Fearless Leadership Is a Lie, Blogging Isn't Dead, & Editing Content Doesn't Have to Hurt... This Is THE LATEST!

I'm a gal who wears her heart on her sleeve, so I just have to get this out there...

Truly and sincerely, I love you. 😍 

I remember when I was first asked (see: "voluntold") if I would become a weekly contributor to THE LATEST, and I felt my stomach immediately drop to the bottom of my body.

Back then, I would have rather had you ask me to write a 3,000-word article than an email newsletter. The idea of hitting "schedule now" on an email that goes out to tens of thousands of people made me want to collapse upon myself like a dying star with anxiety. 

(I'm not dramatic, you're dramatic.)

Months later, I'm so thankful. I consider it a privilege to connect with you all each week. And the success stories, tips, ideas, and questions you reply with after each issue make my day. 

Now, in the spirit of the holiday, let's keep the lovefest going! Here are three articles I love for different reasons -- the first for its radical candor, the second for defending a marketing tactic that's under attack, and the last because... well, I wrote it.

😡 Fearless Leadership Is a Myth That Sets Us Up for Failure

Walking the path of an inbound leader can be immensely rewarding. However, there is often a built-in expectation that leaders of all stripes be fearless, and should never show weakness or concern. They must always be an unwavering force for their people. In this personal story, VP of Services Brie Rangel explains why "fearless leadership" is a toxic myth and what strategies inbound leaders like you can use in tough situations that feel out of your control.

😵 Blogging Isn't Dead for Marketers & Here's the Proof

Marketers are the worst -- and I say this as a marketer. We commit many crimes against humanity, but our worst is our compulsion to prematurely declare any sort of tried-and-true tactic or strategy "dead." SEO, keywords, Twitter -- you name it, we've tried to kill it. Now, marketers are coming for the content marketing staple of blogging. Thankfully, IMPACT Head of Editorial Content Ramona Sukhraj sets the record straight in this article with the data and thought leadership that proves blogging is very much alive and well.

🤕 Editing Marketing Content Doesn't Have to Be So Painful

"I feel like I am never, ever going to get ahead on our content calendar. I'm living in an endless loop of always feeling behind."

"I just want to scream at my bosses who want me to be more efficient, 'You have no idea how bad the quality of work is that I'm dealing with,' but they don't want to hear it."

If this sounds like you, don't panic. I know this pain all too well, which is why I wrote this article which explains the two most common bad content editing habits that contribute to these feelings and the exact editing process you need to follow to overcome them.

⏳ Throwback Thursday

Last week, IMPACT Content Marketing Consultant Kevin Phillips published an incredible guide on getting started with content marketing. (If you haven't read it, it's not only informative, it's really funny.)

Since he'll be my guest on this Friday's episode of the Content Lab podcast to talk about his experience in pulling that guide together, I wanted to use this week's throwback to showcase my first interview with Kevin from last year.  

In this episode, he and I had a candid discussion about overcoming one of the most common fears people have when they get into creating content -- "But I'm not a good writer."

If this sounds familiar, you need to listen to this episode. 

👀 ... When You're All Ears (& Eyes) 

• "6 Elements of Product & Service Videos" (Film School for Marketers, Ep. 2)
• "10X Facebook Ads ROI with Messenger Bots" (Inbound Success, Ep. 77)
• "What's on My (Content) Content Mind, February 2019 Edition" (Content Lab, Ep. 22)

📅  Save The Date!

• TODAY -- Start Creating Quality Marketing Videos on Your Own: IMPACT and Wipster are teaming up to give you the tools to produce top-notch videos in-house and create a video strategy from scratch. Curious about how to do it for yourself? Check out the Oscar-worthy teaser video for the webinar and then reserve your spot.

• Also, TODAY, It's a Valentine's Day Throwdown! On this Thursday's Website Throwdown, Sigstr Director of Marketing Brad Beutler jumps in the ring to help us critique some viewer-submitted websites live on the air. Submissions are closed for this round, but make sure to save your seat to watch live. 
  
  
• I'll see you next Wednesday, CHICAGO! You read that correctly -- on February 20, I will be joining the folks at the Chicago HUG for a hands-on, intensive, super-fun content strategy workshop all about pillar content and topic clusters. Space is very limited for this event, and preference will be given to those who have an inbound certification. So, what are you waiting for? Sign up for my pillar content workshop now!

Whew! That was a big issue, am I right? Well, to reward your commitment to getting to the bottom of this bad boy, here's another Valentine's treat.

I love you!