Here’s my hard learning experience with testimonials: I’ve gotten weak testimonials because I was asking WEAK questions. "Tell me about your experience?" That's a participation trophy question. You're asking someone to do your marketing homework while they're still in the thank-you-note mindset. Here's what actually works: Ask for the transformation, not the feeling. Skip "how was working together?" and try "what's something you couldn't do six months ago that you can do now?" Feelings are fuzzy. Feelings aren’t facts. BUT results … that is what’s quotable. Make the client the hero. Your client took action. Your client did the work. Or maybe you did most of the work, but that doesn’t really matter. The message to the client you were just the guide helping them down the path. When they tell the story this way, they feel proud sharing it. Nobody wants to admit they got results because someone else did the heavy lifting. Give them permission to be honest. The best testimonial I ever received started with "I was skeptical at first because..." That vulnerability built more trust than any polished five-star review ever could. Testimonials aren't for you. They're for your future client, scrolling at 11pm, wondering if this actually works. So - what's your next testimonial question gonna be?

Here's the simple cold-blooded truth - KINGS DON'T STAY IN POWER WITHOUT QUEENS. If "content is king," why are so many kings broke AF, burned out, and being parade-waved to death? It's because, I believe, the power behind the throne was never the content itself. It’s the actual connection that content creates. You can have the best ideas, the sharpest hooks, the cleanest edits - and still get CRUSHED by a creator with weaker content who has a stronger bond and stronger connective tissue with their audience. In other words: the king gets the credit, but the queen MOVES THE BOARD. The King (Content): Visible Power Think of content as traditionally masculine power in the creator game. It’s OBVIOUS: views, clicks, virality, polish. It leads with DEMONSTRATION: "Look at me / Look how good / smart / successful I am." It’s about TAKING territory: more reach, more followers, more attention. This is why so many creators obsess over tactics, scripts, and formats. They’re trying to build a bigger crown. But here’s the paradox: the more you chase attention as an end goal, the less trustworthy you feel AND become. The king gets louder and more demanding ... but the people quietly stop listening and start turning to look the other way. The Queen (Connection): Invisible Power Connection maps to traditionally feminine power: It’s subtle: trust, safety, resonance, belonging. It leads with invitation: "Come sit with me, girl; let’s figure this shit out together." It’s about depth, not just breadth: fewer people, MUCH MUCH stronger bonds. Connection shows up in: 1) How often you tell the truth when it makes you look less impressive. 2) Whether your audience feels seen by your stories. 3) How you respond when people push back, question you, or share their own experience. The queen’s power is that she can make or break the king without ever raising her voice. Try and tell me I'm wrong. (I'll fight you about it) I'm just sayin' that's been both my personal as well as my professional experience.

A friend of mine @Tommy Gan recently raised some REALLY important questions about the use of AI. A recent Adobe Creators' Toolkit Survey showed that 86% of global content creators (16K sample size) are using some form of AI in their content creation workflows. It's my personal belief that those other 14% might not be telling the truth about using these tools, but that’s a topic for another conversation 😉 Here’s what he asked: "If I put things in to train the AI to be putting out content that isn't really me, will my audience think this is disingenuous? And if I disclose it, will it put them off?" He went further - he's started unfollowing creators he's followed for years (Anik Singal) because they're openly talking about AI clones. He notices himself skimming past posts that feel AI-written. YouTube shorts and reels that look or feel AI-generated get an instant scroll-past. And he asked the question that actually matters: "Is this really a viable path, and will there be longevity in it?" These are VERY serious questions for content creators because he's not wrong ... about most of it. ----------------------------------------------------- Most AI Content IS Garbage. Tommy's Right. 💯 The reason people scroll past AI content is because most of it deserves to be scrolled past. Same generic phrases. Same safe structures. Same "In today's fast-paced world..." energy. It's AI writing as AI. No wonder people tune out. I tune out too. 👉🙄👈 So when he says "putting out content that isn't really me" - I hear him, loud and clear. That IS what happens with most AI tools. You give GPT a topic, it writes something in GPT's voice, and you slap your name on it. Your audience can smell it. 👃 You can smell it. 😷 Everyone can smell it. 🫢 That's the problem I set out to solve with SelfScale ----------------------------------------------------- The Difference Between a Clone 🤖 and a Mirror🪞 Tommy mentioned unfollowing people who are openly talking about creating AI clones. I get it. A clone replaces the creator. It produces content the creator never actually thought, from perspectives they don't hold, using examples they don't have. That feels disingenuous because it IS disingenuous.