Your success, my mission | 3x founder & CEO | Former CIO $4B company | DEIB ally | Sharing 24 years of hard-earned leadership & self-mastery wisdom

My purpose is to inspire and empower individuals to unleash their potential and create a positive impact in the world.

I believe success is a byproduct of helping others, and the best leaders create other leaders.

When you:
set a clear vision,
lead by example, and
empower your people,
they give you their best
and you all win together.

🔭 Former Corporate Exec | 🌱 Entrepreneur | 💡 Founder | 📚 Lifelong Learner

After 22 years of corporate life and reaching the pinnacle, I stepped off the high-wire to begin a new chapter.

Trading the executive suite of a $4B global powerhouse for the excitement of entrepreneurship, I'm now spreading knowledge, innovation, and transformation.

Through 5 major career transitions, I evolved from a VP of Marketing & Sales to Division President, and ultimately, CIO.

But behind every business transaction, there's a face. I firmly believe that people are the heart and soul of any endeavor. I owe my success to the great teams I've been a part of and the wise mentors who guided me. My advice for aspiring leaders:

Be bold.
Be curious.
Be authentic.
Be respectful.
Be transparent.
Be growth-minded.
And success will follow.

Today, as an entrepreneur, I've swapped corporate structure for startup passion, partnering with my wife as co-owners of a holding company, founding multiple business ventures, crafting 3 new brands, consulting growing companies, and extending my love of mentoring into coaching.

In between, you’ll find me nurturing my four personal passions: learning, writing, traveling, and gardening. They keep me rooted and help me grow. After all, isn't life one big, beautiful garden? Here’s to growing together! 🌱

Justin Wright

I've seen "leaders" throw their team under the bus.

In front of coworkers.
In front of clients.
Without hesitation.

It made me realize something powerful:

If you don't defend your people,
you don't belong in leadership.

Period.

True leaders know:

➟ Your team's success is your success
➟ Their growth and achievements are your legacy
➟ Their trust is what makes you a leader, not your title

What does it mean to defend your team?

It's not about making excuses
or lowering your standards.

It's about:

✅ Fighting for their growth
✅ Protecting them from burnout
✅ Shielding them from toxic politics
✅ Offering support without micromanaging
✅ Being their voice when they're not in the room

The best leader I ever had taught me this.

When our team made mistakes, she'd say:
"That's on me. We'll fix it."

When we succeeded?
"My team did all the work. I just cleared the path."

She held us to high standards.
Gave tough feedback when needed.
But always had our backs.

Know what happened?

We gave everything for that team.
Grew faster than ever.
Achieved things we never thought possible.

Because we knew she'd be there.
Supporting. Defending. Believing.

Remember:

Anyone can manage tasks.
Real leaders develop people.
And you can't develop what you don't defend.

So choose wisely.
Your team is watching.
And they'll never forget.

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Your success, my mission | People-first leadership + Emotional intelligence + Self-mastery | CEO @ Polished Carbon | Former CIO $4B company | DEIB ally

Most people think they’re great listeners.
But they’re stuck at level 2.

They nod.
They make eye contact.
They wait for their turn to speak.

But they’re not really hearing you.

The difference between good leaders and great ones?

They’ve mastered the art of real listening.

Because if you can’t listen, you can’t lead.

You miss what your team isn’t saying.
You miss what your clients really need.
You miss the chance to build trust (before you need it).

Great listening isn’t passive.
It’s not about being quiet.
It’s a skill.

And most people are at the bottom of the scale.

Here are the 5 levels of listening:

1/ Waiting to talk

You’re quiet, but only because you’re thinking about what to say next.

2/ Hearing the words

You catch some of it, but your attention drifts.

3/ Understanding the message

You’re focused. You listen to understand, not just to reply.

4/ Recognizing emotions

You show empathy. You sense how they feel, not just what they say.

5/ Hearing what’s unsaid

You're fully present. You pick up on tone, hesitation, and the hidden needs beneath the words.

Leaders who reach level 5?

They build trust faster.
They strengthen relationships.
They make people feel seen and safe.
They diffuse tension before it explodes.

You don’t need to talk more to lead better.

You need to listen deeper.

Which level are you leading from?

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Thanks!

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Even loyal people have breaking points.

They don't quit in a day.

They leave after being pushed too far, too often.

Loyalty isn't endless. It's earned daily.

Watch for warning signs like these:

The once-vocal team member who stops speaking up
The advocate who no longer defends the company
The eager volunteer who stops raising their hand
The team player who suddenly works alone

By the time they hand in their notice,
they checked out long ago.

The real problem?

Too many bosses take loyalty for granted.

🚫 They push too hard
🚫 They ignore good work
🚫 They promote toxic "performers"

What they don't realize:

✅ Each ignored concern weakens relationships
✅ Each broken promise chips away at loyalty
✅ Each missed "thank you" damages trust

The most dangerous words in leadership:

"They'll never leave. They're too loyal."

Remember this truth:

Everyone has a tipping point where 
self-respect outweighs loyalty.

And once they stop caring, no money
or title will win them back.

Treat loyal people like the gems they are.

Before they decide you don't deserve them.

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I used to think top performers had some secret talent.

Now I know it's the simple things.

Anyone can do these.
No degree or title required.
Just choices you make every day.

12 things that require 0 talent:

1. Getting shit done
2. Having integrity
3. Keeping your word
4. Showing up on time
5. Bringing solutions, not problems
6. Bringing good energy
7. Being coachable
8. Cheering for others' wins
9. Making others feel heard
10. Asking how you can help
11. Finishing what you start
12. Staying humble

No special skills needed.
No expensive training.
Just decisions.

The person who shows up on time every day?
They show respect and build trust.

The person who finishes what they start?
They're someone you know you can count on.

Success isn't complicated.

It's doing the simple things most people won't.

P.S. What would you add to the list?

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The quietest person on my team changed everything.

She never spoke first. Or second. Or third.

But when she did? The whole team listened.

Her words were few, but they cut through the noise.

She'd wait until the end of meetings, then say:

"Have we considered...?"

And suddenly, our "perfect" plan had holes.

Or she'd ask:

"What if we...?"

And our good idea became great.

She taught me a valuable lesson:

Leadership isn't about being the loudest.

It's about listening to every voice.
And making them count.

As leaders, we need to:

• Create pauses for reflection
• Invite the quiet ones to speak
• Value quality of words over quantity

Because sometimes, the most impactful voice
is the one you almost don't hear.

The next big idea might be hiding behind
a shy smile or a thoughtful silence.

Give it room to emerge.

True wisdom often whispers.

Are you creating space for it to be heard?

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I'm thankful for the leaders who gave me
a chance when all I had to offer was a
positive attitude and hunger to learn.

No fancy degree. No impressive resume.

Just potential they chose to see.

They didn't ask me to prove myself first.

They believed in me before I believed in myself.

Those leaders:

• Shared knowledge without making me feel small
• Celebrated my small wins like they were huge
• Let me fail and framed it as learning
• Saw my growth, not just my gaps

They shaped who I am today.

Not because they were perfect.
But because they were present.

They gave me the one thing money can't buy:
A genuine opportunity to grow.

So here's my challenge to you:

Be that leader for someone else.

Give someone a chance who has more
hunger than credentials.

See potential, not just polish.

Open a door that once felt closed to you.

Because the best way to honor the leaders
who believed in you?

Is to become one for someone else.

That's how we all rise together.

P.S. What's one thing a great leader did
that you'll never forget?

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Thank you!

You can't control much in life
(but these 22 things you always can):

1. Your Attitude
Choose to have a positive outlook.
 
2. Your Integrity
Stick to your values, even when it's hard.
 
3. Your Courage
Face your fears and grow.
 
4. Your Kindness
A small act can change someone's day.
 
5. Your Influence
Be the leader you'd want to follow.
 
6. Your Actions
Make decisions you'll be proud of later.
 
7. Your Boundaries
Say no when you need to.
 
8. Your Effort
Push through when it gets tough.

9. Your Circle
Surround yourself with supportive people.
 
10. Your Self-Belief
Believe you can, and you will.
 
11. Your Excuses
Kill them before they kill your dreams.
 
12. Your Goals
Set them high to inspire your growth.
 
13. Your Focus
Choose where you direct your attention.
 
14. Your Limits
Break them, then set new ones.
 
15. Your Time
Prioritize what matters most to you.
 
16. Your Words
Speak positively to yourself and others.
 
17. Your Self-Care
Make time for yourself every day.
 
18. Your Silence
Speak up, even when it's unpopular.
 
19. Your Inner Critic
Put it in its place.
 
20. Your Mindset
Shift from fixed to growth thinking.
 
21. Your Purpose
Align your actions with your mission.
 
22. Your Gratitude
Count your blessings, no matter how small.

And remember, even though you can't control
what you feel...

You do get to choose how you respond.

Your power starts and ends with you 💪.

Master these 22, and watch your whole world transform.

You're not a passenger in life.

You're the driver.

P.S. Which of the 22 is most important to you?
What would you add that I missed?

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P.S. Want a PDF of this cheat sheet?
Get it free: brilliancebrief.com

It's so important to know when to leave.

The job.
The party.
The relationship.

Most people stay too long in situations that drain them.

They think leaving means giving up.

But sometimes, leaving is the bravest thing you can do.

I learned this the hard way.

I stayed at a toxic job for a year longer than I should have.
Why? Because I thought I could fix it.

I thought if I just...

Stayed later
Worked harder
Proved my worth

...things would change.

They didn't. But I did.

I became anxious. Exhausted. Resentful.

Until one day, I realized:

Staying wasn't loyalty. It was self-sabotage.

The strongest people I know have mastered 1 skill:
They know when to walk away.

It takes emotional intelligence to recognize:

When your values are being compromised
When your energy is being drained
When your growth has stopped
When respect has left the room

And it takes courage to act on that knowledge.

I wish someone had told me sooner:

You don't need a reason to choose yourself.
You don't need permission to protect your peace.
You don't need to stay anywhere that makes you small.

The right people will understand.
The wrong people will try to guilt you into staying.

That's how you know you're making the right choice.

Your EQ isn't just about understanding others.
It's about knowing yourself well enough to honor your needs.

Sometimes the most powerful thing you can do is simply leave.

And create space for something better.

♻️ Agree? Repost to inspire someone in your network.
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Thank you!

Promoting a toxic manager is a huge mistake.

(It starts with ignoring bad behavior.)

Toxic managers can ruin your team & culture
long before you see the damage in numbers.

Leaders, do this instead:

💡 Address toxic behavior,
no matter the performance.

Protect your best people and your culture.

This approach will keep your team strong,
and ensure long-term success.

Don't let short-term gains blind you.

Your company’s future depends on it.

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P.S. Have you ever seen a toxic person
get promoted just because they
"made their numbers"?

8 phrases you hear in a kind workplace:

1. "How are you really doing?"
And they actually want to know.

2. "Take the time you need."
Life happens. They get it.

3. "I noticed your hard work."
Your effort matters, not just results.

4. "What do you think?"
Your opinion is valued.

5. "That must have been difficult."
They see your struggles.

6. "I've got your back."
And they mean it.

7. "Let me help you with that."
Without you having to ask.

8. "We'll figure it out together."
No blame. Just solutions.

These phrases build cultures where people:

Want to show up
Do their best work
Support each other
Feel safe to speak up

Kindness isn't soft.

It's what makes people stay
It's what makes teams strong
It's what makes work worth it

Words matter.

They either build people up
or tear them down.

Choose wisely.

P.S. What's a kind workplace phrase you'd add?

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Positions are temporary.
Ranks and titles are limited.
But how you treat people will
always be remembered.

Want to leave a lasting impact?

Lead with generosity.
Serve with humility.
Act with integrity.

And treat everyone with kindness.

These are the true measures of success.
Not cars, clothes, cash or clout.

Your degrees may impress for a moment.
But your character defines your legacy.

Make people feel:
➟ Valued, not used
➟ Respected, not judged
➟ Cared for, not dismissed
➟ Understood, not ignored 

That's how you'll be remembered.
Not for what you had, but who you were.
Not for what you took, but what you gave.

Leave people better than you found them.
And you'll build a legacy that lasts.

Maya Angelou said it best:

"People will forget what you said, 
they will forget what you did, 
but people will never forget 
how you made them feel."

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The most powerful leadership tool costs $0.

(And you already have it.)

Kindness.

Most people think success comes from being tough.

From pushing harder.
From demanding more.

But here's what the research shows:

Teams led with kindness are...

➟ 70% more engaged
➟ 40% more resilient
➟ 21% more productive 
➟ 4x more likely to stay

Because kindness isn't weak. It's a strength multiplier.

It transforms average teams into exceptional ones.

Think about it:

When someone shows you kindness at work,
you feel seen.

Valued.

Ready to give your best.

That's why great leaders practice these daily:

• They ask real questions, not just "how are you?"
• They defend people who aren't in the room
• They celebrate others' wins like their own
• They respect boundaries and off-hours
• They lead with empathy, not authority
• They offer help before being asked
• They include the quiet voices
• They share knowledge freely
• They give credit generously

The truth?

Leadership isn't about power.
It's about impact.

And nothing impacts people more than genuine kindness.

Make kindness your competitive advantage.

Your team will thank you.
Your results will show it.
Your legacy will prove it.

Want to transform your workplace?

Start with kindness.
The rest will follow.

P.S. How do you show kindness at work?

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I made my worst leadership mistake on day 1.

I was so proud of that promotion.

Now I'm in the spotlight, I thought.

Until I eventually learned...

Leadership is all about shining a light on others.

When you become a leader, your impact is
no longer measured by what you produce.

It's now measured by how you help
others grow and reach their potential.

Your greatest achievement becomes
your team's success, not your own.

You see, leadership isn't about:
➟ Being the loudest voice in the room
➟ Taking credit for your team's work
➟ Having an answer for everything

Instead, it's about:

➟ Amplifying the quiet voices
➟ Celebrating your team's wins
➟ Creating space for their growth

Great leaders invest in their people daily.

They see potential before others do.

They push you when you need pushing.
And support you when you need supporting.

Try asking your team:

"What's one obstacle I can remove
for you this week?"

"What skill do you want to develop next?"

When someone doubts themselves,
remind them of their past wins.

Their hidden strengths.

A single "I believe in you" can change everything.

Because at its heart, leadership is simple:

Your job isn't to be the best person on the team.

It's to bring out the best in everyone else.

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The human brain has 6 gears.
Most people never shift past 2nd.

Bloom's Taxonomy gives a clear guide.
Here's how to access all 6:

REMEMBER is 1st gear.
We all start here, memorizing facts.
It's essential, but just the beginning.

UNDERSTAND is 2nd gear.
Being able to explain concepts clearly.
Many of us get comfortable here.

APPLY is 3rd gear.
Where knowledge turns into action.
Where real growth begins.

ANALYZE is 4th gear.
Breaking big problems into smaller pieces.
Seeing patterns others miss.
This is where strategic insights form.

EVALUATE is 5th gear.
Making smart decisions backed by clear thinking.
Choosing the best path forward.
Leaders thrive here.

CREATE is top gear.
Where new ideas come to life.
Where solutions to old problems are born.
The space for innovation.

The beautiful thing?

Every gear builds on the one before it.

Each level makes you more capable.
More valuable to yourself and others.

Most haven't been shown how to shift gears.
But it's possible for anyone.

Your brain is incredible.

It can do so much more than you think.

Ready to level up?

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Your title doesn't make you a leader.
Your behavior does.

Let that sit for a second.

Leadership isn’t a role.
It’s not a LinkedIn headline.
And it’s definitely not something you're promoted into.

It’s what you do.

Before the promotion.
Before the recognition.
Before the raise.

Leadership is:

➟ How you think
➟ How you show up
➟ How you treat people
➟ How you respond under pressure

No one taps you on the shoulder and says:
“Okay, now you’re allowed to lead.”

You decide.
Then you act.

And funny enough?

That’s exactly when the titles start catching up.

Here’s how real leaders get noticed:

— They take initiative
— They speak up when it’s uncomfortable
— They give credit and take responsibility
— They elevate others, not just themselves
— They lead before they’re given authority

You don’t need a big title to lead.
You need a bigger mindset.

Start with how you behave today.

In meetings.
On projects.
With your peers.
When nobody’s watching.

Because if you’re waiting for permission to lead?
You’re already behind.

Lead now.
The rest will follow.

P.S. What’s one way you’ve shown leadership without the title?

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I made a BIG mistake in my first leadership role.

I treated every team member
exactly the same way.

What worked for my more senior employees
completely frustrated the younger ones.

And what motivated my Millennial teammates
made the Boomers uncomfortable.

Here's what I learned:

Great leaders don't use a one-size-fits-all approach.

Some team members appreciate daily feedback.
Others prefer monthly check-ins.

Some want detailed instructions.
Others need creative freedom.

Some love collaborative brainstorming.
Others do their best thinking alone.

The secret?

Get to know each person as an individual.

Ask them:
• When do you do your best work?
• How do you prefer to communicate?
• What support do you need to succeed?
• What kind of feedback helps you grow?

Because leadership isn't about → your ← style.

It's about adapting to help each person thrive.

Instead of treating everyone equally.

Treat them individually.

P.S. What's your best tip for leading
different generations?
Share in the comments. 

♻️ Find this valuable? Repost to help other leaders.
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I used to think leadership was all about your title.
Now I know it's about how you make people feel.

11 signs you're a leader others (actually) want to follow:

01/ You defend them when they're not in the room.
02/ You give credit in public and coach in private.
03/ You fight battles they don't even know about.
04/ You shut down toxicity before it spreads.
05/ You see their potential before they do.
06/ You make their success your priority.
07/ You stay kind when times get tough.
08/ You apologize when you mess up.
09/ You show up when it matters.
10/ You let them outgrow you.
11/ You keep your promises.

I've known "leaders" with fancy titles
who made me feel invisible.

And others who led by influence 
and changed entire careers.

The difference?

One only cared about their position.
The other cared about their people.

Here's what real leaders know:

Your team's success is your success.
Their growth is your legacy.
Their trust is what makes you a leader.

Not your title.

Be the leader who makes people believe
in themselves.

That's the kind of impact that lasts forever.

♻️ Repost to inspire a leader in your network.
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I managed teams for 10 years before I learned
this important truth:

Empathy isn't a "soft skill."

It's your most powerful leadership tool.

I once had a top performer who was
missing deadlines.

Instead of asking "Why isn't this done?"

I asked "How can I support you?"

Turns out, she was dealing with family
health issues but was afraid to speak up.

That one conversation changed everything.

8 ways I learned to show empathy at work:

— Listen without jumping to fix things
— Be flexible when life throws curveballs
— Make time for non-work conversations
— Give praise in public, feedback in private
— Create space where no question feels stupid
— Support mental health days, not just sick days
— Ask how you can help, not why things aren't done
— Treat your team like people first, employees second

When you lead with empathy,
productivity and loyalty naturally follow.

You don't have to choose between being human
and being successful.

The most effective leaders are both.

Because at the end of the day,
people don't leave bad jobs.

They leave environments where they don't feel
understood or appreciated.

Want to transform your team?

Start with empathy.

It's the investment that pays the highest returns.

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I spent 7 years studying what separates
great leaders from everyone else.
(The answer shocked me.)

It wasn't charisma or intelligence.
It wasn't experience or credentials.

It was mastering a specific set of competencies
that anyone can learn.

You see, no one's a born leader.

You have to build it. One skill at a time.

The best leaders aren't naturals.
They're practitioners.

They know that self-awareness beats ego.
That emotional intelligence beats IQ.
That authenticity beats authority.

And it starts with leading yourself.

↳ Before you can inspire others
↳ Before you can drive change
↳ Before you can build culture

You must master the mirror.

Most people get this backwards.

They try to lead teams without building trust first.
They attempt to inspire without a clear vision.
They push for results without recognition.

And they wonder why it feels so hard.

Here's what actually works:

Start with one skill.
Practice for 30 days.
Then add another.

Small actions compound into transformation:

➟ Ask for feedback (even when it stings)
➟ Celebrate failures that taught you something
➟ Replace "You should..." with "What do you think?"

The best leaders aren't the loudest.
Or even the smartest.

They're the ones who do the work.

Your future team is waiting for
the leader you're becoming.

And they deserve the best version of you.

P.S. Which competency is hardest to master?
I'd love to hear your perspective.

♻️ Repost to help a leader in your network.
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Emotional Intelligence is a superpower at work.

Why does it matter so much?

95% of top performers have a high EQ.

First, let's clarify what it's not:

• It's not avoiding difficult conversations
• It's not brushing off what others say
• It's not thinking you're always right
• It's not wearing a "mask" to work
• It's not reacting without thinking
• It's not caring just about profits
• It's not jumping to conclusions
• It's not ignoring how you feel

Here's what it really is about:

• Knowing yourself well
• Being a calming presence
• Having empathy for others
• Building a culture of respect
• Keeping your emotions in check
• Handling disagreements smoothly
• Making it easy for everyone to speak up
• Being happy for others when they do well

If you want to be a top performer at work,
work on your Emotional Intelligence.

➟ It makes work more satisfying.
➟ It helps you lead better.
➟ It makes your team stronger.

Elevate your EQ.
Your career will thank you for it.

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Chris Donnelly

Founder (Business Acquired by Croud)

Founder | Follow for posts on Business, Marketing & AI

Cofounder of Searchable: 

An Autonomous SEO & AEO Growth Engineer 
Analyse, fix, & scale your website to drive customers

Work out how to master AI Search here: searchable.com

The short life story 

I decided to skip the corporate job & start a digital marketing agency at 21. Here is the journey so far: 

Age 21: Bootstrapped Adjust Media at university making websites 
Age 22: Left Uni and rebranded to Verb Brands
Age 27: Acquired DBD Media Ltd, their 20 staff & expanded to digital marketing
Age 28: Won Bugatti & recognised as leading luxury agency
Age 30: Sell entirety of Verb Brands to Croud & LDC in an 8-figure deal
Age 31: Founded Lottie Org w/ Will Donnelly (Grow revenue to 8 figures, raise $35m & hire 100 people).
Age 32: Launch my Media, Education and Investment business
Age 33: Launched the Creator Accelerator and reached 8 figures in revenue
Age 34: Co Founded Searchable

It’s been a journey. 

Through Searchable.com I help founders and marketers to grow their organic traffic on auto pilot with our autonomous Seo and Aeo tool: searchable.com

Through my investment company, we support and invest into Entrepreneurs running incredible businesses, and with our experience as operators, help them scale. 

If you are a founder of a profitable and growing company with approximately $1m+ EBITDA, and you want to see if you can grow faster, reach out. 

If you are not at that level yet, I produce resources to help you get there. 

I run a podcast called Wake Up, and produce content on YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram for free.

Commercial enquiries for speaking or brand deals: enquiries@chris-donnelly.co.uk

Co-Founder

Found CRM by Lottie 

A cloud-based care home operation software, mapped and built specifically to the care and retirement industries unique customer journey and supports care homes with CRM, Occupancy, Administration and Finance

Found results in a higher conversion rate, better attribution of marketing spend, saved time and ultimately high occupancy.

If you give level 1 prompts, you'll get level 1 results. 

Here's how to go from beginner to pro: 

Prompting AI is the same as any skill.  
Level 1 inputs give level 1 outputs...

And learning how to prompt well is a process. 

Most people are stuck at level 1, maybe level 2 if they're trying.
But the real power of LLMs is hidden in levels 3 and 4.

That's where you stop getting generic outputs, and start: 

- Creating higher quality outputs with fewer iterations
- Building reusable systems that scale with your business
- Working with a 24/7 digital assistant trained on your data

Here are the 4 levels of prompting broken down: 

Level 1: The Commander

“Write me a post.”

Goal: Get something fast.
Mindset: Task-first, no context.

This is where most people stay. 
You get quick answers but generic results. 

How to improve:
- Add a clear role and goal to every request.
- Ask AI to explain how it got to the answer.

Level 2: The Architect

“Act as a content strategist. 
Build a LinkedIn post using this brief, audience, and tone.”

Goal: Add structure and clarity.
Mindset: Context-first, single focus.

You’re starting to give direction. 
You define who the output is for, the purpose, and the format. 

How to improve:
- Use simple structure: Role → Task → Context → Output.
- Include examples of great work to show the standard you expect.

Level 3: The Strategist

“Here’s the audience, style, and examples. 
Build three options, critique them, and improve the best one.”

Goal: Create consistent, high-quality work.
Mindset: Iteration and reasoning.

This is where results compound. 
You build systems, test ideas, and refine based on feedback. 

How to improve:
- Use feedback loops: create → review → refine → finalise.
- Ask it to think through trade-offs or risks before giving the answer.

Level 4: The Master

“You are my Growth Engineer. 
Use context from Notion, Google Drive, 
and previous brand frameworks to draft this week’s content plan.”

Goal: Automation and leverage.
Mindset: Integration and systems thinking.

AI becomes part of your workflow. 
It understands your data, preferences, and strategy. 

How to improve:
- Layer context from your documents, briefs, and past results.
- Build reusable prompt systems that evolve over time.

My team and I use level 3 and 4 prompting every single day.

It's how we produce content at scale and save countless hours each week.

How much do you know about AI prompting? 
Drop a comment down below. 

If you want your business to be discovered inside LLMs like 
ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity, you need to optimise for AI search.

That's exactly what we built Searchable for.

It's an autonomous SEO & AEO Growth Engineer, 
That can analyse, fix, and scale your website automatically...

Learn more here:
https://lnkd.in/epgXyFmi

--

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Founder of Searchable.com | Follow for posts on Business, Marketing, Personal Brand & AI

100 days ago I had an idea.

An idea that I think could change marketing forever.

I have been obsessed with AI since ChatGPT came out and been obsessed with digital marketing since I was 16 when I built my first website.

I've Founded or Co Founded 5 of my own companies so far in my career.

- Two were small and faded but I learnt a lot
- Verb Brands was 10 years bootstrapped and I sold for 8 figures
- Lottie is a 9 figure business now, growing under Will Donnelly's leadership
- The Creator Accelerator generated nearly 8 figures of revenue in its 1st year

I went to work with Lovable and again just had my eyes opened even further to the possibilities of AI and technology.

Then this idea hit me and I knew I had to go all in.

100 days

I went to San Francisco and started networking. I knew I would need technical co-founders who were legitimately 0.01 engineers, who were hungry and who were passionate about the idea.

Met Sam Hogan & Arya Nagabhyru

They were both AI engineers building in the AI agent space at YC companies.

Decided to co found. Started building.

Jammed on the idea non stop and eventually landed on a massively improved version of what I had brought to them.

Day 90
- Changed the name from Clicker to Searchable
- YOLO'd it and bought searchable.com 

Day 80
- Decided that to be the company we wanted to be. We had to be in person and our culture had to compete with the fast paced cultures of San Francisco.

- Moved the guys over to the UK so we are shoulder to shoulder working every single day.

Day 70
- Tested our product with a closed list entrepreneurs
- Hired the incredible Nik Gospodinov as a founding engineer

Day 50
- Invested my own cash into the business
- Working with enterprises with our tool and supporting with white glove
- Brands receiving 200% increase in traffic from LLMs

Day 30
- Started a waitlist, reached 5000 people
- Opened a beta account and had 100 companies join
- Opened a community and had 800 people join

(the power of personal brand ay)

Day 10
- Hired a SEO expert product manager Ivan

Day... well today

I have always been a founder that has built in public.
Therefore I wanted to give it to you. Raw as we build.

Introducing Searchable 
Searchable.com

Your Autonomous SEO and AEO Growth Engineer.

It is deep analytics for AI Search.

However it isn't just analytics, it provides the actions required to drive growth. 

Automatically analyse, fix, and scale your website to drive customers.

I want your feedback, I want your thoughts. No idea is a bad one.

Use it to get your business and your products found in ChatGPT and other LLMs

To celebrate the launch, I am giving my audience free credits to use Searchable

📊 Deep Visibility & Analytics Report
⌨️ 100 prompt credits
🧹 5 site audit credits
💻 1 article credit

Plus free step-by-step guides on how to prepare for this shift.

Comment SEARCHABLE if you want to get the credits and try Searchable for free.

Spaces are limited.

No alternative text description for this image

The more powerful AI becomes...

The more valuable you are, if you adopt the right skills.

The rise of AI has proven it to be a powerful tool. 
Specifically for performing tasks that would normally take hours.  

But even at its most powerful, it's still not human. 

AI can handle technical tasks, but it can't replace human judgement. 
It cannot replace the ability to connect with others.
And it cannot replace adaptability.

The future belongs to those who take action and improve these 8 skills: 

1. Analytical Thinking
↳ The ability to break problems down and see what drives results.

Spend 15 minutes today working out why a result happened.
Review your last three business decisions and look for patterns. 

2. Emotional Intelligence
↳ Understanding your emotions and how you respond to others.

Before your next meeting, consider how each person might feel about the topic.
End the day by asking yourself: Did I listen more than I spoke?

3. Adaptability
↳ Adjusting quickly when things don't go to plan.

Do one thing this week that forces you out of your usual routine.
When plans alter, reframe the situation with: What's still in my control?

4. Social Influence
↳ Moving people towards a shared goal. 

Before every conversation, be clear on the outcome you want.
Influence through conviction and consistency rather than pressure.

5. Decision-Making
↳ Choosing quickly and standing by the result.

Give yourself a 1-minute limit for small decisions. 
When unsure, ask: What will future me thank me for doing today?

6. Discipline
↳ Doing the work long after motivation wears off.

Start your day with one task that moves your business forward.
Remove one thing from your schedule that adds no real value.

7. Curiosity
↳ Staying open, interested, and willing to learn from anyone.

Read something today outside your industry. 
Ask "why?" more often. Especially when things are going well.

8. Self-Awareness
↳ Knowing your strengths, limits, and blind spots.

Ask someone you trust what they think you could do better.
Reflect weekly: What strength can you lean into more?

Try some of these challenges to strengthen that skill.
One small step at a time.

AI has changed the way I hire and evaluate my team. 

For founders, I encourage you to seek hires with these skills. 
Employees with these will be more prepared as AI develops. 

For job seekers, ignoring these skills and chasing shortcuts will show.

Now is the time to understand where there's room for improvement. 
 
What's one skill that AI can't replace? 
Drop it down in the comments. 

I break down lessons like this every week in my newsletter, Step By Step.

Join 200k+ founders learning how to build better:

Subscribe here: 
https://lnkd.in/eUTCQTWb

♻️ Repost to share these skills with others in your network. 
And follow Chris Donnelly for more on building in the age of AI.

Failed change is rarely due to resistance.

It's because a proper framework wasn't used.

And a structured roadmap wasn't put in place.

That's where the ADKAR model by Jeff Hiatt comes into play.

It provides the structure and framework for effective change management.

Which, by the way, is critical to any business.
Without change, you don't evolve, and you get left in the dust.

This is how it works:

Awareness 👋
↳ Create an understanding of the objective.

Desire ✋
↳ Cultivate a personal drive to embrace change.

Knowledge 🧠
↳ Equip your team with the necessary understanding of a new system.

Ability 💪
↳ Empower individuals and teams with the capacity to enact change.

Reinforcement 🔄
↳ Strengthen the innovation introduced by the change process.

If you read the sheet, you'll find a breakdown of each stage.

And typically, the perceived value of the model is low to begin with.

But with time, people gain knowledge, ability, and they recognise the tangible value.

These are 3 best practices for ADKAR that I've picked up:

1. Lead from the front 🙋🏻‍♂️
Change doesn't start with a process.
It starts from the leader.

2. Make progress visible 🏔️
If people can see the impact...
That's what keeps them invested.

3. Reward behaviour, not outcomes 🏆
This builds a culture of genuine progressions.
Which leads to results !

And so, if you want change in a business, consider your approach.

The wrong one can cost time, money, and even relationships.
Now, my question to you:

Where will you apply this model to first in your business?

New software implementation?
An AI/Automation project?
Customer Experience transformation?

I'm curious to hear your responses.

If you want a structured roadmap for building your personal brand...

I'm running a free live masterclass on Tuesday, 25th November at 3 pm GMT. 

I'll be breaking down the exact system that's produced 100s of the world's fastest-growing LinkedIn creators.

You'll learn:

- How to optimise your profile like a landing page
- The perfect post timing formula based on data
- The content formats driving the most growth right now
- The new comment strategy LinkedIn changed a few months ago (no one's noticed)

Plus we'll have a live Q&A for any burning questions.  

We're also officially opening doors for The Creator Accelerator 6 during the call.

And we have a few additional surprises for people who sign up ! 

Save your spot here 👇
https://lnkd.in/eZncE8sN

♻️ Repost to share this framework with your network. 
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Founder of Searchable.com | Follow for posts on Business, Marketing & AI

SEO is not the full picture for businesses. 

In 2025, it's just a piece of the search puzzle. 

Ranking on Google is not the primary goal anymore.
The search volume inside LLMs is increasing day by day.

Which makes GEO/AEO/AIO/SXO an untapped goldmine for visibility.

I launched Searchable fully this week and hundreds of marketers have signed up.

People are already seeing incredible results, which is amazing to see.
(Like 200% increases in AI traffic in under a month)

So, if you want to dominate search in 2025 and beyond...
There's still plenty of time to be ahead of the curve.

Get going by learning these terms 👇

🧩 SEO: Search Engine Optimisation
↳ Ranking pages on Google through keywords and backlinks. 

✅ Pros: Proven traffic driver, builds long-term authority.
🚫 Cons: Competitive and slow to drive results.
🏆 Rank by targeting high-intent keywords clusters and refresh content.

🧩 GEO: Generative Engine Optimisation
↳ Optimising to be cited by AI engines like ChatGPT or Perplexity.

✅ Early-mover edge, builds trust, captures new channels.
🚫 Harder to measure a direct impact.
🏆 Rank with entity-rich content, forums, clear tables & FAQs.

🧩 AEO: Answer Engine Optimisation
↳ Optimising for zero-click answers (snippets, AI overviews).

✅ Instant authority, high CTR when clicks occur.
🚫 Fewer clicks, volatile snippet positions.
🏆 Rank by answering in 40–60 words, using schema & PAA topics.

🧩 AIO: AI Optimisation
↳ Ensuring your brand appears accurately in AI training data.

✅ Builds trust when AI tools surface your business.
🚫 Influence on training data can be limited.
🏆 Rank with structured, consistent content on trusted sources.

🧩 SXO: Search Experience Optimisation
↳ Optimising the full on-site experience so visitors convert.

✅ Turns traffic into revenue, boosts retention.
🚫 Needs CRO expertise, drops if SEO/AEO/GEO stall.
🏆 Rank with fast, mobile-friendly UX, aligned content, clear CTAs.

I've seen it firsthand. 
These determine if your brand is found or forgotten.

To have it done for you, autonomously, you need Searchable.👇
https://lnkd.in/epgXyFmi

It's the first tool that will optimise for all 5.

Which part of the puzzle are you missing?
I'm curious to know in the comments.

♻️ Repost to help your fellow founder & CEOs.
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Co Founder of Searchable.com | Follow for posts on Business, Marketing, Personal Brand & AI

My LinkedIn profile generates millions in revenue...

Now I'm giving you my full playbook for FREE:

Comment PROFILE, and I will personally send it to you.

Most LinkedIn profiles are glorified CVs. 

They list job titles, but do nothing to convert visitors into customers.

Even top entrepreneurs are losing leads because their profiles don't sell. 

I've strategically optimised my profile to achieve three goals:

- Waitlist for Searchable
- Subscriptions to my newsletter
- Sign-ups for The Creator Accelerator.

The results have been huge:

✅ 210,000+ subscribers to my email list
✅ 5000+ people on the Searchable waitlist 
✅ 5 fully sold out Creator Accelerator cohorts (with another incoming...)

And now, I want to share exactly how I did that with you, free of charge. 

This information could potentially be worth millions...

If you implement it as soon as possible. 

These are the exact steps I used to turn 1000s of profile views into leads. 

Inside, you'll learn how to: 

✅ Write About sections that convert using the TRUST method
✅ Transform your experience into outcome-based credibility
✅ Turn your banner into a digital billboard that drives traffic
✅ Use the positioning formula that turns headlines into micro-pitches
✅ Create instant trust with your profile picture and brand consistency
✅ Follow the complete 30-day implementation roadmap with weekly milestones
✅ Implement the monthly optimisation system that prevents performance decay
✅ Build a strategic funnel flow that guides visitors from awareness to action

Your LinkedIn profile is either making or losing you money. 

There's no in-between. 

This playbook turns it into a powerful landing page.

As a bonus, everyone who grabs the playbook will get a seat for my live webinar: 

"How to go from 0-10k Followers on LinkedIn"

You'll learn when to post, the foundations of a perfect post,
And the content formats working right now.

Plus we'll have a live Q&A and 2 surprises for those who attend. 

If you're ready to turn your profile into a revenue generator,
Comment PROFILE, and I'll send you the link to the playbook.

♻️ Repost to help your network make the most of their LinkedIn presence.

A concept everyone should know about...

The Paradox Of Knowledge.

Years ago, I thought knowledge was the barometer for success.

The more I knew, the better I would become, the more I would earn.

That wasn't necessarily true.
Today, I feel like I have more to learn than ever.

That's the Paradox Of Knowledge.

When you start, everything feels simple.
But the more we learn, the less we realise we know.

From the outside, expertise can look like clarity.
But inside, it's just navigating higher-quality confusion.

These are the mindset shifts you need to adopt:
(So you don't waste time rowing in the wrong direction)

Firstly, learning isn't about collecting information.

It's about repetition, refinement, and reflection.
Learning something truly in-depth.

Secondly, expertise looks boring up close.

It's built by making the same decisions, but better each time.
99% of people chase variety. The top 1% chase precision.

Finally, stay a student even when you're a teacher.

The moment you think you've mastered something...
You stop growing.

Ultimately, mastery is a fallacy.

The sooner you learn that, the better.

Here's the thing:

You HAVE to take action without full clarity sometimes.
That's the way the world works, fair or not.

But that doesn't mean you stop being a student. 

Learning is forever !

The more you learn, the less certain you feel...
But the more capable you become.

Happy learning, folks.

Have you heard of this concept before?
If not, what do you think of it?

For more frameworks for thinking like this,
Check out my weekly newsletter, Step by Step.

Join 200k+ builders reading on a regular basis:
https://lnkd.in/eUTCQTWb

♻️ Repost to help your network grow together.
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The Paradox Of Knowledge by Chris Donnelly

Top businesses aren't just optimising for Google. 

They're already adapting to AI: 

Ranking for classic search engines used to be the goal. 

But now, answer engines (ChatGPT, Claude, etc) are on the rise... 
 
If you want your business to stay relevant, 
You need to start investing in AI-driven rankings (AEO, GEO). 

In 2025 and beyond, I'd be putting time into these 3 types of search:
(See the cheat sheet for more details 👇) 

💻 SEO: Search Engine Optimisation
↳ Ranking pages on Google. 

⚙️ How it works:

- Identify high-intent keywords
- Build backlinks and internal linking
- Optimise content, speed and mobile experience

✅ Pros:
↳ Consistent traffic driver
↳ Builds long-term authority
↳ Underpins AEO and GEO efforts

🚫 Cons:
↳ Competitive and slow to show results
↳ Vulnerable to algorithm updates
↳ Requires ongoing upkeep

📈 How to rank higher:
↳ Focus on fewer, high-intent keyword clusters
↳ Refresh content quarterly
↳ Run technical audits

🤖 AEO: Answer Engine Optimisation
↳ Optimising for zero-click answers (like voice search). 

⚙️ How it works:

- Provide concise, direct answers
- Use schema mark-up (FAQ, How-to) 
- Format content bullets and headings

✅ Pros:
↳ Instant authority and visibility
↳ Strong for mobile and voice queries
↳ High CTR when clicks happen

🚫 Cons:
↳ Some users get the answer without clicking
↳ Snippet positions change frequently
↳ Requires constant content monitoring

📈 How to rank higher:
↳ Answer questions in 40–60 words
↳ Optimise for “People Also Ask” queries
↳ Add schema markup to FAQ and How-To pages

🎯 GEO: Generative Engine Optimisation
↳ Optimising content pulled by AI-driven search engines

⚙️ How it works:

- Publish clear, well-structured content 
- Build presence on credible sources (Reddit, Quora)
- Use AI-readable formatting

✅ Pros:
↳ Early mover advantage in AI search
↳ Positions brand as a trusted source
↳ Captures future-facing traffic streams

🚫 Cons:
↳ Hard to attribute direct traffic
↳ AI citation rules are still evolving
↳ Requires off-site presence, not just on your domain

📈 How to rank higher:
↳ Use entity-rich, fact-checked content 
↳ Get cited on known AI training sources
↳ Prioritise clarity with FAQs, tables, lists

Don’t get buried by brands already adapting.

It's not about just ranking on Google anymore. 

You're content is being cited by machines people trust for knowledge. 

Have you started optimising for AI search? 
I'd love to read your thoughts in the comments. 👇 

To prepare for this massive change in how we purchase... 
I'm publicly launching a new AI business, Searchable, very soon.

It's an Autonomous SEO & AEO Growth Engineer that will analyse, fix, and scale your website to drive customers automatically.

No leg work required from you. 
Just provide context, and the tool does the work for you.

Get started for free today: 
https://lnkd.in/epgXyFmi

♻️ Repost to help your network optimise their SEO.
And follow Chris Donnelly for more.

SEO has changed more in the past 2 years than in the last 20.

It's an entirely new game with new rules...

And most businesses have no idea it's happening.  

Ranking on Google page 1 used to guarantee visibility.

In 2025, that's no longer enough.

Your potential customers are searching in ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity.

If AI engines can't find and cite your content, you're invisible.

Here's what's shifting in search right now:

📺 Old SEO → Google or nothing
↳ If you didn’t rank page one, your brand didn’t exist.

💻 New SEO → AI search is here
↳ You must appear in AI answers and citations to stay discoverable.

📺 Old SEO → E-E-A-T optional
↳ Thin keyword blogs could rank.

💻 New SEO → E-E-A-T mandatory
↳ Proof, examples, and lived experience are now required.

📺 Old SEO → Keywords ran the show
↳ Stuffed headlines, tags, and paragraphs.

💻 New SEO → Intent runs the show
↳ Content must serve why the user is searching.

📺 Old SEO → Volume over depth
↳ Publish as many posts as possible.

💻 New SEO → Authority over volume
↳ Depth, interlinked clusters, and niche expertise win.

📺 Old SEO → Write for crawlers
↳ Meta tags and keyword stuffing ruled.

💻 New SEO → Write for AI engines
↳ Direct, structured answers that ChatGPT and Gemini can cite.

📺 Old SEO → Any backlink will do
↳ Even irrelevant links moved the needle.

💻 New SEO → Backlinks that count
↳ Trusted sources, PR, podcasts, and partnerships drive authority.

📺 Old SEO → Ranking was the finish line
↳ Page one meant you’d “won.”

💻 New SEO → Discovery never stops
↳ AI summaries, snippets, and citations keep visibility alive.

The rules of SEO are evolving faster than I ever imagined. 

Staying flexible, adaptable, and open to new ideas is non-negotiable. 

This is exactly why we built Searchable. 

It’s designed to:

- Show where your brand is visible (Google + AI search)
- Automatically optimise for SEO, AEO, and GEO
- Turn visibility into clicks and revenue

So you can prepare for the new era of search, without burning yourself out. 

Learn more here 👇
https://lnkd.in/epgXyFmi

Have you started optimising for AI search? 
Let me know in the comments. 

♻️ Repost to keep your network informed of SEO updates.
And follow Chris Donnelly for more on the new era of search.

Old SEO vs New SEO

If you're not using AI on LinkedIn... you're falling behind. 

This sheet will keep you ahead of the pack:

It still surprises me that some people still actively avoid using AI on LI.

Either that or they are using it, but terribly.

Much of that comes down to confusion.
On what the tool is and what it can be used for.

AI doesn’t just help you "write content faster."
It can help you think, plan, and produce at a higher level. 

That’s why I created this sheet, 
So you can use AI to dominate LinkedIn in 2025 👇

(It's what we've taught to hundreds of Creator Accelerator students !)

1️⃣ Audience Research

👥 You are able to quickly identify your ICP using AI. 
📜 Then, create an authentic positioning statement. 
📣 Finally, use ChatGPT to nail your brand messaging. 

2️⃣ Content Ideation

☑️ Identify pain points using Collab. 
☑️ Search for relevant topics and ideas with Saywhat. 
☑️ Visualise the ideas using Saywhat's Infogrpahic Generator. 

3️⃣ Content Creation With ChatGPT

☑️ Create and train a custom content writing GPT. 
☑️ Take the ideas from Saywhat and develop them with GPT.
☑️ GPT takes you 90% there, then you tweak it.

4️⃣ Creating Your Own IP

Step 1: Turn your process into IP.
Step 2: Create 2-3 CustomGPTs for key roles.
Step 3: Give the GPTs more info to become smarter. 

5️⃣ AI Do's And Don'ts

✅ Train with your actual voice.
✅ Give AI clear context before asking anything.
✅ Edit AI output to achieve perfection.
✅ Feed AI real audience pain points.

🚫 Publish raw AI output.
🚫 Copy others' outputs blindly. 
🚫 Use vague prompts. 
🚫 Make false assumptions about understanding.

Ignoring AI for content creation at this stage would be like refusing to learn how to drive because you can ride a horse.

Get off the horse and find your car keys.

It's your most competitive advantage as a creator.

Not knowing it will be your biggest blunder.

If you're feeling lost or confused...
I have good news for you !

This Thursday, December 4th, we are hosting:

"How To Save 100+ Hours Using AI On LinkedIn"

We'll explain exactly how AI can help you: 

✅ Generate ideas and turn them into content in minutes. 
✅ Conduct audience research, positioning, and storytelling. 
✅ Create a BTS co-founder to help you build and scale without burning out. 

Sign up here to join us 👇
https://lnkd.in/egCF25-c

The webinar we ran last week had THOUSANDS of sign-ups...
We had to turn many away. So sign up soon !

Are you using AI to create content right now? 
Let's discuss in the comments. ⬇️

--

📌 If you want a high-res PDF of this sheet:

1. Follow Chris Donnelly
2. Like the post
3. Repost to your network
4. Subscribe to: https://lnkd.in/eUTCQTWb

"It's only 30 minutes."

The world's most dangerous excuse. 

You might think that 30 minutes is a drop in the bucket. 

But when you take the long view, it's more than you think. 

If used well, 30 minutes could change your trajectory. 

Because small habits and actions truly add up over time. 

The major differentiator between an average achiever and the top 1% is how they use their time. 

They know that real success depends on increasing their baseline level. 

So, if you work to operate at a higher level than others, 
It is guaranteed to stack up over months, years and decades. 

Think of it this way: 

30 minutes a day is 182 hours a year.
That's over 7 full days.

If you spent 7 days reading, you'd gain knowledge and motivation.  
If you spent 7 days watching Netflix, you'd be completely depleted.  

7 days of learning to use AI properly would be transformational. 
7 days of sitting around and complaining would be... awful. 

Yet, the majority of people spend (at least) 30 minutes consuming, complaining...

Or doing things that don't move them forward every day.

Truly successful people spend it differently.

They don't spend 30 minutes on:

→ Endless scrolling through social media
→ Watching content that doesn't teach them anything
→ Spending more time tucked up in bed
→ Eating junk food to simply fill the time
→ Perfectionism that delays launching

Instead, they use those 30 minutes to:

→ Read something that challenges their thinking
→ Write down their schedule/action plan for the week
→ Put in time at the gym for their health
→ Learn a skill that will pay off for years
→ Spend quality time with the family

How you use your time is everything. 

And it's entirely up to you.

Success isn't a sprint; it's a life-long pursuit. 

And those who commit to making the most of their time, 
Will be the ones who get the most out of life. 

What's one bad habit you're dropping? And what are you replacing it with? 
Drop a comment below with your thoughts.  

If you want to spend two 30 minute time periods to best serve yourself in 2026, 
I’m hosting a free LinkedIn masterclass. 

I'll show you the fastest way to reach 10K followers, 
And sustain that growth to go even further...

Click here to save your seat: 
https://lnkd.in/eZncE8sN

♻️ Repost to share this wake-up call with your network. 
And follow Chris Donnelly for more insights like this.

It's just 30 minutes by Chris Donnelly.

SEO has changed more this year than in the last 10. 

This is the new glossary you need for 2025/26: 

The SEO blueprint you were taught in 2022 is already outdated. 

The terms, strategies, and metrics that matter are different now. 

You don't need to know every SEO term by heart. 

But if you want your business to be visible in 2025/26, 
You need to know these 24 terms at the very least. 

Save this glossary to stay on top of AI search: 

1. SEO: Search Engine Optimisation
Improving visibility across Google and AI-driven platforms.

2. AEO: Answer Engine Optimisation
Designing content that appears in AI-generated results.

3. GEO: Generative Engine Optimisation
Ensuring your brand appears inside AI summaries.

4. AI Visibility: 
How often your brand is cited in AI-generated responses.

5. SERP: Search Engine Results Page
Where SEO and AI Overviews now coexist.

6. Zero-Click Results: 
When users get answers directly from AI without clicking through.

7. LLMO: Large Language Model Optimisation
Optimising for models like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude.

8. Semantic Search: 
AI's ability to understand context and intent.

9. Entity Recognition: 
How AI connects people, brands, and concepts in your content.

10. Embeddings: 
The way AI encodes meaning to determine content relevance and citations.

11. Chunking: 
Breaking content into sections AI can easily index and cite.

12. Passage Ranking: 
Google's ability to rank individual passages within a page.

(See the cheat sheet for the full list of terms 👇) 

The world is splitting between businesses who know these terms,  
And those who have no idea this shift is happening. 

It's your job to land on the right side of history...

Have you started optimising for AI search yet? 
Leave a comment below with your thoughts. 

If you want the easiest possible way to prepare for AI search, 
Searchable is the ultimate tool. 

It's an autonomous SEO & AEO Growth Engineer that 
Analyses, fixes, and scales your website to drive customers. 

Learn more here: 
https://lnkd.in/epgXyFmi

♻️ Repost to help your network master these terms. 
Follow Searchable for more practical lessons in AI search.

Yesterday we launched Searchable

The first Visibility Platform that gets your brand ranked No 1 by AI Search

Founders, SEO’s, marketing teams. The feedback has been crazy, 100s of people signing up. 

Some people even writing things like “Vibe Marketing” and “Vibe SEO” which makes me so happy ! 

So why are we launching? 

60 days ago Google changed how SEO worked forever. 

You used to see hundreds of results per page, now you only see 10. 

Search Engine Land have said over 88% of sites saw a massive drop in traffic from Google. 

ChatGPT looks like it's driving 2-4x higher purchase intent with Seer and Search Engine Land stating up to 9x higher. 

This is a huge opportunity for brands to move fast. If you move fast right now, the dividends will be enormous for you and your business. 

So how does Searchable help?!

1. Identify & Track the RIGHT prompts
Our prompt suggestions are the best in the space at giving you commercial and educational prompts for your target audience

Our prompt research will analyse your site, analytics and search console and suggest prompts to gain qualified traffic. 

2. Content & Technical Optimisation
Our content and technical audits are performed against LLMs requirements to identify which parts of your sites are being read and understood and therefore used in answers. 

We then use this information to advise you on how to fix and improve your site. 

3. Agent Co Pilot 
Your agent will be automatically trained on your brand context and you can connect your Analytics and Search Console. 

The agent is trained on the data, reports and insight of the leading AI Search Experts. 

Imagine being able to ask your agent (a few examples!): 

What are my most commercial prompts? 
What content is going to drive the most LLM traffic?
What prompts should I track and optimise for to win my customers?
What prompts are my competitors ranking for and how do I beat them?

The brands who we have been working with have seen 200-300% increase in their traffic from AI Search over the last 2 months. 

Companies like Heights, Lottie, Thrive and dozens of agency partners using Searchable for their clients. 

To celebrate the launch, I am giving my audience FREE credits to use Searchable

📊 Deep Visibility & Analytics Report
⌨️ 100 prompt credits
🧹 5 site audit credits
💻 1 article credit

Plus free step-by-step guides on how to prepare for this shift.

Comment AI SEARCH if you want to get the credits and try Searchable for free.

Spaces are limited !

Your LinkedIn profile is your landing page.

But only if you know how to set it up: 

↳ Comment “PROFILE”, and I’ll DM you The LinkedIn Conversion Playbook. 
(More details below)

LinkedIn is still the best social platform for growing your audience, 
And generating high-quality leads simultaneously... 

But only if your profile is set up to do so. 

You have about 60 seconds to make your offer and expertise clear. 
Otherwise, you'll be losing leads to competitors who do. 

I've optimised my profile to achieve three goals: 

🖥️ Customers for my AI business, Searchable.
📧 Subscriptions to my Step by Step newsletter. 
👤 Sign-ups to the waitlist for The Creator Accelerator.

The results have been huge: 

📈 250,000+ subscribers to my email list.
✅ 4,125+ people using Searchable to optimise for AEO/SEO/GEO.
📊 5 fully sold out Creator Accelerator cohorts. 

If you want a profile like mine that generates and converts leads, 
Follow these steps to turn it into a landing page:

👤 Profile Picture
↳ Make it clear, high-quality, and on-brand (400x400px works best).

🔲 Banner
↳ State your offer and direct people where you want them to go.

⛓️‍💥 Headline & Link
↳ Share what you do, what makes you different, and why people should trust you.

🖱️ Featured Section
↳ Highlight your main offer. Make it visual, clear, and actionable.

✍🏻 Content
↳ Lead with value to push people towards your profile. 

👴🏻 Experience
↳ Include your formative roles and a description to build credibility.

☄️ Skills
↳ Prioritise the top 2 skills you want to be known (or hired) for.

✅ Call to Action
↳ There's no point upgrading your profile if people aren't directed towards it.

Optimising your profile will take a few hours out of your week, 
But it will change the course of your business for good. 

Right now, you have a choice: 

Stick with a low-revenue LinkedIn profile that repels potential leads. 
Or create a highly profitable one that generates them while you sleep. 

I know which one I'd pick every time. 

What part of your profile needs the most attention? 
Drop a comment below. 

P.S. I've made a 15-page in-depth resource.
On how to turn your profile into a revenue-generating machine...

It's called The LinkedIn Conversion Playbook.

Comment “PROFILE”, and I will DM it to you. 
(If we are not connected, I will reply asking to send the keyword with the connection request) 

♻️ Repost this to help others in your network land more clients.

Utilising ChatGPT properly has made me millions on LinkedIn...

And I'm giving you 4 of my CustomGPTs for FREE:

Comment CUSTOM, and I will personally send them all to you.

Most people see AI as a time saver - an efficiency tool.
While it does help with that... it's a bit of a reductive description.

What it can really do is level up your entire content workflow.

I've spent a ton of time and resource into improving these GPTs.
They've now been responsible for 100M+ views on LinkedIn this year.

As well as a hefty amount of revenue !

The 4 GPTs are:

🪝 The Scroll Stopping Hook Generator
💡 The Viral LinkedIn Idea Generator
💰 The High-Converting Lead Gen Generator
📊 The LinkedIn Algorithm Expert

With all of these, you can essentially:

1. Generate hooks that are proven to drive incredible engagement.

2. Use less brain power to come up with viral post ideas.
(Trained on posts that have generated 100s of millions of views this year alone)

3. Come up with angles for posts that generate dozens of leads per post.

4. Ensure every single post is optimised for the latest algorithm updates.
(Based on a database of 200k+ posts in the last quarter)

You essentially have a 4-man LinkedIn content team at your dispsoal. 

Again, I repeat, for free.

Us Founders are busy, busy people. 
I couldn't stay consistent without these, that's for sure.

Start using them, I promise you won't regret it.

As a bonus, everyone who grabs the GPTs will get a seat for my live webinar:

"How To Save 100+ Hours Using AI On LinkedIn"

You'll learn how to leverage AI into your all-in-one content assistant.

Saving you hours and improving your quality of content in the process.

Plus we have a live Q&A and 2 surprises for those who attend.

So if you're ready to start using GPT properly for LinkedIn,
Comment CUSTOM and I'll send you the link to the 4 GPTs.

♻️ Repost to help your network start growing rapidly on LinkedIn.

After building an AI Startup in 2025

Anyone who says AI is “the magic bullet is lying”

AI isn’t the reason for success.

The reality is, you have to run a great business, design incredible product, have a razor focus on product led growth, run highly personalised marketing and sales, create funnels and customer funnels for acquisition and retention. 

AI will allow you to do it fastest, more efficiently, with a smaller team, at greater scale for less cost than it used to.

Take it from me, I have built and sold or exited three large businesses before from 2011 - 2024.

If I wanted to go from nothing to $1m ARR as fast as humanly possible...

These are the tools I'd use:
(And the purpose they serve)


1. Lovable 

The best tool for product prototyping. This is your breeding ground for an MVP.

2. Searchable

Shameless plug, but this is your go-to Autonomous SEO/AEO/GEO Growth Engineer.

It is now low-level analytics. It is deep analytics for AI Search that you can implement.

3. Cursor

Cursor will accelerate the speed and efficiency of your engineering team by 10x.

4. Zapier

Use Zapier for connectivity for CRM, as well as automated retention and upsell campaigns.

5. ChatGPT or Claude

Use these specifically for custom training for all team members, but also as your day-to-day brainstorming partners.

6. Clay

To enrich contact details at scale, give you the power to stitch together social media activity, marketing activity and intent. 

Therefore you can market far more accurately and efficiently. 

7. Claude Code

You can use Claude Code to plug into all operations of your business to spot trends, analyse churn, create automated communication, reporting and insight on how your customers are using your business.

You don’t need every AI tool.

The tool isn’t the answer.

Good strategy is and the tools enable speed, efficiency and scale.

Happy building folks.

Which tools are you and aren't you using?
Curious to know in the comments.

And let me know if I missed any in the comments as well.

♻️ Repost to give your network the right tools to build.
And follow Chris Donnelly for more AI startup tips.

They say: "Likes don't pay the bills."

It's much more nuanced than that...

I'm not sure where the myth of "growing slowly and authentically" started. 

You don't have to choose between growing fast and making money. 

You can do both at the same time.

I've built multiple 8-figure businesses this way.
And 100s of students in The Creator Accelerator have too.

But you must know which content grows and which content converts your audience. 

The carousel below has the full breakdown.
But here's a quick summary in the meantime: 

Content That Grows:

↳ Top-of-funnel content that gets eyes on your business. 

- Punchy hooks create intrigue.
- Lighter subjects and highly shareable. 
- Gets reach, builds an audience, and creates trust.

Content That Sells:

↳ Middle/bottom-of-funnel content that generates sales.

- The CTA can be subtle or more obvious.
- Talks directly to the audience that is warm or ready to buy.
- Highlights a pain point → offers the solution → shows proof.

One type of content builds trust and positions your brand. 

The other leverages that trust to generate demand.  

The biggest mistake would be leaning too heavily in either direction. 

Real results come from using both strategically.

TL;DR: 

☑️ Reach the right people first
☑️ Provide them with value
☑️ Give them a clear next step

And if you want to see real revenue through LinkedIn...
I’m hosting a free webinar with Nader Alnajjar. 

We'll teach you how to turn your content into clients, 
Using LinkedIn Sales Navigator. 

Spots are limited, so sign up now 👇
https://lnkd.in/ezSFmcdj

It's on at 5.30 pm GMT/12.30 pm EST on Thursday 11th December. 

Have you struggled with lead gen on LinkedIn? 
Share your thoughts in the comments. 👇

♻️ Repost to help your network start earning on LinkedIn. 
And follow Chris Donnelly for more strategies like this.

Content That Grows vs Content That Sells

You can build an AI agent in 10 minutes. 

But 99% of people will never attempt it: 

I've built multiple AI agents for Searchable, 
And I'm still shocked at how easy it is.  

If you can write a basic checklist, you can build an agent. 

One that will genuinely save you 100s of hours.

Here's exactly how to build one:

1. Pick One Boring Job

Choose one painful workflow you repeat weekly.

Define success in one sentence:
"Given X, the agent should output Y so that Z happens."

2. Map The Steps Like A SOP

Turn that job into 4 to 7 clear steps.
Write it as: Input → actions → decision → output.

3. Choose Your Agent Platform

Decide where this thing lives so you're not reinventing infrastructure.

No/low code: OpenAI Agent Builder, Zapier, Make, n8n
Dev friendly: LangChain, LangGraph, OpenAI Agents SDK, CrewAI

4. Define Inputs, Outputs, And Tools

Treat the agent like an API, not a vague chatbot.

Specify inputs: what fields are required (text, file, URL, ID)
Define outputs: JSON fields or a fixed template
Attach tools: data tools, action tools or orchestration tools

5. Give The Agent A Job Description

Write the brain with a clear system prompt:

- Role: "You are a [job title] focused on [task]"
- Boundaries: what it must never do
- Style: concise, structured
- 1-2 example conversations

6. Add Memory And Context

Stop the agent forgetting everything after each message.

Three layers:

- Conversation state: pass recent messages
- Task memory: store key decisions for the current run
- Knowledge memory: connect a vector store over your docs

7. Add Guardrails And Human Checks

Mark high-risk actions that need approval. 

Add simple rules:

- Never invent logins or IDs
- Ask for clarification when the brief is ambiguous
- Log every tool call and decision

8. Wrap It In A Simple Interface

Turn the agent into something people will actually use.
Options: internal chat, button in an existing app or Slack command

9. Test On 5 Real Tasks

Catch issues at the step level, not after it breaks something.

For each example:

- Watch which tools it called and in what order
- Score correctness, steps taken, and time saved
- Tighten the prompt, tools, or rules where it failed

Businesses adopting AI now will be too far ahead to catch later.

If you want to be one of them, you need to start automating your work. 

Founders who grow fastest aren't working hardest.
They're building systems that run without them.

This is what we're doing at Searchable.

We built an AI system that handles SEO and AEO automatically. 
It analyses your site, finds opportunities and optimises content.

Learn more and get started for free: 
https://lnkd.in/epgXyFmi

♻️ Repost this to help founders in your network build smarter systems.
And follow Chris Donnelly for more on AI and business growth.

Whether you're using GPT, Claude or Perplexity,

Weak prompts = Weak outputs 

The quality of your prompts determines your results.  

People tend to prompt each LLM the same, and that’s not always wise. 

But in case you don’t want to learn EVERY tool in detail, 
There are universal rules that can be applied to get good results.  

These will ensure 10x better results from most LLMs: 

(See the cheat sheet for more details 👇) 

1. Keep The Base Prompt Short

Pick one role, goal, or definition of success. 
The base prompt controls how the model thinks.

2. Add Context In Layers

Your prompt is the headline.
Your supporting files and data do the heavy lifting.

3. Multi-shot > One-shot

Show the model good vs bad examples.
These act like micro-training.

4. Give The Model A Thinking Path

AI doesn’t assume priorities.
Tell it the order: analyse → extract → prioritise → recommend → format.

5. Use Constraints Deliberately

Constraints reduce hallucinations, and ambiguity.
Word count, style, and format create clarity.

Context Stacking 

A modern prompt works like a modular system.
It’s almost like you’re assembling it.

Layer A: Role & Goal
Layer B: Memory
Layer C: Examples (Multi-Shot)
Layer D: Documents
Layer E: Parameters

Connectors & MCP 

This is where the next generation of prompting is going.

Use connectors to link AI to:

- Google Drive → briefs, scripts, docs
- Notion → wiki, strategy hubs
- Slack → decisions, updates, support
- AirTable → CRM data, ICP profiles

MCP (Model Context Protocol)

A technical way to tell the model:

- Which tools it can call
- What data it can fetch
- What the output format must be

If your prompts aren’t working, check for these mistakes: 

❌ Mixing tone, goals, and tasks
❌ Asking for everything at once
❌ Giving no examples
❌ Giving too many examples
❌ Forgetting constraints
❌ Zero logic or sequencing
❌ Five different prompts doing the job of one system

After months of building Searchable that uses agentic AI, 
I've learned that prompting is not just writing good instructions. 

It's about engineering a system that produces strong results, consistently. 

What's your formula for a good prompt? 
Drop it down below. 

AI is changing the way people search and discover brands. 
Searchable is the easiest way to prepare for that shift.  

It's an autonomous SEO & AEO Growth Engineer that 
Analyses, fixes, and scales your website to drive customers. 

Learn more here: 
https://lnkd.in/epgXyFmi

----

📌 If you want a high-res PDF of this sheet:

1. Follow Chris Donnelly.
2. Like the post.
3. Repost to your network.
4. Subscribe to: https://lnkd.in/eUTCQTWb

Excited to announce that Searchable has raised $4 million in pre-seed funding at a $40 million valuation.

For an idea we had only 4 months ago. We launched 12 days ago. 

In 12 days we have had: 
- 4,500 people signed up to try Searchable
- 1000s of trials started 
- 100s of paying customers
- Reached $39,322 MRR

Fundamentally, AI is changing marketing faster than Google did.

Now, if you're not indexing within AI search engines, you are going to lose out. 

There are 700 million monthly users on ChatGPT.
450 million on Google Gemini.
30 million for Perplexity and Claude.

This is a real consumer behavioural shift, and we're right at the beginning of it.

Even if you think Google are going to win, the interface will be different forever. 

I truly believe what we're building is the best tool on the market.

With the best team behind it to grow it into what I think could be a billion-dollar business.

I met my Co-Founders Sam Hogan and Arya Nagabhyru 4 months ago. 

They were both deep AI engineers building in the AI agent space at YC companies.

We jammed on the idea non stop and eventually landed on a massively improved version of what I had brought to them.

Since then, I've moved them to our London office, hired some more incredible talent, and hit some insane revenue figures already.

This is predicted to become a multi-billion-dollar market by 2030. The opportunity is massive.

In 2012, £10 in Facebook spend could return hundreds because no one else was doing it.

That same window exists now – for brands who learn to be visible to AI.

I've never worked with more talented people.

If you want to join us, we are hiring for:  

0.01 engineers
If you want to build and ship fast, join us. 

Sales and GTM Lead
We have incredible tooling and deep expertise and need someone to lead and own the sales process.

Check out roles here
https://lnkd.in/eeA-gBQU

We are working closer to a San Francisco company in terms of pace and hours. 

We have very competitive salaries and equity packages.

If you want to try the tool - we have just completed revamped our free visibility report and added even more value, comment SEARCHABLE AEO and I'll send you the link. 

To celebrate the launch, I am giving my audience free credits to use Searchable !

📊 Deep Visibility & Analytics Report
⌨️ 100 prompt credits
🧹 5 site audit credits
💻 1 article credit

Plus free step-by-step guides on how to prepare for this shift.

taplio

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The Battle

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