• Think critically
• Nurture curiosity
• Save and prep taxes
• Sustain relationships
• Have difficult convos
• Navigate mental health
Yet they teach how to:
• Differentiate dinosaurs
• Memorize the periodic table
• Make paper snowflakes
School is an astonishing failure of modern society.
We're taught about dinosaurs before learning how to function as people.
Thread: Life lessons I wish school taught all of us.
• Think critically
• Nurture curiosity
• Save and prep taxes
• Sustain relationships
• Have difficult convos
• Navigate mental health
Yet they teach how to:
• Differentiate dinosaurs
• Memorize the periodic table
• Make paper snowflakes
1. Awareness: Those in power don't realize how bad it is.
2. Priorities: It's not a pressing issue. Voters care about the cost of education—not enough about WHAT is taught.
3. What to do: Shout to the politicians and educators in power.
These are the ones on my mind lately. This list could be 1,000 items long. Add yours to the thread.
Here we go.
Assuming bad intent.
One of the highest ROI things we can teach our children:
Start by assuming good intent: Train your reflex to ask questions before making assumptions.
Always lead with curiosity—never critique.
So, now I pretend my problems are those of others. It works.
I project my circumstances onto a friend and act out being coldly rational to get them from A to Z.
A rule of thumb: Move slowly when choosing what to focus on. But move very quickly once you've decided.
Move slow then fast.
Reserve 15 minutes per week to send appreciation emails to anyone you really enjoyed chatting with.
If you’re specific about why you appreciated the chat—instead of just saying "Great chatting!"—it resonates much deeper.
• Mirror talking speed
• Avoid gossip + negativity
• Know that a real smile includes the eyes
• Nail first impressions because they're so hard to reverse
• In convo, ask questions to help people think more deeply about what they're saying
• Instead of What's new?, I ask "What can't you get off your mind lately?"
• How's work? → What's the most exciting thing you could be doing?
I ask questions that get people to focus on their enthusiasm. No one gets offended.
• Find a boss who loves to mentor
• Join a cohort-based online class
• Find similar minds on Twitter and form a peer group
Mentorship + friendship turn advice into action.
Genuine experts realize the complexity/nuance of their craft, and they don’t feel comfortable claiming to be authorities.
1. Bias toward taking action. No lazy deferring.
2. Always looking to prove themselves wrong.
3. Regularly reassess their priorities without any fear of changing them.
Key: They balance progress with indulging curiosity.
Judge your years by how much you cashed in on that investment.
Being teachable = accepting when you’re wrong.
As adults, we suddenly forget we're still students. We must continue to seek discussion with people who'll tell us when we’re wrong.
Your teachers are now the strangers around you.
On the left are qualities they say can likely be improved with training.
On the right are red flags.
(I disagree with the ranking of "self-awareness.")
School is a glorified babysitting service for people who aren't yet self-sufficient.
Society critically needs this—but to an extent.
It's very dangerous when your babysitter squashes your curiosity, passion, and drive for nearly everything.
See past threads over here: @julian
More from Julian Shapiro
THREAD: I've helped 200+ startups grow their newsletters.
Email marketing tactics 👇
People reflexively ignore welcome emails after signup.
• Delay welcome emails by 45min to bypass this reflex
• Send the email from a person—not the business. Julian Shapiro is more human than https://t.co/8y68CQzBOR
• Use unique subjects:
👎 Welcome
👍 Grammerly = Bye Typos
Make it seamless to refer
• Remind readers at the end of each issue that they can refer others. Include a link.
• Have a web version of every issue so they can be easily shared outside of email
• Consider rewards: Send a monthly bonus issue for referring 5 friends
SEO can be a vanity metric if it doesn't convert to leads.
• Offer readers quizzes to identify the best products for them. Require an email to see results.
• Create Buyer's Guides: Make PDFs with nice visuals to help readers learn skills. Require an email.
When pitching your newsletter on your site:
• Show a sample issue on the page. Prove how high quality your content is.
• Give them control over how often they get emailed. Some want weekly, but others REALLY want monthly. High volume can burn you and your readers out.
Email marketing tactics 👇
People reflexively ignore welcome emails after signup.
• Delay welcome emails by 45min to bypass this reflex
• Send the email from a person—not the business. Julian Shapiro is more human than https://t.co/8y68CQzBOR
• Use unique subjects:
👎 Welcome
👍 Grammerly = Bye Typos
Make it seamless to refer
• Remind readers at the end of each issue that they can refer others. Include a link.
• Have a web version of every issue so they can be easily shared outside of email
• Consider rewards: Send a monthly bonus issue for referring 5 friends
SEO can be a vanity metric if it doesn't convert to leads.
• Offer readers quizzes to identify the best products for them. Require an email to see results.
• Create Buyer's Guides: Make PDFs with nice visuals to help readers learn skills. Require an email.
When pitching your newsletter on your site:
• Show a sample issue on the page. Prove how high quality your content is.
• Give them control over how often they get emailed. Some want weekly, but others REALLY want monthly. High volume can burn you and your readers out.
More from Education
New from me:
I’m launching my Forecasting For SEO course next month.
It’s everything I’ve learned, tried and tested about SEO forecasting.
The course: https://t.co/bovuIns9OZ
Following along 👇
Why forecasting?
Last year I launched https://t.co/I6osuvrGAK to provide reliable forecasts to SEO teams.
It went crazy.
I also noticed an appetite for learning more about forecasting and reached out on Twitter to gauge interest:
The interest encouraged me to make a start...
I’ve also been inspired by what others are doing: @tom_hirst, @dvassallo and @azarchick 👏👏
And their guts to be build so openly in public.
So here goes it...
In the last 2 years I’ve only written 3 blog posts on my site.
- Probabilistic thinking in SEO
- Rethinking technical SEO audits
- How to deliver better SEO strategies.
I only write when I feel like I’ve got something to say.
With forecasting, I’ve got something to say. 💭
There are mixed feelings about forecasting in the SEO industry.
Uncertainty is everywhere. Algorithm updates impacting rankings, economic challenges impacting demand.
It’s difficult. 😩
I’m launching my Forecasting For SEO course next month.
It’s everything I’ve learned, tried and tested about SEO forecasting.
The course: https://t.co/bovuIns9OZ
Following along 👇
Why forecasting?
Last year I launched https://t.co/I6osuvrGAK to provide reliable forecasts to SEO teams.
It went crazy.
I also noticed an appetite for learning more about forecasting and reached out on Twitter to gauge interest:
The interest encouraged me to make a start...
I’ve also been inspired by what others are doing: @tom_hirst, @dvassallo and @azarchick 👏👏
And their guts to be build so openly in public.
So here goes it...
In the last 2 years I’ve only written 3 blog posts on my site.
- Probabilistic thinking in SEO
- Rethinking technical SEO audits
- How to deliver better SEO strategies.
I only write when I feel like I’ve got something to say.
With forecasting, I’ve got something to say. 💭
There are mixed feelings about forecasting in the SEO industry.
Uncertainty is everywhere. Algorithm updates impacting rankings, economic challenges impacting demand.
It’s difficult. 😩
Trending news of The Rock's daughter Simone Johnson's announcing her new Stage Name is breaking our Versus tool because "Wrestling Name" isn't in our database!
Here's the most useful #Factualist comparison pages #Thread 🧵
What is the difference between “pseudonym” and “stage name?”
Pseudonym means “a fictitious name (more literally, a false name), as those used by writers and movie stars,” while stage name is “the pseudonym of an entertainer.”
https://t.co/hT5XPkTepy #english #wiki #wikidiff
People also found this comparison helpful:
Alias #versus Stage Name: What’s the difference?
Alias means “another name; an assumed name,” while stage name means “the pseudonym of an entertainer.”
https://t.co/Kf7uVKekMd #Etymology #words
Another common #question:
What is the difference between “alias” and “pseudonym?”
As nouns alias means “another name; an assumed name,” while pseudonym means “a fictitious name (more literally, a false name), as those used by writers and movie
Here is a very basic #comparison: "Name versus Stage Name"
As #nouns, the difference is that name means “any nounal word or phrase which indicates a particular person, place, class, or thing,” but stage name means “the pseudonym of an
Here's the most useful #Factualist comparison pages #Thread 🧵
What is the difference between “pseudonym” and “stage name?”
Pseudonym means “a fictitious name (more literally, a false name), as those used by writers and movie stars,” while stage name is “the pseudonym of an entertainer.”
https://t.co/hT5XPkTepy #english #wiki #wikidiff
People also found this comparison helpful:
Alias #versus Stage Name: What’s the difference?
Alias means “another name; an assumed name,” while stage name means “the pseudonym of an entertainer.”
https://t.co/Kf7uVKekMd #Etymology #words
Another common #question:
What is the difference between “alias” and “pseudonym?”
As nouns alias means “another name; an assumed name,” while pseudonym means “a fictitious name (more literally, a false name), as those used by writers and movie
Here is a very basic #comparison: "Name versus Stage Name"
As #nouns, the difference is that name means “any nounal word or phrase which indicates a particular person, place, class, or thing,” but stage name means “the pseudonym of an
The outrage is not that she fit better. The outrage is that she stated very firmly on national television with no caveat, that there are no conditions not improved by exercise. Many people with viral sequelae have been saying for years that exercise has made them more disabled 1/
And the new draft NICE guidelines for ME/CFS which often has a viral onset specifically say that ME/CFS patients shouldn't do graded exercise. Clare is fully aware of this but still made a sweeping and very firm statement that all conditions are improved by exercise. This 2/
was an active dismissal of the lived experience of hundreds of thousands of patients with viral sequelae. Yes, exercise does help so many conditions. Yes, a very small number of people with an ME/CFS diagnosis are helped by exercise. But the vast majority of people with ME, a 3/
a quintessential post-viral condition, are made worse by exercise. Many have been left wheelchair dependent of bedbound by graded exercise therapy when they could walk before. To dismiss the lived experience of these patients with such a sweeping statement is unethical and 4/
unsafe. Clare has every right to her lived experience. But she can't, and you can't justifiably speak out on favour of listening to lived experience but cherry pick the lived experiences you are going to listen to. Why are the lived experiences of most people with ME dismissed?
Why is it such a source of collective outrage that a person with fatigue following a viral illness gets better?https://t.co/5lcwQBPLU5
— Trisha Greenhalgh \U0001f637 #CovidIsAirborne (@trishgreenhalgh) January 30, 2021
And the new draft NICE guidelines for ME/CFS which often has a viral onset specifically say that ME/CFS patients shouldn't do graded exercise. Clare is fully aware of this but still made a sweeping and very firm statement that all conditions are improved by exercise. This 2/
was an active dismissal of the lived experience of hundreds of thousands of patients with viral sequelae. Yes, exercise does help so many conditions. Yes, a very small number of people with an ME/CFS diagnosis are helped by exercise. But the vast majority of people with ME, a 3/
a quintessential post-viral condition, are made worse by exercise. Many have been left wheelchair dependent of bedbound by graded exercise therapy when they could walk before. To dismiss the lived experience of these patients with such a sweeping statement is unethical and 4/
unsafe. Clare has every right to her lived experience. But she can't, and you can't justifiably speak out on favour of listening to lived experience but cherry pick the lived experiences you are going to listen to. Why are the lived experiences of most people with ME dismissed?
