I posted my ugliest workspace photo

My laptop was balanced on a stack of books.

I had a cheap light behind my rickety standing desk.

Cables were everywhere, and one was stuck with electric tape to the wall.

It looked terrible, and I almost deleted it.

But I was documenting the behind-the-scenes reality of creating something new, so I hit share anyway.

That crap setup photo got more engagement than my polished productivity tips from the week before.

Comments flooded in from people about their own messy workspaces and their relief that someone who seemingly 'has his s#it together' also works from chaos sometimes.

My content used to get barely any engagement....

Until I started giving fewer f*cks about what others might think or do.

I shared the 'less cool' moments of my life. My flaws, losses, doubts and mistakes.

And my writing took off.

Most creators think they need to share their perfect life highlights. This may work if you're a fashion influencer with enormous lips.

But not if you want to develop a human brand people actually emotionally connect with.

I now share the highlights AND the less glamorous moments.

Of course, I am selective about what I show, and this is not about being an overly vulnerable ninkompoop for the sake of engagement.

I'm showing more of NORMAL ME so people listen, instead of scrolling on by.

Being honest and willing to say or share what few do is my competitive advantage.

This realisation completely transformed my approach to building an audience, and it's what I teach in Online Writing Alchemy.

The course shows you how to mine these authentic, behind-the-scenes moments for content that makes people stop scrolling and start trusting you.

When people see your humanity first, they'll trust your expertise second. When you have that trust, everything else, including influence, income, and impact, flows naturally.

Learn more here.

Alex