Hey Reader!

We appear to be living in, if not the worst of times, certainly not the best either. So is this something you should talk about in your business newsletter?

Short answer - if you want to. With this caveat: please do not preach.

What I mean by that is don’t make your readers feel like they’re somehow wrong for not jumping on your high horse with you.

A while back I was inundated with social media posts by a woman I know. They all revolved around some version of “I won’t look away” from the difficult things we were seeing in the news. These posts really rubbed me the wrong way.

I felt simultaneously shamed and annoyed. Like, great, look all you want, but please don’t make me feel like it’s a moral imperative for me to also watch videos of violence being perpetrated on innocents.

You know?

Say what you want to say, but how about saying it in a spirit of hope? Or with a suggestion for improving the situation? Kvetching can be funny, but too much of it is a bummer.

Satire - yes! Humor - yes! Serious discussion of a situation - maybe! But simply reiterating facts about the doom and gloom around us isn’t interesting, and will likely have your readers deleting.

I am all for stating values as a legit, nay, necessary, business strategy. Personally I do not shy away from getting political, either. But #notallnewsletters

I don’t believe that you have a responsibility to take a stand about the things that are happening in the world if they do not pertain to your business. But you know what? It’s YOUR newsletter!

You get to talk about whatever you want.

If it feels important to tell your readers how you feel about ANYTHING, from the latest episode of The Pitt to whatever Pam Bondi did today, go for it.

Just do it in the knowledge that some people (I guess?) have never seen The Pitt and others would like to pretend that Pam Bondi is a fictional character. I.e., they may not love it.

Just treat your readers like the intelligent, thoughtful people they are. That’s what keeps them coming back.

Yours in thoughtful discourse,

Julia

​Sarah Bareilles is all for speaking your mind, and so is this newsletter. Forward it to someone who’s holding it all in.