Brace yourself—Summer is Coming
Code.Lead.Succeed is changing
Hey Readers!
The summer is here, and some changes are coming to the newsletter.
This post is to get you up to speed!
Today in 5 minutes or less
→ I will tell you about my strategy for the rest of 2024
→ What content can you expect (and where)
→ Why I’m ”soft leaving” Substack
Before we start
The Summer of Growth is here
If you’re a busy Engineering Manager interested in building efficient systems for yourself and your teams:
I offer a FREE coaching session for you to kickstart this summer.
Reply to this email, DM me “SUMMER” on LinkedIn or contact me on my website to learn more today.
The 2024 Strategy
You’ve probably noticed that I’m not as active on Substack as before.
It’s because I spent last month creating my website, where I plan to post my long-form content. It gives me more freedom and options than Substack. I also like to own my platform.
I’m also switching focus from writing for fun to growing my coaching business. This means intentionally approaching what I post and where the content is published. Owning a platform gives me more ways to deliver better content.
I’ll stay active on LinkedIn as I have over the last year because I love the platform and the friends I made there.
Code.Lead.Succeed will not be gone. I keep the newsletter as my personal space. I’ll keep posting a monthly article about the philosophy of Software Engineering and more personal updates.
DarSadowski.com
My website will be dedicated to Engineering Leadership (including a new Newsletter)
I considered exporting the list of subscribers but decided against it.
I respect your privacy and your interests. You signed up for specific content on my substack. If you’re interested in Engineering Leadership, I invite you to join the new newsletter.
Head to my website and sign up today.
Over the following months, you’ll get updates about new articles, exclusive content for subscribers and special offers limited to newsletter subscribers.
Why am I “soft leaving” Substack?
Substack is still great for writers, but the platform’s direction doesn’t align with my goals.
In the past, I wasn’t a fan of how closed Substack is for external integrations. Last year, I thought it was an issue with the platform's maturity. Certain features weren’t done yet.
Looking at this year’s changes, I see it’s a strategy. Substack has become increasingly a social network platform rather than a tool for writing newsletters. The lack of integrations, Twitter-like posts, and push for followers rather than email capture are clear signs it’s the case.
I always wanted to own my work, and vendor lock-in Substack aims for that, but I’m not comfortable with it.
That’s just my opinion, though, and I can still recommend it if you want to write newsletters for people to read.
What’s my stack now
I spent the last three months deciding what tools to use. Here’s what I decided to use.
Website—Wordpress.com—I’ve been using WordPress for nearly 20 years now so it’s an easy win for me. I went for a managed solution because I don’t have time to manage servers, and I want to focus on content. It’s also the most popular platform, and I get the freedom and flexibility I want.
Newsletter and mailing lists—ConvertKit—Their new Newsletter plan offers up to 10,000 subscribers free, grown-up email marketing capabilities and integrations, making it a match made in heaven. It’s a marketing platform first, so I own my data, and I can always switch to a paid plan if I wish to use more features.
I keep posting on LinkedIn and use only two tools for the rest, keeping it as complex as necessary.
See you soon
Substack articles will come now every month. Stay tuned!
If you’re a busy Engineering Manager interested in efficient leadership - head to my website and join the list today. The first article will come later in July.
Have a great weekend!