KO#1
Welcome to the 1st issue of the Knockout Your Sunday Scaries Newsletter, an every-other-week newsletter by me, Kristy Olinger, with a focus on workplace communication and self-development. I’m glad you’re here. Was this forwarded to you? Get yours: Subscribe here
Sunday, January 14, 2024
Hi there,
Here’s the deal. I’ve had an email list for years. I’ve been sporadic at best in emailing you and my approach was to deliver a very small ‘thought starter’ on Monday mornings to help you start the week off right. My philosophy has been “nobody has time to read a newsletter, so I’ll do something super small”. But what I’ve come to realize is that most of you have found me from Instagram or TikTok. While I LOVE creating content for you there, only a portion of what I create reaches you. It would be helpful for you to have a predictable place that you can go to see what you missed and discover new ideas. Then, over time, it will become a catalog to reference.
There was another ‘ah ha’ moment as I continued to think about this. I’ve been sending emails on Monday mornings because I love Mondays. But YOU don’t love Mondays. And Monday morning is too late because most of you are experiencing the Sunday scaries. Going forward, you can expect a Sunday email from me every other week (because weekly is too much, but monthly is not enough).
Side note: It didn’t dawn on me until the day before publishing this that most of you won’t have the Sunday Scaries today, at least if you’re in corporate in the United States, you probably have off tomorrow for Martin Luther King Day. Doh! That’s ok - I’m putting it out anyway and you can save it for your Monday Morbs this week. Also… morbs is a real word, it’s coming back and I’m here for it.
I would never be wearing high heels in real life… otherwise this is a completely accurate rendering.
As I came to these decisions, this cartoon visual kept popping up in my head. It’s me, alone on an island called ‘I love Mondays’ island. All of you are in the water panicked and treading. I would love for this newsletter to be your life raft to join me in a place where work is easier and more enjoyable.
Hit reply and say ‘hi’ - wether you’re an OG subscriber or just stumbled across this, I would love to hear from you. What do YOU want from a newsletter like this? How can I help you banish your Sunday scaries?
Best of 2023 List
For this first newsletter, given it’s January, let’s recap the most popular content from 2023.
How to Sound Interesting and Confident - PODCAST EPISODE
In this episode of The Opposite of Small Talk I explain the elements of your voice and how to use them to sound interesting and confident. It is the most downloaded episode of all time and I love that this got so much traction because improving your vocal profile is something that nobody thinks about but that makes a huge difference. People make unconscious judgements about others based on the sound of their voice. When you know what to change, it will change how people perceive you. QUICK TIP: To sound confident slow your rate of speech and end sentences on a downward pitch.
How to Hold People Accountable Without Being a Jerk - INSTAGRAM REEL
When I see a video being saved a lot, that tells me you want to reference it later and use it. It’s the most important metric that I have access to. This video has 31,693 saves (+ 1.3M views, 45K likes, 7K shares, and 376 comments). Wow!
This video blew up in the best and worst ways. I learned that my booking systems were not ready to scale - many of you had to wait over a week for a reply and then it created a big wait list for 1:1 consulting. Really good problem and it’s now resolved. A portion of people felt like the script and skit was too passive aggressive. With some commenters it prompted great dialog about levels of assertiveness and what is appropriate based on different scenarios. Other commenters were downright MEAN. I’ve built a thick skin through the years of creating content, but this one tested me and you can tell if you scroll the comments.
28 Questions to Ask Your Boss in One-on-ones - LINKEDIN POST
This post of an HBR Article was the most viewed and had the most comments of any of my LinkedIn posts in 2023. It was so simple that it surprised me until I realized that many people struggle with 1:1 meetings. It prompted me to create a variety of videos like 1:1 Meeting Agenda, 1:1 Meeting Template, and Questions to Ask. What are your pain points with 1:1 meetings? Let me know because I predict more 1:1 meeting content in 2024.
What I’m Reading Profit First, by Mike Michalowicz
January feels like the right timing to kick the tires on my business model and finances. I’m about halfway through and while I can appreciate the concept, I’m not sure if I’m going to follow the process which requires setting up 6+ different bank accounts for your business (the digital equivalent of keeping money in separate envelopes).
I’m obsessed with the word miscellany. I’ve re-discovered it recently in the email newsletter of my podcast guest and time management expert Laura Vanderkam and I’m swiping it as my own. The dictionary definition is ‘a group or collection of different items; a mixture’. That’s exactly what this recurring segment is intended for.
The 52 Business Books I read in 2023 (if Anyone’s interested) - Todd Cherches
Speaking of readers being leaders… Todd Cherches is a communication thought leader and very tall friend of mine. He reads a ton of business books and every year he shares his list. On this year’s list I found some new ones that I’m excited to check out, some books published by friends, and some past favorites.
Para-Friendship and Office Humor
Have you ever followed someone for awhile and you’ve never met but feel like you know them? That’s how I feel about Ashley Herd of Manager Method. There’s actually a name for this, it’s called a para-friendship. ANYWAY… I subscribe to her emails and she dropped the below gem in this week’s send that I’m taking as confirmation that if we did know each other IRL, we would totally be friends.
Pam ("The Office"): It's performance review day, company-wide. Last year, my performance review started with Michael asking me what my hopes and dreams were and it ended with him telling me he could bench press 190 pounds. So, I don't really know what to expect.
Select Events & Programs
CHOOSE YOUR LIFE IN 2024: Gain the confidence to life the life you want with this 30 day digital challenge that starts tomorrow! It’s like having a life coach in your pocket. If personal growth is your thing, this is the program for you. Learn more
You made it to the end! Congrats & thanks. ❤️ Have a great two weeks.
Stay Curious,
Kristy
P.S. This format is 1000% inspired by (or stolen from?) Ann Handley who has been doing this for a hot minute. Her newsletter Total ANNARCHY is on issue #153. In this digital age, creators often reimagine things from people who are crushing it out there - it happens to my videos all the time. I love to see it IF they acknowledge/tag/mention me when they post. So this is my mention - find Ann’s newsletter HERE.
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