How to start writing for sales

So last friday at midnight we hit 10k subscribers on the stupidpreneur newsletter and I couldn’t be more happy.

It’s kinda a big dream come true for me that I could write to you and make a difference.

So thank you for being here!

I had roughly 1800 people reading my stuff in March. If it wasn’t for Shali, my girlfriend you probably wouldn’t be even hear.

She is the one who runs ads for the newsletter that brought us together and I’m so glad she is the one handles this.

Now to the point of this email, guess who used to hate Monday mornings?

Yep, that was me. Not even that long ago — I’m talking about this February, staring out of my home office while at GUVI, where I’d somehow become Head of Brand.

None of this is to trash GUVI (good folks, learned a ton), but let’s be real: at some point, I stopped pretending those meetings did anything but drain the hell out of me.

Fast forward to now, writing this with the same kind of energy people have after quitting a bad relationship. Now, I genuinely look forward to Mondays. In fact, every day feels like a new draft.

It didn’t start glamorous. When I quit, people thought I'd lost my mind. “Bro, it’s a stable gig! You’re nuts.” Maybe I was.

But I was tired of seeing my writing get stuck in the ‘approval matrix’. If you know the feeling, you know exactly what I mean.

I stopped writing to impress. Started writing to provoke. To connect. And to sell.

Not in the sleazy, "buy-this-or-you’re-a-loser" way.

Nah.

I realized, you write to excite people. But you sell to get them results.

That’s the difference.

So many founders and marketers get it upside down. They sound like robots spitting out features, or they ramble on about how “we care deeply about our customers” (nobody believes that line anymore).

Here’s the hard truth most folks won’t tell you.

I learned that on the other side of a dozen failed newsletters and way too many cringe-inducing landing pages. It stings when your “big idea” flops.

But those faceplants taught me something most courses forget to mention: People don’t need more content. They’re drowning in it already.

What they want is a jolt of energy. A sense that you get what keeps them up at night. That you’ve been through it, too and if you have a shortcut or a trick that actually adds cash to their pocket or hours to their day, they’ll pay attention.

The magic? It’s in your copy. But copy that’s written like a conversation, not a corporate memo. Copy that actually moves people from “meh” to “hell yes.”

If you’re stuck right now maybe pumping out posts that get polite likes but zero traction, try this:

Get specific about the pain. Get honest about what worked for you (don’t sugarcoat it if you screwed up along the way, people sniff out bullshit).

Then, show them the fastest route you’ve found.

Tell stories, not just stats. Drop a little attitude if that’s what it takes. But — most importantly — ship the damn thing.

No draft saves the world sitting in your Docs folder.

Since I started showing up as myself, a funny thing happened. People replied to my emails. Clients asked real questions. Sales? Let’s just say I’m writing this after closing a project that paid more than my last month at GUVI.

Was it scary as hell to make the leap? Yeah. Would I do it again? In a heartbeat.

So, if you needed a kick in the pants today: Treat your next email like a favor to your past self. The one who played it safe. Write something that would’ve snapped you out of autopilot.

That’s how you go from writing for applause…to writing for independence.

If you’re ready to stop blending in and start cashing in, hit reply. Let me know where you’re stuck. I’ll send you my own go-to framework for free for turning bored readers into bankable buyers. 

Talk soon,
— Shashank

P.S.

If you are looking for one on one coaching for your writing reply with, “writing”.

I’m currently looking to work with 3 people to get their newsletter writing off the ground. 

There is a one time fee of $499 for a period of 3 months where we will do a lot of exercises and one on one calls to help you develop your unique voice.

I’ll help you build a consistent writing habit, and create content that actually connects with your audience.