The five elements of ghostwriting

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Ghostwriting is a misnomer. Because most ghostwriters do more than write. If you hire a ghostwriter, which of the following do you want them to do? Ghostwriting jobs that are just writing are easier If you bring an idea, and organization, and proof points to your ghostwriter, all they have to do is write. That … Continued

Integrity pays off — in your network

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You have a conscience. You know what the right thing to do is. But the right thing is going to cost you. Do you still do the right thing? Today I’m going to tell you how doing the right thing paid off for me in unexpected ways. Because it turns out that people notice integrity, … Continued

How to evaluate the influence of books in your topic area

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When you spot a book online or in a bookstore, is it actually popular? That’s a much harder question to answer than you might imagine. And if the author is writing in your topic area, you need to know how much influence they have. Here’s a list of ways that you can evaluate if a … Continued

Why ChatGPT lies about me: an analysis

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Yesterday I published ChatGPT’s version of my bio. It is highly plausible but full of falsehoods. Today, I reveal what was false and attempt to figure out the source of the lies. In what follows, quoted material is from ChatGPT’s response to “Who is Josh Bernoff?” The numbers count the lies. There are 14 lies … Continued

ChatGPT lies about me

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I asked ChatGPT “Who is Josh Bernoff?” The result is below. I count 11 lies in 142 words. How many can you find? (Blatant hint: my actual bio is on this site.) I look forward to reading your answers in the comments. Analysis tomorrow. Josh Bernoff is a well-known author, speaker, and strategic advisor on … Continued

What if paid subscriptions didn’t automatically renew?

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As a consumer, you probably subscribe to a lot of ongoing (monthly or yearly) services. If regulations required you to proactively renew them, we’d wash a lot of stupid, poor corporate behavior out of the system. Should this be the law? Let’s explore what it might mean. What do you subscribe to? What do you … Continued

The two most powerful words in nonfiction writing: “for example”

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Nonfiction writing is filled with generalizations and blanket advice. It’s inevitable: if you are drawing big conclusions, you’re going to make broadly applicable statements. To ground those conclusion, you must be specific. And the easiest way to do that is with an example. My first book (65,000 words) included 104 instances of “for example.” My … Continued

Don’t teach writing. Teach the joy of writing.

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The objective of teaching students to write is not to ensure they create content that can be graded. It is to get them to engage with language and storytelling. This is not a new story. Students learn arithmetic even though there are calculators and spreadsheets. They learn spelling even though there are spelling checkers. And … Continued