers team for putting on a killer event. I can't wait for BookThinkers LIVE 2026.

If you're an author, coach, speaker, or entrepreneur, you will want to be at this event.

Maybe they will let me speak again :)

Brant Menswar Steven Pressfield Kary Oberbrunner Christian F Johnson Evan Carmichael Ryan Lang Zach Hesterberg Elle Petrillo Jill Schulman Maya Payne Smart Cindra Kamphoff, Ph.D., CSP, CMPC Markus Kaulius Ken Rusk Angel Fernandez Jr. Igniting Souls Brand Builders Group Strategic Coach Alex Wieckowski 📚 Matt Karamazov Wayne Mullins Ugly Mug Marketing Chris Green Anjel B Hartwell Anjanette “AJ” Harper Chris Jordan Jonas Koffler Alan Gregerman Fred Joyal

Premium LinkedIn Ghostwriter for C-Suite Leaders | Amplifying ideas, stories, & wisdom that transform industries | 500+ clients served | 2x Founder & Speaker

I flew out of the smallest airport I've ever been to this Thanksgiving.
New Haven, Connecticut.
And I found the best use of a vending machine I've ever seen.

Over the holiday, I traveled through 4 states: New Jersey, New York City, Newport, Rhode Island, and the Connecticut coastline.

Grateful for the journey. 
Grateful for the people. 
Grateful for the experiences.

But what stopped me in my tracks was this:

A vending machine. At the gate. Selling books.

Not chips. Not candy bars. Not overpriced sodas.

Books.

Here's why this matters.

Most vending machines sell you something to pass time.
This one sold you something to spend time well.

Think about it.

You're about to sit on a plane for 2 hours. Maybe more.

You could scroll. You could snack. You could zone out.

Or you could read.

Someone at that tiny airport in New Haven thought about that moment.

They asked: What do people actually need right now?

And instead of defaulting to junk food, they chose knowledge. Story. Connection.

That's thoughtful innovation.

It's not flashy. It's not complicated.
It's just someone paying attention to what serves people better.

I didn't buy a book. I had one with me. Actually, two, but who's counting.

But I stood there for a minute just appreciating it.

Because small decisions like that one add up.

They signal that someone cared enough to reimagine what a vending machine could be.

Not every innovation needs to be a breakthrough.
Sometimes it's just putting the right thing in the right place at the right time.

So here's to the person who decided to put books in that vending machine.

And here's to noticing the small, creative ideas that make life a little better.

What's a small innovation you've seen recently that made you stop and appreciate it?

I was going to write a post about Jensen Huang and how he built NVIDIA around pain tolerance.

But then I saw today’s headline:

“SoftBank sells entire NVIDIA stake for $5.83B to fund AI bets.”

And it hit me…

Jensen and his team are probably completely unfazed.

Because they’ve lived this cycle before.
Booms, busts, hype waves, crashes.
They’ve built muscle memory for volatility.

Jensen once said:
“People with very high expectations have very low resilience… and unfortunately, resilience matters in success.”

That’s why NVIDIA doesn’t flinch when others make short-term plays.
They’ve been thirty days from going out of business before.
Now, they’re the backbone of the AI revolution.

Meanwhile, SoftBank is moving money to further fund OpenAI.

Maybe they’re right. Maybe they’re early.
But there’s a difference between betting on AI and becoming essential to it.

That’s what Jensen mastered:
He didn’t just invest in the wave, he built the board.

And that’s the real lesson for founders and leaders right now:

Don’t get swept up in the next AI headline.
Build something that survives the next one.

LinkedIn isn't a content game.

It's a business game.

Everyone wants deals.
Real revenue.
Real clients.

But here's the problem...

Posting won't get you there.

Thousands of likes = zero dollars.

You need to play offense.
DM people.
Start conversations.

Like you're at a cocktail party.

But most founders kill deals before they start.

Here's what NOT to do:

Mistake 1: You pitch in the first message.

Don't pitch-slap. Full stop.

They don't know you.
Trust is zero.
And you're asking for money?

Don't pitch your offer first
Goal = get a reply, not close
The reply IS the first close
Build conversation, deals follow

I landed a client a $35k deal. Pricing came up in message 7.

Mistake 2: You copy-paste the same template.

No one wants to be prospect #47. I smell templates instantly. So do they. 

Use their name. Their company. Something from their profile. Something they posted. Show you looked. Personalization isn't nice-to-have, it's the price of attention.

Mistake 3: You open with "I help" or "My offer is."

Wrong move.

Compliment their work first
Ask about their business
Share something relatable
Make it their world, not your pitch

Cocktail party rule: don't open with a pitch.

Mistake 4: You DM with a broken profile.

Your profile = your credibility.

They click your name. See "Founder | Speaker | Author." And they're gone. Everyone else is the same. Show how you are different with your bio.

Fix your profile before you send message one. Pro headshot. Clear headline. Consistent posts. They will check. Pass the test.

The truth:

LinkedIn = biggest networking event in your PJs.

Your profile = 24/7 salesperson.

DM like you're building relationships.
Not cold-calling in a boiler room.

Date before you marry.
Trust first.
Business follows.

This door changed everything.

Last week I went back to URI to speak to students.

The night before I went to the basketball game.

And I saw this door again.

Back then it didn't have the branding.
Just a door with a light on.

I was 18.
Scared.
Looking for my shot.

I walked in.
Rang a diner-style bell on the desk.
No one was there.

A woman popped out from around the corner, startled.

I now realize it was her day off.
She was probably just grabbing something quick.
And there I was an 18-year-old kid interrupting her day off.

But I didn't leave.

I asked: "Are there any opportunities in sports where I can get involved?"

That question changed my life.

She gave me a shot. She connected me with the director of basketball ops.
Soon after, I became a student manager for URI men's basketball.

4 years with the Rams.
Then 2 years at UConn as a graduate assistant.

All with Coach Hurley; learning what it takes to be a champion.

He exposed me to self-development.
Books.
Podcasts.
Personal growth.
The idea that you could design your life.

Basketball led to books.
Books led to business.
Business led to me standing in front of students last week, teaching them what I learned.

All because I walked through a door and asked.

Here's what I know:

Life doesn't hand you opportunities.
You create them.

You set a vision.
You take action.
You get in the right rooms.

You open doors.
You ring bells.

Most people wait.
They hope someone will notice them.
They think success happens to them.

It doesn't.

You make it happen.

I was an 18-year-old kid with no connections.
No resume.
No experience.

Just a question.

6 years in basketball.
5 years in business.
A full life of growth, all from one decision.

Don't wait for handouts.
Don't wait for life to happen to you.

Set the vision.
Take the action.

Ring the bell.

Let's address the elephant in the room.

"Why pay $3k for ghostwriting when AI is free?"

I hear this weekly.

Here's what you might be missing:

AI writes content.
It doesn't build trust.
It doesn't convert prospects.
And everyone can tell when you use it.

The founders closing $25k deals on LinkedIn aren't using ChatGPT alone. They're using strategy, voice, and proof that AI can't replicate.

Here's what AI will never do for you:

Mistake 1: AI doesn't know your buyer's journey.

It outputs text.
It doesn't understand your prospect's pain points at each stage.

• Where they are now vs. where they want to be
• The objections that kill deals in your DMs
• The proof points that close high-ticket contracts
• The language your buyers actually use

You need content mapped to buyer intent. AI just guesses.

Mistake 2: AI can't capture your voice or lived experience.

I've seen hundreds of AI posts.
They all sound identical.

• Generic hooks and vague benefits with zero personality
• Your prospects have worked with 10 people who do what you do
• They'll pick the one who feels real and has actual stories
• AI can't share the moment you lost a $30k deal because of positioning
• It can't describe the exact framework you built after 47 client calls
• Even detailed prompts can't fully replicate your voice or substitute a talented writer

Stories convert. Templates don't.

Mistake 3: AI has no strategy behind the output.

It writes what you ask for.
It doesn't plan your next 90 days of content.

• What topics build authority in your niche
• Which formats drive profile views and DMs
• How to position yourself against competitors
• When to educate vs. when to sell

You need a system that compounds. AI gives you one-off posts.

Mistake 4: Let's talk ROI.

You're worried about $3k for ghostwriting.
But you're fine losing one $50k deal because your content sounds like everyone else's.

I've worked with founders who tried AI for 6 months. Zero inbound. 

One consultant hired us and added $70k in revenue in 90 days. 
A leadership coach went from $0 to $52.5k. 
Another client 8x'd his investment and doubled his monthly revenue from $10k to $20k. 

That's the difference between AI content and strategy-backed content. 

AI outputs words. We drive revenue.

If you want content that closes deals, DM me "RESULTS."

18 years old: Lost. Insecure. Graduated high school with a 2.8 GPA and no clue who I was. Got into college, fortunately. 

19 years old: Found identity through basketball. Still unsure of my purpose, but learning discipline, and replicating success.

20 years old: Showing up every day for the basketball team. Wanted to become Mr. Reliable. Busting my butt in the classroom. Joined social fraternity for “balance” 

21 years old: Won a college basketball championship. Felt on top of the world. 

22 years old: Graduated with honors. Two-time basketball champion. Started my own honors society. Got into UConn’s business school and landed the men’s basketball graduate assistant job. 

23 years old: Worked 80+ hour weeks. Earning $22,500/yr. Going to graduate business school 3x a week for 3 hours each day. Started a book Instagram page that would quietly change my life. 

24 years old: Made my first $200 through the book page. Covid hit. Left basketball for good. Moved back home with Mom. Went all in on that book page. Burned the boats on a “safe” career to chase freedom. 

25 years old: Turned that page into a business. Learned how to sell, fail, and rebuild from scratch. Made $100k. 

26 years old: Kept reading. Kept learning. More mistakes and failures but continued to grow. Said yes to a ton of opportunities. Focus was scattered. 

27 years old: Still running book promotion campaigns. Started ghostwriting for business owners on LinkedIn. Started coaching authors and coaches on scaling on Instagram.  Hit my first $30k/month.

28 years old: Still feeling scattered with focus and energy but pressing forward. Scaled to my first $40k/month. Started a podcast on book marketing and recorded 160+ episodes in one year. Leaning further into LinkedIn ghostwriting than book promotions. 

29 years old: Partnering with major CEOs and authors. Building a 7-figure agency and writing the book I wish I had at 18.

Still in the arena. Still learning.

To everyone trying to figure it out, your early chapters don’t define you. 
They prepare you.

Keep building. Keep believing. 
Your future self is already proud of you.

Thank you, Meta for continuing to pay my rent.

Brick by brick.

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