Heat waves in November, AI craze, and year end is coming.
The world is going crazy, or is it just me?

And my doctor told me I should tell my boss I do not want any more stress.
I am my own boss. I will change the doctor.

Life is never what it seems, and I am ready to face whatever comes my way.
How about you?

Is stress leading you? Is passion?
How do you chill? Recharge?

In today’s Storyletter:
• Rethink your 2026 marketing plan
• YouTube - Customer journey in Hong-Kong
• Get with the program: Building in Public
• Fun stuff: weekend music and trailers

We love new year resolutions, don’t we?
It is our chance to dream big, have zero accountability, and keep our hopes high.

As I was reviewing a client’s 2025 marketing plan, I noticed that almost nothing really happened. The goals were there, the slides looked beautiful, but the numbers did not match anything.

A few days later, during a call with a new client and their marketing team, I heard a list of great initiatives for next year. What struck me as odd was that almost everyone I talk to has high level goals, must-attend events, or product milestones, but no flywheel.

An easy way to think about marketing is to imagine a sports car.

Generating leads is your tech, your engine, your horsepower.
Brand awareness is how cool the car looks and how aerodynamic it is.

You need both, you want both, and they are connected. Without one, the car will not move fast enough. It will feel clunky, break down, and you will spend most of your time trying to figure out what is wrong.

But what if you build a flywheel?
A method to move faster?

Assume, connect, test, conclude, improve, repeat.

As much as I love brand awareness, start with a clear business goal. Without revenue you are done. Now reverse engineer everything your marketing team does to support that goal.

The second most important thing is that we never do only one thing.
Let me explain.

I gave a talk about customer journey. It was really well received, but that is just one touch point, fifty people. Recording the video has already generated better results than the actual audience in the room.

One talk becomes a video.
A video becomes something to share.
Something to share becomes a content plan.
It becomes something you can resend to people you met at the event.

If you start a podcast, great, everyone has one. But why do you need it? What is the purpose of another talk show? It is good if you see it as your business development plan. I use it to reach potential clients. The podcast is my excuse to connect with people I want to work with.

If everything you do in your marketing plan connects to another point, it will build up, it will improve, and your flywheel will get bigger.

If you want this car to go faster, tell everyone what you are building. It allows more people to join your cause, ask for a test drive, or maybe even buy one of your cars.

Ask yourself:

How much do you want to sell?
Qualified leads, sales, conversion rate. Real business goals.

How many people do you want to meet?
Outreach, connections, referrals. Guess the numbers. It is easier than you think.

How many people will be exposed to your brand?
Anything brand awareness. Film five podcast episodes. Post daily on LinkedIn. Create whatever works for you.

If you talk to five new people a week, your conversions will go up.
Your learnings can become social posts.
Everything is connected.

Do not hope. Build.

I went back to walking. After lunch, about 20 minutes. A podcast or just looking at the buildings and shops around me. My office is in the business district. There is always something happening.

It is the colors, the noise, the smells that help me clear my mind so I can think creatively.

With the help of a new marketing agency, we have been able to redesign some assets and schedule shorts that have been sitting in my folder for over a year, maybe longer.

I am focused on listing all the things I suck at and getting help.

One interesting focus point this week was turning down a cyber company that was not the right fit. Their needs and the stage they are at were not good. Sadly, I also had to turn down two speakers who wanted coaching.

This is a personal growth moment for me, learning to turn things down and focus more on what needs to be done.
2026 is a focus year for me, while 2025 was the obsessed year, the year I went to find my passion again.

With next week’s flight to Chicago and New York, the clock is ticking, and I am happy to share that NY is almost fully booked.

Chicago’s cold is not something I am looking forward to, but with so many good people, two workshops, a filming day, and four business dinners, it will be an epic week.

Some cool things are happening in the Q&A show, the Business Storyteller show. I got a few big names to help share the concept, so I cannot wait to see how the next few shows will look.

As always, feel free to share your thoughts, questions, and comments.

🎧 Music
This week’s newsletter was created while listening to the Menu channel from another coffee shop.
👉 listen

🎬 Legends Don’t Die, They Apologize a Lot
The Legend of Zelda 1989 show is streaming until the movie premieres in 2027.
👉 watch

🍿 Perfect 100 Rating on Rotten Tomatoes
The Last Samurai Standing is supposed to be an epic tale on Netflix.
👉 see