Hi Reader,

A couple of weeks ago, I was in a discovery meeting with a potential new client.

We were talking about messaging and website copy. They’re creative and genuinely care about what they do.

“We just want to be us and do good work for our clients. We don’t want to have to put on bright pink suits or anything gimmicky to stand out.”

I have nothing against pink suits (in fact, I love a colour-block outfit), but I understood exactly what they meant.

THE SHOP OR THE MINE?

There’s plenty of advice online telling people to “do this” or “say that” to get results. But literally (if you’re actually buying new clothes) or figuratively, it can feel like shopping for a whole new persona.

And people can sense when something isn’t genuine.

It’s difficult to really connect when someone feels performative or false. In fact, we’re now seeing the pendulum swing so far the other way that people accuse human-written content of being AI-generated because it contains an em-dash or two.

That’s why I prefer The Mine approach.

MY MINING APPROACH

The people I work with are knowledgeable, experienced, and genuinely good at what they do. The challenge isn’t a lack of expertise. It’s communicating that expertise in a way other people can quickly understand and connect with.

Sometimes they get bogged down in technical detail.

Sometimes they sound generic, even though their work is far from it.

So my job is to uncover the gems.

To ask better questions.

To understand their approach, experience, motivations, results, and impact.

Then it’s about polishing those gems so they shine clearly enough for the right people to recognise their value.

Mining takes more work than shopping, but the results are bespoke.

Potential clients get a much clearer sense of:

• who you are
• the results you create
• and what it’s actually like to work with you

MINING IN PRACTICE: THE 60 SECOND PITCH & INTROS WORKSHOP

In July, I’m running a 60 Second Pitch and Intros Workshop, and in many ways it’s a kind of internal mining process.

Rather than jumping straight into: “This is the framework. Fill it in.”

We’ll first focus on:

• your clients
• the situations that lead people to you
• why people choose you
• and what makes your approach memorable

Then we’ll apply it to a framework.

And finally:
​practice.

And practice again.

So by the end of the session, you’ll know what to say and feel more confident saying it.

I can’t wait for the session.

(You can find out more here - there are now only two places left. 60 Second Pitch & Intros Workshop)

Reader, which approach do you see more often right now - The Shop or The Mine?

Best,

Charlotte

NEXT WEEK: PLAYING FOR THE DANCEFLOOR

PROMPT TO TRY THIS WEEK

AI can give recommendations, but humans make the decisions.

I use AI to get feedback on my writing, then I choose whether to take the recommendations or not.

What’s interesting is how different AI tools give different suggestions. So try this:

1. Upload the same piece of writing in 2 different AI tools e.g. ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot and ask for feedback
2. Copy the feedback into the other AI tool with e.g. “This is the feedback ChatGPT gave me. What do you think?”
3. Compare the results
4. Decide which (if any) suggestions you want to make

HOW THE COVER WAS CREATED

I’ve found Copilot is my favourite tool to discuss cover concepts at the moment, and use ChatGPT to generate.

In the cover I wanted to show how mining is harder work, but the payoff is generally higher value. My mind was picturing a rare minerals mine situated next to a swanky cyber boutique

Copilot helped me to build on this idea, and ultimately offered three different composition options:

1. “The Split World Panorama”
2. “The Crossroads of Identity”
3. “The Boutique Window vs. The Excavation Chamber”

I chose "The Split World Panorama" and I really like it - especially the uncanny cyborg assistant offering “identity suits” and the promise of the “best self 1 click away” notice.