I Couldn't Find The Words, So I Drew It

The anatomy of a LinkedIn post that got more engagement than anything I've ever shared on the platform + how the Creator's Circle helped me put it together.

Last week, I posted something on LinkedIn for the first time in over two months - aka, for the first time since my son was born.

Before Drew was born, I was in the habit of posting on LinkedIn at least once a week.

After taking two months off, my first post back got more engagement than anything I’ve ever posted on the platform.

Lesson 1: If you share pretty frequently and then take a long break, people will be more likely to read the first thing you share when you come back online, since it will feel like the first time they’ve seen you in a while.

Think of LinkedIn (or your social media platform of choice) like a neighborhood bar.

If you show up every day, people will be less excited to see you each time. They’ll scroll past or skim your content…the same way they’d give you a quick head nod and a vapid, “How’s it going?” at the bar.

And, they might think you’re an addict.

On the other hand, if you show up less frequently, people will be surprised and delighted when they see you. They’ll sit with your content, the same way they’d stop to ask, “No really, how are you??” at the bar.

People were used to seeing me at the corporate happy hour bar that is LinkedIn (not to be confused with the rooftop tiki bar that is Instagram) once a week.

And then I was gone for two months.

So obviously, when I showed up again, everyone was like, “Oh snap, Brian’s back! Where have you been??”

The fact that my LinkedIn post directly addressed where I’ve been (becoming a dad) was another reason for the increased engagement.

Lesson 2: Posts with something easy to digest and congratulate - without readers needing to hit “…more” as they scroll through the feed - will get above average engagement.

Think of all the posts on LinkedIn that simply say, “I’m excited to announce that I just got a new job / promotion / started a business / sold my business / launched a new product / published a book / started a podcast / signed a record deal.”

These often get a ton of likes and short, congratulatory (albeit generic) comments.

I figured my post would get higher than normal engagement given how easy I made it for people to see an exciting update and smash the like button - even if those first two lines were all they read.

Now let’s dive deeper.

This being LinkedIn, I wanted to share about how becoming a dad has changed my relationship to work. I tried repurposing the Endings and Beginnings newsletter I sent, before becoming a dad, but struggled to find the emotional resonance I look for within myself that tells me I’m creating something worth sharing.

Lesson 3: When I try to repurpose things I’ve written in the past, I might hold myself back from creating something that feels authentic to my present experience.

So there I was, struggling to put into words how my relationship to work has shifted since becoming a dad.

What do I do when facing a creative block? When I know roughly what I want to share, but I’m searching for the right way to share it?

I bring my half-baked idea to the Creator’s Circle - a small group of creators within the Third Nature community, who have been gathering on Zoom every Tuesday and Thursday morning since the beginning of 2020 (I guess Creator’s Circle quietly outlived Conscious Conversations / Fridays With Third Nature), to talk about and make progress on their creative pursuits.

In the Creator’s Circle, I shared some messy thoughts on what I was trying to articulate in writing. After no more than 5 minutes of conversation with Circle regulars, Dylan and Kris, a new idea emerged:

I’d draw the shift I experienced instead 🎨

And thus became the birth of the PIEdentity chart:

Lesson 4: A picture’s worth a thousand words. In a digital world slowly becoming overrun with generic, AI-driven content, a hand-drawn picture that opens up your life - taking the question, “No really, how are you??” to a deeper level - will get others to slow down, take it in, and consider how to apply it to their lives.

It was awesome to see comments from people who clearly zoomed in and examined the pie charts. Comments like:

“I love that Phish still makes the list!”

“You had to drop one thing. The Jets was the obvious pick.”

And it was heartwarming to see comments from people with whom the PIEdentity concept deeply resonated. Comments like:

“I love this identity pie. It reminds of similar work I do with coaching clients, but this approach is refreshing and incredibly simple in the best way. It illuminates what matters and how dynamically we can shift in our priorities day to day, month to month, and it’s OK.”

Bonus Lesson / Spicy Take: If you’re using AI to make it faster and easier to write and share content online - the people who read your content will treat it the same way - like it isn’t worth their time either.

When you write for yourself, you think for yourself.

Check out the full post here.

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Creator’s Circle

A lot of what I’ve written, here in this newsletter or on LinkedIn, has been helped along by the Third Nature Creator’s Circle.

People show up with half-baked ideas, bounce them off fellow creators, gather inspiration, and make progress towards sharing those ideas with the world.

In the Creator’s Circle, the expectation is that the ideas you share at the beginning of the circle are not fully fleshed out. You can share what you’ve got so far, ask for feedback, facilitate a quick brainstorming sesh, or just get a gut check from people who are used to exposing their ideas to the masses before you expose yours.

The makeup of the group has evolved over time, and you may be met with a slightly different cast of characters every time you show up.

If you feel like you could use a space like this in your life, we’d love to have you join us! Just head on over to the Creator’s Circle page below and fill out an application.

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Third Nature Summer Camp

In addition to the many workshops and activities we’ve announced so far, this year, we’re excited to offer a unique version of Creator’s Circle at Camp.

I’ve always felt more creative when immersed in nature. Maybe because nature expresses effortless creativity in bringing life to all things - and we are part of nature.

At camp, you’ll have an opportunity to spend an hour of one afternoon testing that hypothesis.

Throw your big idea(s) into the circle and watch them come to life.

If you’re interested in joining us for the weekend, you can learn more and apply below:

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Loved That

Here’s where I enjoy sharing some of the things that made me say (out loud or in my head), an enthusiastic, LOVE THAT, since I sent the last newsletter.

But there's another reason I do this: I believe "LOVED THAT" is a habit worth spreading. Taking the time to reflect on your week, savoring all the things you loved, is another form of gratitude practice that enhances happiness, fulfillment, optimism, and memory.

Do try this at home!

Anyway, here's mine from these last two weeks:

1. The joyous, chaotic, communal, and unforgettable water balloon fight that Ishaan and I hosted in Mount Prospect Park on the Summer Solstice. I loved seeing so many people from Third Nature Summer Camp + a diverse group from all different corners of the city (including 3 local kids who begged their dad to let them join when they saw what was happening) come together to let loose, play, eat Uncrustables, and connect around the value of all of the above. I left soaking wet with a big smile.

2. Lots of quality time with friends in Prospect Park. In addition to the water balloon fight mentioned above, I got in 3 wholesome, picnic-esque gatherings. Shout out to everyone and everything that made these hang outs as lovely as they were…namely:

   1. The Grand Army Plaza Greenmarket + King David Tacos

   2. Faicco’s Italian Sandos (and Ray for bringing them out to Brooklyn)

   3. Trees, aka nature’s A/C

3. Baby Drew getting lots of quality time with both his grandmas. First, Alexis’ mom stayed with us for 3 nights - highlights included lots of tummy time and looking up at the “stars” in his Lovevery Play Gym (not a sponsor of this newsletter) + some of Drew’s first smiles. Then my mom was here for 2 nights while I went upstate to lead a workshop - highlights included (I’m told) lots of staring contests, walks around the neighborhood, and overly animated reading of baby books.

4. Getting to return to Camp Scatico to sit on a mental health panel + lead a workshop during their staff orientation. I was a camper at Scatico from 1997-2004, and a counselor from 2005-2009. After thinking my camp career was over, I ended up returning…

   1. In 2016 to lead the first Startup Island Adult Summer Camp Weekend (which rebranded to Third Nature in 2021).

   2. From 2017-2019 to lead their Counselor in Training retreats to the Dominican Republic.

   3. In 2021 to lead a workshop during counselor orientation + workshops for their Upper Seniors and CIT’s.

2025 will be my 10th year leading adult summer camp weekends, and the 7th adult summer camp weekend I get to host at Scatico. My 8-to-20-year-old selves would be shocked and awed.

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Thanks for reading! This newsletter is being sent later than usual - again, being Drew’s Dad takes up a big piece of my Identity Pie these days. But you can still count on me to hit your inbox every other Monday, before midnight EST 🤓

You can always browse the archive of old but evergreen posts here.

Feel free to reply or comment with any thoughts or ideas that came up as you were reading - or things you’ve experienced recently that you LOVED.

Wishing you a great week ahead :)

With gratitude,

Brian