Work hard to produce things that people want to use

Jul 06, 2025 3:53 PM
Jul 06, 2025 4:27 PM

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coworker of mine at an old employer once hired a social media consultant. During a three-hour session, the consultant walked us through hashtags, what time of day you should post on Twitter, how threading posts increases engagement, and a slew of other hacks.

He was nice. But he never mentioned the most effective social media trick: write good stuff that people want to read.

That’s because writing good stuff isn’t a hack. It’s hard. It takes time and creativity. It can’t be manufactured. It works, with a near 100 percent success rate. But it is the social media equivalent of a heavy workout.

Same goes for diets, finances, marketing . . . everyone wants a shortcut. It’s always been this way, but I suspect it’s getting worse as technology inflates our benchmark for how fast results should happen.