Nathan Baugh

Consultant → writer. I study the best storytellers ever and share with you what I learn. Writing fiction and writing to 77K storytellers every Saturday. Join us 👇

Founder

In light of Sanderson’s Apple TV deal I’d like to remind you one of the best selling authors in the world has 17+ hours of free lectures on writing and storytelling on youtube:

-> Brandon Sanderson
-> Playlists
-> Writing Lectures (2025)

An insane amount of value.

I’ll share my notes on the class this weekend: https://lnkd.in/gXaqKe2u

Ghostwriter. Exploring the art and science of storytelling. Debut fantasy novel sometime ~soon.

Turned 30, hiked the Inca Trail, went to two great friends’ wedding in Lima, and finalized the cover of my debut novel. What a month.

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After my freshman year, I did freelance writing to the tune of $0.04 per word. I'm a horrendously slow writer -- I like to take my time with each sentence, it's a habit I've tried to break for years -- and the clients were the sketchiest sites you can imagine.

The experience taught me you can't make good money as a writer, that writing is a commodity paid for by the word. A dream killer.

I could not have been more wrong.

When we moved to Madrid, someone liked my tweets and asked how much I charged for writing. Without a clue, I told him $2k per month. I made up this number. It felt like a loonshot.

He said sure sounds good, and I worked for his agency for the next year. Eventually, I went out on my own, and his advice was basically charge a lot more.

So I did, and today ghostwriting makes up about 60% of my revenue -- the rest comes from newsletter ads and info product sales.

Are there ups and downs? Absolutely. But I'm more convinced than ever now's the best time in history to be a writer. There's demand for the work, and there's non-gate kept access to distribution and knowledge.

***

My friend Nicolas Cole taught me more about this world than just about anybody. His ship30 program changed my life, and his PGA is incredible for anybody thinking about ghostwriting as a business or side gig.

They're doing a free masterclass tomorrow on nailing your client's voice. Check it out here: https://lnkd.in/eKQ-E67v

It's my favorite part of ghostwriting because it's the most like fiction writing. Essentially, I create a character for each client and part of my editing process is, "Would this character actually write / say this?"

If yes, it's good to go. If not, then back to the chopping block.

A friend asked me what metric his company isn’t measuring about their linkedin activity but should be.

I could tell he expected me to pull out some obscure metric but instead I simply told him number of posts per month.

Everyone tracks impressions, followers, leads, etc etc

But those are all outputs. The only input is the post, of which volume and quality are the only things that matter.

Quality is an intuition thing, but volume is a number. 

More volume, almost always good.

Decided I’m taking my own advice. Gonna post here more often, even off the cuff like this.

Aiming for 5x per week.

Here’s a collection of the 10 best books I read in 2025 — probably the most eclectic mix you’ll see:

In no particular order.

1. The Inner Compass by Lawrence Yeo
2. The entire Sun Eater series by Christopher Ruocchio
3. The Pathless Path by Paul Millerd
4. Mists of Avalon by Marion Bradley
5. You Can Just Do Things by Jay Yang
6. Persians by Lloyd Jones
7. Consider This by Chuck Palahniuk
8. The Sword of Kaigen by ML Wang
9. Hyperion by Dan Simmons
10. East of Eden by Steinbeck

Tried to read very little business books given I consume that content all day. What’d you read? What’d you enjoy?

The fact Randall Wallace is casually on linkedin teaching screenwriting and storytelling with examples from his incredible career is the most underappreciated wonder of this site.

This morning I got to read the novel Tommy Clark’s working on and I regret to inform you he’s as good a fiction writer as he is on the internet.

Chase Dimond

Top Ecommerce Email Marketer & Agency Owner | We’ve sent over 1 billion emails for our clients resulting in $200+ million in email attributable revenue.

I help brands make more money with email marketing.

I’m a Co-Founder of Structured, an ecommerce email marketing agency. Since launching in 2018, our team has helped brands send billions of emails and generate over $200M in email-attributable revenue.

We’re a top agency partner for platforms like Omnisend and Klaviyo.

Shopify featured me as a top email marketing influencer. I’ve also received LinkedIn’s Top Voice Award for Email Marketing, and Favikon has ranked me as the top email marketer across social media.

Some of the brands we’ve worked with include:

Poo~Pourri
Eight Sleep
Health-Ade
Mixtiles
Vessi

If you’re looking to hire an experienced email marketing agency, you can reach me here:

chase@chasedimond.com

——

Outside my agency, I run a number of other fast-growing businesses. I’m fortunate to have over 750,000+ followers and subscribers across my social channels and email newsletter.

I’ve worked with companies including:

LinkedIn
Amazon
TikTok
Gamma
Alibaba
Zapier
ClickUp

I work with a small number of paid sponsors and partners each year.

If you’re interested in exploring a potential fit, please email me with details:

chase@chasedimond.com

My newsletter is your no BS guide into what's working in email marketing - I'll give you the latest tips + tactics to help you drive more revenue from your email marketing channel. 

Sign up (it's free) here: https://chasedimond.com/chase-email-newsletter

If your job costs you your peace,
it’s too expensive.

You deserve a job that lets you sleep peacefully at night -
not one that keeps you awake questioning your worth, your future, or your sanity.

A healthy career doesn’t rely on:

 ❌ burnout
 ❌ constant anxiety
 ❌ toxic expectations

A healthy career is built on:

 ✔️ clear boundaries
 ✔️ supportive leadership
 ✔️ meaningful work
 ✔️ respect for your time and well-being

Your job should challenge you - not drain you.

It should grow you - not break you.

And it should fit into your life, not become your life.

If your work steals your peace, it’s costing you more than it pays.

Top Ecommerce Email Marketer | $200M+ Generated via Email

Working with smart people is great.
But it is not enough.

Because intelligence can solve problems.
But humility and kindness build cultures where problems don’t have to exist in the first place.

Here’s why it matters so much 👇

Kind and humble people:

They make collaboration effortless.
You don’t waste energy defending ideas or egos. 
You build together - faster, cleaner, and with more trust.

They create psychological safety.
When people feel respected, they speak up, share bold ideas, 
and admit mistakes early. 
That’s how teams innovate and grow.

They inspire long-term loyalty.
People don’t leave companies - they leave toxic dynamics. 
Working with grounded, genuine teammates keeps great talent around.

 Ways to practice kindness and humility at work:

Listen more than you talk.
You don’t need to have the loudest voice to have the strongest impact. 
Listening builds connection and earns respect.

Give credit - generously.
Acknowledging others’ work doesn’t diminish your own. 
It multiplies the trust and energy in your team.

Keep learning.
The moment you think you’ve “arrived,” you stop growing. 
Stay curious, stay open, and never let success make you unapproachable.

Kind people build strong teams.
Strong teams create big results.

Funny how your brain has unlimited energy
for worst-case scenarios.

It can write entire disaster scripts at 3 a.m.
With dialogue.
With consequences.
With a soundtrack.

But ask it to imagine things going well
and suddenly it needs evidence, references, and a peer review.

That’s not intuition.
That’s anxiety pretending to be preparation.

You don’t need to stop overthinking.
You just need to stop letting it bully you into pessimism only.

If your mind insists on spiraling,
at least make it spiral in both directions.

Same brain.
Different hypothesis.

Image credit: bywiseword

Reality:
A small, ordinary action.

LinkedIn:
A “high-impact initiative” with “key learnings” and “next steps.”

Clear communication beats inflated language.
Strong professionals don’t need to oversell normal work.

Say what you did.
Say why it mattered.
Move on.

Clarity builds trust faster than buzzwords.

Image credit: TheSecretAcct on Twitter/X

It’s not about collecting business cards or follower counts.

It’s about building bridges with people who get it - who challenge you, inspire you, and open doors you didn’t know existed.

The right network doesn’t just grow your career - it expands your mindset, your confidence, and your opportunities.

Here are 12 ways to build powerful, authentic connections:

1️⃣ Lead with curiosity. Ask, don’t pitch. People love being seen and heard.

2️⃣ Add value first. Share insights, introductions, or encouragement before asking for anything.

3️⃣ Show up consistently. Comment, engage, and participate where your industry hangs out.

4️⃣ Find your communities. Join professional groups, Slack channels, or niche forums.

5️⃣ Attend events strategically. Go where your next mentor, collaborator, or client might actually be.

6️⃣ Follow up. A short, thoughtful message can turn a conversation into a relationship.

7️⃣ Be generous with your expertise. Give more than you take - it builds reputation fast.

8️⃣ Don’t chase status. The best opportunities often come from peers, not big titles.

9️⃣ Stay authentic. Pretending to be someone you’re not is the fastest way to disconnect.

1️⃣0️⃣ Keep it human. Share stories, not sales pitches.

1️⃣1️⃣ Support others publicly. Celebrate others’ wins - it builds goodwill that lasts.

1️⃣2️⃣ Play the long game. Relationships compound like interest; nurture them with time.

The truth? You’re one conversation away from a completely different path.

Image credit: Tim Stoddart

The advice I wish I could’ve given myself 8 years ago:

Create a culture people never want to leave.

Yes, you can’t keep everyone with a 0% turnover rate. 
Let’s face it.

But what you can do is build an environment people don’t want to walk away from.

Build a culture that makes employees:

↳ Recommend it to their friends as the dream job, 
↳ Stay, even if the paycheck isn't perfect yet, 
↳ Come back when the conditions are right.

Think about it:

👉 A competitive paycheck might keep someone for a while, 
But a toxic culture will drive them away for good.

👉 You can offer all the perks, but if the culture is unhealthy, 
Nothing will make your best people stick around.

People stay where they feel valued.

It’s not just about the money—it’s about creating a workplace 
that makes people excited to show up every day.

♻️ Share this post with your network if you agree. 

 Credit: Victoria Repa ( go follow her )

Small habit.
Big impact.

The way you speak to yourself
every morning
becomes your baseline.

Speak growth.
Speak calm.
Speak possibility.

It adds up.

Image credit: Wordofwise_ on Twitter/X

“Hire the people that…”

Interesting how the list skips:
– constant availability
– performative hustle
– being the loudest voice
– working 24/7 for optics

Great teams grow from maturity, not heroics.
From people who communicate clearly, take ownership, and move in sync.

Ego slows teams down.
Trust speeds them up.
Psychological safety keeps the work moving.

Hire for reliability and collaboration first.
Everything else gets easier after that.

Nobody talks about this part enough.

You can do it tired.
You can do it frustrated.
You can do it unsure.

You just can’t do it if you quit.

Keep going.


Image credit: Dearme2_ on Twitter/X

Here’s a hard truth most people avoid:

If you’re not making mistakes, you’re not moving forward.

I learned this the slow way.

Early on, I tried to get everything right.
Perfect plan.
Perfect timing.
Perfect execution.

And progress?
Basically stalled.

Things only changed when I gave myself permission to be wrong.

To test ideas that might flop.
To ship work that wasn’t perfect.
To learn out loud instead of waiting in silence.

Mistakes aren’t failure.
They’re feedback.

The people doing the most interesting work
aren’t avoiding mistakes.

They’re just willing to make them faster.

Safe paths feel good.
But they don’t teach much.

Growth always comes with friction.
That’s the price of trying something new.

Image credit: Tomas Gorny

Marketing is great they said…


P.S. If you write emails and you’re looking for inspiration, check out:

inboox.ai

“It wasn’t a waste of time if you learned something.”

That’s easy to agree with in theory.
Harder when the lesson came with lost money, bruised confidence, or a year you won’t get back.

Still - experience has a way of paying later.

It sharpens your instincts.
It changes what you tolerate.
It shortens the gap between seeing a red flag and acting on it.

Not every chapter produces visible wins.
Some exist to quietly upgrade your judgment.

And that upgrade shows up in every decision after.

10 years of rejection.

That's how long Squid Game's creator spent pitching his script.

Studio after studio said no.
Too dark. Too violent. Won't work.

Then Netflix took a chance.

28 days later, it became their most-watched show in history.

A decade of "no" turned into a $900M yes.

Most people quit after a few rejections.
They assume the silence means the idea is bad.

But rejection isn't a verdict.
It's just timing.

The right opportunity doesn't always show up first.
Sometimes it shows up tenth. Or hundredth.

If you're getting rejected right now, consider this:

You might not be wrong.
You might just be early.

Keep going.


Image Credit: Amy Sussman/WireImage; Noh Juhan/Netflix

How to survive marketing in 2026.

Open your laptop.
Check Slack.
Three notifications in…

…and you already feel behind.

Sound familiar?

In 2026, “digital marketer” doesn’t mean one role anymore.
It means the entire agency in one tab.

Copywriter.
Strategist.
Videographer.
Social media manager.
Designer.
Editor.
Analyst.

All before lunch.

From experience, the problem isn’t a lack of skill.
It’s the expectation that one person can do everything at once and do it well.

Burnout doesn’t come from hard work.
It comes from an impossible scope.

The marketers who survive aren’t the busiest.
They’re the ones who set boundaries, prioritize ruthlessly, and stop trying to be great at everything every day.

Because marketing isn’t about doing more.
It’s about doing the right things consistently.

Agree?

Most marketers track a ton of metrics.

Very few know which ones actually matter.

Here are 7 worth paying attention to, plus how to improve each one:

(bookmark this)

Our email domains kept getting blacklisted at my agency.

Everyone assumed we were sending too aggressively.

After diving into the data, we found the real issue.

18% bounce rate.
From a "verified" list.

We had bad data.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝗯𝗼𝗱𝘆 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁:

Deals lost during 2-3 weeks of rebuilding.
Hours spent verifying and cleaning lists.
Teams questioning their skills when it's not their fault.
Buying new domains every month.

We thought this was just how outbound worked.

Then I saw a friend's company sending thousands of emails each week.
Same domains. Month after month.
Strong deliverability maintained.

They were using Prospeo.io's data.

SMTP handshakes verify emails before you send.
BounceBan removes risky addresses automatically.
Weekly updates catch job changes that kill domains.

After testing several providers, Prospeo consistently delivered the cleanest data.

Our domains have been going steady for months now.
Data prep time cut by 80%.
Bounce rates dropped from 18% to under 2%.

Clean data isn't just about deliverability.
It's about keeping your team confident and productive.

What hidden costs is bad data creating at your agency?

Brand partnership • Top Ecommerce Email Marketer | $200M+ Generated via Email

6 Copywriting Techniques You Can Leverage for Your Sales Pages:

January hits different for ecommerce founders.

Sales slow down. Costs don't.

You're staring at:
- Depleted inventory
- Q1 expenses stacking up
- Ad costs that won't wait
- Cash tied up in last quarter's orders

The revenue will come. But the bills are here now.

This is the ecommerce cash flow trap.

Most founders either:
→ Wait it out and lose momentum
→ Take on debt with rigid terms
→ Give up equity way too early

That's where Wayflyer comes in.

Capital in 24-48 hours. Non-dilutive. Flexible repayment based on your actual sales.

No giving up ownership. No waiting weeks for bank approvals.

You restock. You scale Q1 ads. You keep the momentum going.

$6B+ already deployed to brands like yours.

If your cash flow is playing catch-up, get your offer today: 

https://lnkd.in/gJsgPrrm


#WayflyerSponsor

I used to think GTM complexity was just part of the job.

Multiple tools. Manual handoffs. Workflows that took hours to build and days to fix.

Last week I tested Apollo's AI Assistant on something different: workflow creation.

Instead of clicking through menus and configuring triggers manually, I just described what I wanted in plain English.

The AI built the multi-step workflow in minutes.

What used to require:
→ A GTM engineer
→ Multiple tools stitched together
→ Hours of setup and testing

Now happens in a single conversation.

Same thing with building prospect lists, creating sequences, or analyzing campaign performance. Describe what you need. The AI handles the execution.

Most teams are still doing GTM the old way. Clicking through settings, connecting triggers, testing each step manually.

Meanwhile, the fastest operators are just talking to the AI.

GTM shouldn't require an engineering degree.
It should require clear thinking and the right tools.

Join the beta waitlist:

https://lnkd.in/gW2ZeEUb

#ApolloAIAssistant #ApolloPartner

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Nathan Baugh

Chase Dimond

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The Battle

Nathan Baugh

Chase Dimond

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Nathan Baugh's LinkedIn Performance

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