Effectively Writing in 2024

I’ve often been praised as a confident public speaker, but writing? That used to terrify me. So, I set a personal challenge for 2024: to embrace writing and show up consistently. I didn’t just dip my toes—I dove in. This year, I wrote 79,879 words (yes, I counted). My LinkedIn posts reached 5 million impressions, with 90% of those coming in the last 90 days when I committed to daily posting. And this newsletter? It landed in 134.5k inboxes worldwide. Along the way, I uncovered wins, faced challenges, and gained clarity about what’s next.

The biggest win? Writing no longer scares me. In fact, I now look forward to it. More importantly, this journey forced me to “walk the talk” and apply the principles I regularly share here. That’s harder than it sounds, but it proved something crucial: these ideas actually work.

Of course, not everything went smoothly. I didn’t do much public speaking, which I miss [Side Note: you can always book me to speak to your team—just reply to this email]. And while writing feels natural now, the next challenge terrifies me: recording myself. Podcasts, videos… they’re coming in 2025, but even admitting this makes me anxious.

After a year of so much writing, the best way to start reflecting is by sharing what resonated most with you all. Here are the top 5 newsletter articles, most-clicked links, and LinkedIn posts from 2024. (Next week, we’ll be back to this newsletter’s regular structure).

Top 5 Newsletter Posts (by Open Rates)

1. Effectively Leaving Amazon (May 24th): Reflections on eight transformative years and seven lessons learned.

2. Effective at Quitting While Ahead (June 7th): Recognizing when to let go to make space for better opportunities.

3. Effective at Time-Boxing (Jun 14th): The ultimate productivity technique for focus and efficiency.

4. Effective Corporate Rizz (Oct 11th): Unlocking charisma as a professional superpower.

5. Effective with Money (Nov 15th): Whether we like to admit it or not, money is a key factor for our professional development. I discussed: automation, mindful spending, and building financial resilience.

Top 5 Most-Clicked Links

1. Prospect Theory: Why we fear losses more than we value gains (and how this shapes our decisions).

2. The 20% Rule: Fulfillment peaks when we spend 20% of our time on passion projects, according to the Mayo Clinic.

3. The Jar Theory: A 3-minute classic from my in-person training sessions.

4. Amazon's mechanisms: How inputs turn into outputs at one of the world’s most effective companies.

5. Disable Outlook Alerts: Turn off pop-up notifications and eliminate your biggest digital distraction.

Top 5 LinkedIn Posts (Inspired by Quotes)

1. "Surround yourself with people who fight for you in rooms you aren't in"

2. "Growth is painful. Change is painful. But there's nothing as painful as staying stuck somewhere you don't belong." - Mandy Hale.

3. "Stop doubting yourself. Growth happens when you do things you're not qualified for." - Steven Bartlett.

4. "Kindness is a language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see." - Mark Twain.

5. "Your manager has more impact on your health than your doctor." - Jim Clifton.

I’ve been told many times that a career isn’t a straight line. 2024 personally felt like a sharp curve - a thrilling, sometimes uncomfortable shift away from my usual trajectory. And guess what? I’m loving it. The road ahead looks less predictable, but far more interesting. In 2025, I’ll keep writing, start recording (gulp!), and most importantly, keep showing up for you.

Thank you for being part of this journey. Your support, encouragement, and feedback mean more than I can express. Let’s continue building something meaningful - together.

Cheers to a fresh start!

Jorge Luis Pando