I overthink so you don’t have to.
The Red Thread® Newsletter
Stories, examples, images, and data you can use to help bring your ideas and messages to life.
The best ideas aren’t found — they’re built. Get a weekly dose of strategies, studies, and stories — direct to your inbox from me — to help you make your ideas strong enough to build change on.
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FRESH THREADS
The Freenoter Podcast
There are lots of resources out there on how to become a paid speaker or keynoter, but what if you speak to build your business, as a FREEnoter? Each week, join me and Tom Webster as we cover all the angles of how to profit from speaking for free. If you are looking to grow your business from the stage--without "selling from the stage," this is the show for you. We will cover EVERY aspect of building your business through speaking, and even share a different craft cocktail recipe every week, just because. Subscribe now!
Want to broaden your reach? Do this.
“The narrower your focus, the broader your reach.” That’s my take on what author Bill Schley (affiliate) calls the “Universal Paradox” of communication. It’s a paradox because it seems impossible to be true: if you focus on narrowing your message, how can you possibly reach more people? The simple answer: clarity. When you focus your message, you’re more clear […]
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Two questions that drive differentiation
There are two quick questions that can help make your messages even stronger: Am I giving the people what they want? Am I doing that in a way they don’t expect? It’s a good test, especially when your message or copy is short, like on a website or tagline. In fact, that’s the test I […]
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How to make your message feel like a story (even if it isn’t one)
You’ve probably heard about all the benefits of stories and storytelling. You’ve heard that stories make your message both more interesting and more concrete. But what if you don’t think you’re a very good storyteller? Is all hope lost? Nope. It’s a funny thing, but not even five years ago, that was me. I watched and […]
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Is your message missing “audience order”?
Sometimes you have all the right concepts for your idea, but what’s missing is the right order. You have all the information that makes an idea make sense to you but the order isn’t the one that makes sense for your audience. See, more often than not, when you’re talking and writing about your ideas, it’s common to use an order that […]
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How to prepare your persuasive presentation
You’ve got a big project you’ve been working on. To keep working on it, you need someone else’s approval. The big question: How can you raise the probability you’ll get the action or agreement you’re looking for? How do you present to persuade? Here’s a starting outline I’ve been using with my corporate and organizational […]
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Your website is scan-friendly. But is it on message?
How can you make your messaging stronger on your website? Make it “scan-friendly” — make sure the key points of your message are what people see when they scroll quickly through it. In this week’s episode of What’s Missing From This Message?, I walk you through what I see on Stability Health’s VERY scan-friendly site. Don’t forget to subscribe so you […]
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An idea is an answer. Do you know the question?
I have a question to ask you about your idea. Actually, we all do. Here it is: What question does your idea answer? An idea is an answer — and it isn’t enough See, an idea doesn’t exist on its own, even if it sometimes feels that way. Ideas come from questions. Always. It’s how your brain built your idea. It’s […]
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How to find what’s missing in a message (AKA “What chicken sexing can teach you about learning”)
My brain is crap for details like lyrics to songs (remind me to tell you about the time I didn’t realize a song I sang around the house was about morphine… even though the word “morphine” was literally coming out of my mouth when I sang it), what Alexa JUST told me the temperature was (seriously, […]
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How to find (and use!) analogies that aren’t OVERused
Imagine you’re in this situation: You have a big idea. It’s not one people have heard before, but its impact could be huge. You have an opportunity to talk about it (say, to present it to your boss, or in a session at a conference), but your time slot is short. On top of that, your […]
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Want to drive action from your audience? Ask this question.
Back when we were talking about making your message measurable I suggested you answer one question about every message or piece of content you put out there: What does this particular message need to do? Ideally that outcome flows two ways: there’s a benefit to you (why you’re creating that content or message in the first place) and a benefit to […]
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