A few days ago, I sent out an email with the subject line, “A primer on worldbuilding.” I got a reply to that email from Howard Shaw of Chester Toys, a UK toy wholesaler that’s been in business for 60 years. Howard wrote:
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Don’t ask me why, but I just felt like replying….
‘John Bejakovic - never a boring email.
I always learn something or receive a nugget to ponder on.’
Anyways, all the best for the festive season and may 2024 be good to you.
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I followed up with Howard to ask if I could use his comment in an email. He said he would be offended if I didn’t. So here we are.
“Yah great for you and Howard,” I hear you saying. “Quite the love-in. But what about me? Where’s your ‘not boring’ email now? I don’t see anything particularly interesting or valuable so far today.”
True. It’s hard to write something not-boring every day.
I know, because I just spent the past one-and-a-half hours going through the 360+ emails I’ve written since the start of this year.
Most of my past 360+ emails I just scrolled through. I vaguely remembered writing them. They did their purpose at the time. But I certainly didn’t need to reread them.
However, some emails I did reread.
A few of those made me chuckle.
And a very few made me stop and think.
The emails that made me stop and think weren’t the ones that got the most replies and praise from readers.
They weren’t even the ones that made the most sales.
But looking back from today, at the end of the year, these top emails were somehow most interesting to me, as ideas that I should remember or practice, or because they sparked a change in how I how do marketing or how I write.
Over the course of the entire past year, I noted down 14 such top emails.
I then narrowed them down even more to the most not-boring 3, using myself as a sounding board.
In case you are looking for some not-boring emails, you can find them below. Don’t read any of them. Or read just one. Or read all three if you have got the time and stamina.
And like Howard says, all the best for the festive season to you.
How to become in-demand in your niche even if you have no contacts, portfolio, or good sense