Hey Reader!

List-building!

I'm guessing that's exactly what you want to be thinking about on the last day of the year. 😁

I keep meaning to write about building your mailing list because it’s a crucial part of publishing a successful newsletter. It’s also a challenging part of the process.

There’s a whole bunch of things you can do to get people on your list, and in the next few weeks I’ll talk about a few of them. It’s one of those consistency things - you’ve just got to keep at it and it will happen.

But there’s one that’s fun and also easy (my favorite word, and, in fact, my word for 2026 - though I usually only last about three weeks with a WOTY).

It’s the newsletter swap.

It operates exactly as it sounds! You promote someone else’s newsletter and they do the same for you.

There are various ways to do this:

👉 Write a paragraph (or have your buddy write a paragraph) describing their newsletter. Who it’s for, what it provides (entertainment, tips, concepts, ideas, facts, links, etc.) and why they should read it!

👉 Promote their lead magnet if you think your readers would benefit from it.

👉 Promote one of their offers - an event, workshop, class, program; whatever they’ve got going on.

And then they do the same for you. Easy peasy.

It’s a really nice way to help your audience with something you don’t offer yourself.

And it’s always nice to help out a fellow entrepreneur.

In fact, watch me...

Let me introduce you to Nedra Rezinas, a top-notch business coach working right here in Portland and beyond. I’ve known Nedra for years and have hired her on multiple occasions. (Extremely satisfied customer!)

Nedra describes herself as a business coach for introverts, though I think anyone would benefit from her insights. Her special talent is looking at the big picture, asking excellent questions, and then giving you assignments that are right-sized for your current situation.

Not all business coaches are good at that last part. They may have excellent advice, but if they’re not suggesting the right activity at the right time it’s not really all that helpful.

Lucky for you, you can get a taste of Nedra’s magic in her upcoming "Year of Momentum" workshop. It’s 90 virtual minutes of magic in which you’ll decide what you want your 2026 to look like.

And because it’s Nedra, this isn’t just a high-energy plan-out-your-launches session.

She’ll help you dig into your goals, and think about how to protect your time and energy, and determine who you want to work with. Thoughtful stuff that goes beyond profits.

Because your business should feed your life, not just your bank account.

It’s going to be great. I’ll be there - I hope you’ll join me! You can join Nedra’s email list on this page, and I think you should.

I’ll see you next week for more on building your list. And next week marks the start of Consistency Club - our first meeting (AKA communal work session) is next Wednesday at 10am Pacific.

Yours in a rising tide,

Julia

​Joe Cocker knows we need to support one another, and so does this email. Forward it to someone who could use a little kindness.

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