The Substack Success Podcast

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.substackwritersatwork.com [https://www.substackwritersatwork.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_7] I’ve done a variation on this goal-setting session every year since 2018 and am amazed at the results it consistently produces—both in my own life and in the lives of the writers and Substack writers I work with. I want you to walk away from the replay of this session knowing at least one thing: The wins you’ve already achieved—no matter how supposedly small—hold the keys to your future success on Substack. Through neuroscience, practical strategies, and real-world examples from writers in our community, the replay above and Goal Setting Toolkit and Magical Monthly Planner below will take you step-by-step to discover how small wins create sustainable growth. Highlights: * Why celebrating every win actually decreases motivation * The “middle problem” and how to overcome it * A 30-second technique for handling goal-related anxiety * The surprising power of visualizing failure (and when to use it) * How to make goals both ambitious and meaningful Most importantly, we walked through a step-by-step process for setting achievable goals that still stretch your capabilities. The writers who attended left with clear 2025 goals and practical plans for reaching them. For paid subscribers: * Full goal-setting session replay (50 minutes of focused strategy) * Your Goal Setting Toolkit (structured workbook PDF with proven exercises) * The Magical Monthly Planner (the simple system that helped me reach 29,000+ subscribers) * Quarterly check-ins to keep you accountable and supported throughout 2025 (March, June, September, December) * Our first community goal-setting thread below (!) Want to set your 2025 Substack goals in a way that makes them achievable? Upgrade to paid: Here’s to your ambitious, meaningful growth in 2025!

Live Substack Office Hours. Your Substack questions answered. Become a paid subscriber to Substack Writers at Work: www.writersatwork.net/subscribe [http://www.writersatwork.net/subscribe]. Yet another way SW@W is here to help you be your amazing self on Substack. Who? * Me, you, all of us. What? * Your Substack questions answered. When? * I’ll announce the day and time of each live Substack Office Hours every Tuesday in that week’s post. * We’ll also have popup Office Hours. Where? * You’ll be notified in email and the app when we’re live. * We’ll be live in the app. Why? * Imagine: Getting to ask me instead of the bot. * Imagine: No more confusion. No more frustration. No more feeling alone. * Office Hours are for paid subscribers. What are they like? * Watch the replay above to find out! (Great to listen to in the app or on Spotify or Apple. Timestamps are below.) * Basically, come on, be with each other, connect, put your questions in the chat, and I’ll try to get to each one. How? * Join us by upgrading to paid. Substack Office Hours, 11/8/24 [00:04:17] Niches vs. being a generalist—my signature Substack DNA paradigm [00:07:35] Setting up subscriber challenges/workshops [00:09:33] Understanding the activity tab & metrics [00:14:18] Posting frequency - category differences & expectations [00:29:56] Balancing posts vs. notes - social media strategy [00:33:02] Monetization & subscription value [00:39:01] Headers, footers, and banners - design elements [00:42:02] Building audience—reality vs. perception [00:44:21] Custom domains and URLs [00:48:46] Selling/marketing without losing authenticity [00:51:31] Writing calls to action effectively [00:52:26] Community building among Substack Writers at Work subscribers This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.substackwritersatwork.com/subscribe [https://www.substackwritersatwork.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

To upgrade to listen on Apple, go to www.writersatwork.net/subscribe [http://www.writersatwork.net/subscribe]. How to Write an Opinion Piece on Substack On Substack, most people doing any form of personal writing use three modes: * rumination, * narrative, and/or * opinion. Your posts may be a mix of all three, but to write Substacks that draw readers and create engagement, we need to know which mode we’re in and how each works. Opinion writing may be one of the hardest: * How do we do it without being moralizing, reactionary, or trite? * How do we establish authority? * How do we write something important to readers, not just ourselves? By the end of this workshop, you’ll know the four keys to opinion writing online:  * The difference between a hot take, a think piece, an opinion piece, and an op-ed * The ideal structure for an opinion piece that doesn’t come out dull, sloppy, or disjointed or harangue the reader—brought to us by the great * How publishing an opinion piece on Substack can perhaps take a different approach than writing an op-ed for a mainstream media outlet * The 10 keys to a successful op-ed This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.substackwritersatwork.com/subscribe [https://www.substackwritersatwork.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.substackwritersatwork.com [https://www.substackwritersatwork.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_7] Wow! This workshop from the Substack data expert Amanda Hinton is packed with ways to use the data on your Substack dashboard to strategize your Substack growth. 01:39 Amanda's Journey and Approach to Data 04:34 Workshop Goals 06:00 Understanding Substack Data and Metrics 09:40 Analyzing Newsletter Performance 11:19 Addressing Data Anomalies and Subscriber Insights 14:42 Navigating the Substack Dashboard 27:44 Subscriber Page and Activity Ratings 32:39 Navigating Subscriber Metrics 33:44 Filtering and Analyzing Reader Engagement 34:58 Understanding Post Views and Shares 36:30 Email Segmenting and Targeting 37:34 Practical Demonstration of Filters 42:13 Identifying Key Reader Behaviors 50:03 Tracking Subscriber Actions 55:43 Final Tips and Resources

Join the Substack Writers at Work membership: For people who are ready to get serious about their success on Substack. www.writersatwork.net [http://www.writersatwork.net] I have such a treat for you. Today, my guest is the one and only Lucy Werner [https://substack.com/profile/8820741-lucy-werner]. She is the mastermind behind the Substack Hype Yourself [https://hypeyourself.substack.com/], which is also the title of one of her bestselling books. I’m so happy to bring you this lightning-quick episode in which we look at why it’s okay to hype yourself and your Substack. Hype Yourself is one of the top 50 global business newsletters. With over 20 years of communications experience, she’s taught hundreds of entrepreneurs through workshops and courses for creative spaces, like The Futur, Bayes Business School, and the University of Arts London. She’s the author of two bestselling books, Hype Yourself [https://amzn.to/4h7vrnM] and Brand Yourself [https://amzn.to/3YespFJ], and has been featured in the Alt Marketing Power 100, The Dots Rising Stars, and Start Up Magazine’s Female Founders to Watch. Please enjoy my interview with the great Lucy Werner. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.substackwritersatwork.com/subscribe [https://www.substackwritersatwork.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]