One thing you have omitted is your own "why". Why try to double your subscribership? Is that significant? Why does community engagement matter, more than just putting your thoughts out in the aether for the sake of writing? This project clearly takes a lot of (very appreciated!) work; why is it important to you? What's YOUR motivation?
Doubling was arbitrary and perhaps not aligned with SMART goals. I hope that reaching a larger audience will result in more engagement in the comments section, thereby creating a better community feeling. Right now, I feel like I'm broadcasting to the void and think you (and the few others who comment) deserve more conversation and voices.
I think things like this tend to grow organically through people's networks, exponentially. Wouldn't surprise me to see the rate of growth increasing over time.
That said, I think your experiment was a good one which yielded both immediate results and valuable information for how to promote better growth over time.
I have enjoyed your effort and really appreciated the increased engagement with me (and my newsletter). An indirect measure of your effort is the impact it has had on other writers. I needed reenergizing push and you provided that. Also, I think there is more that we can do as a community if economic writers to work together and support each others work. Let’s talk when we meet in St. Louis, I think we are under utilizing our combined power.
I let myself believe that I was "too busy" to be engaged, but I know that isn't true. I'm going to be more intentional about setting time aside during the semester to make sure I'm catching up with the community if I am falling behind. I've really enjoyed the conversations we've had over the past few weeks.
One thing you have omitted is your own "why". Why try to double your subscribership? Is that significant? Why does community engagement matter, more than just putting your thoughts out in the aether for the sake of writing? This project clearly takes a lot of (very appreciated!) work; why is it important to you? What's YOUR motivation?
Doubling was arbitrary and perhaps not aligned with SMART goals. I hope that reaching a larger audience will result in more engagement in the comments section, thereby creating a better community feeling. Right now, I feel like I'm broadcasting to the void and think you (and the few others who comment) deserve more conversation and voices.
I think things like this tend to grow organically through people's networks, exponentially. Wouldn't surprise me to see the rate of growth increasing over time.
That said, I think your experiment was a good one which yielded both immediate results and valuable information for how to promote better growth over time.
I was really happy with the things that came up in the first week. I think they'll help me pitch the newsletter a lot better.
I skipped over a lot of things because it felt like it didn't really add much value.
I have enjoyed your effort and really appreciated the increased engagement with me (and my newsletter). An indirect measure of your effort is the impact it has had on other writers. I needed reenergizing push and you provided that. Also, I think there is more that we can do as a community if economic writers to work together and support each others work. Let’s talk when we meet in St. Louis, I think we are under utilizing our combined power.
I let myself believe that I was "too busy" to be engaged, but I know that isn't true. I'm going to be more intentional about setting time aside during the semester to make sure I'm catching up with the community if I am falling behind. I've really enjoyed the conversations we've had over the past few weeks.
Jadrian: your transparency and passion for educating the world about economics are winners! I think your influence will continue to grow.