I’ve talked a little bit about my next two projects in my reading newsletter and in the occasional interview, but for those of you who don’t know, I am working a two new books: one will be a Kindle Single and the other, a full length book. As many of you have inquired and requested, the full length book will be about stoicism. I’m really excited about it and am nearing the light at the end of the tunnel on it.

I’m also working on another project which will come out first that I could use your help on. A few months ago, an article I wrote for Fast Company about growth hacking was optioned into an ebook for Portfolio/Penguin. Since many of my readers are involved in marketing, looking for jobs in marketing, or trying to launch or sell a product, I have a simple question: What are you having trouble with? What are you looking to learn about marketing and promoting? What would you like to hear from me?*

A word of warning before you answer. This is going to be a short ebook (less than 15,000 words) and it is about a specific approach to marketing, so I only have so much room. I am exploring how startup methodology has changed the marketing game forever. Within that framework, however, I want to address the practical needs or problems you are having. My main aim is to prevent people from picking up a lot of the bad habits and bad assumptions of traditional marketing, so this book will be much more about mindset rather than tactics.

Anyway, very curious to hear from all of you.

*This is itself a growth hacking trick. You don’t get to product market fit without asking questions from prospective customers. 

We want things to happen. We know what we need to do solve our problems or overcome our obstacles. We’ve got it all figured out. And then we mostly proceed to sit and do nothing.

And the most insidious and disingenuous part is that when we check in on our “progress,” weeks or months later, we’re shocked—SHOCKED—that we haven’t made any.

Of course our wordcount, usercount, cashflow, or understanding are exactly the same. Of course we’re still stuck. We didn’t do shit.

This isn’t to say it’s all about throwing yourself against a wall. Thinking is an action tooand if done right, waiting can be as well. So long as you’re pressing forward, alternating between ideas and exertion until you finally break through.

The breakthrough isn’t coming because you sat back and thought about it a lot. It’s coming because you got up and then stayed at it. Because you took risks and tried things. Because you persisted (and resisted) the impulse to give up.

Let’s ask an honest question: could you be doing more? You probably could, there’s always more. At minimum, you could be trying harder. You might have gotten started, but your full effort isn’t in it—and that shows.

Is that going to get you the results you want? Obviously not.

So get moving. Give it everything.

I’ve wanted to put something like this together for a long time and so when AMP Energy’s PowerDash proposed sponsoring the idea, I jumped on it. What follows is a selected piece from Chapter II in Trust Me I’m Lying, adapted into a slideshare presentation. It’s a how to for one of the more controversial topics of the book “Trading Up the Chain”–essentially, how to create and influence the news with very little effort. If you remember from the book, this tactic can be used for good (a friend’s charity is my first example) or for bad (I talk about Terry Jones and his disgusting media stunts as well). In any case, it’s something you want to understand, whether you’re in marketing or simply a consumer.

For those of you who have read the book already, enjoy and hopefully show it to your friends. For those of you who haven’t, hopefully this gives you a taste of the book.

Why am I doing this now? The big news is that the Revised & Expanded paperback of Trust Me I’m Lying will be coming out in mid-June and the book is now available for preorder. The paperback includes an updated preface/introduction from me, three case studies, a selection of articles I’ve written and some selected editing and improvements to the main text. It’s worth checking out (plus it’s cheaper).

Without further delay, here is the Slideshare:

Thanks again for AMP Energy and their app AMP Energy PowerDash for sponsoring this and to Mohnish Soundararajan for designing it.