8 Things I've Learned From Helping People With Substack
Most of them are not about Substack at all!
Did you all miss me last week?
I often wonder if people notice when a newsletter doesn’t arrive when it’s supposed to.
It’s July!
It’s not quite six months since Unstack Substack went into business but let’s call it official anyway because I really wanted to write this post to celebrate you and the important work you’re doing.
I’ve learned so much these past few months. Some about Substack but mostly about YOU!
Without further delay, here’s my list of things I’ve learned since working with you.
1. Y’all are AMAZING!!!
I’m Canadian….we don’t use the word Y’all unless we mean it. You people are truly awesome. I’ve met dozens of you on Zoom and via your writing, whether I’m managing your content or just designing a few graphics.
You all are diverse, determined, funny, serious, thoughtful, compassionate, etc. And you’re writing about meaningful things! Even if your subject matter is WAY outside of my wheelhouse I still learn new things about the world each time I work with your newsletters.
I’m SO impressed with the variety on Substack!
2. I’m not a fit for everyone and that’s okay!
Plenty of Substackers have hired me only to find out I’m not what they thought they wanted. We try it, find out it’s not a fit, and then move on with no hard feelings. We’re all grownups.
3. I AM a fit for the unexpected.
On the flip side of not being a good fit, some inquiries have been total A-HA moments that have since been added (or will be added shortly) to my list of services.
Sneak peek: Since I published my SUPER popular post about writing great headlines, several people have asked if I could write headlines for them. We’re currently in a testing phase to see if I’ve got the chops to do it for anyone other than myself.
Stay tuned for new services!
4. Nobody is better than anyone!
This is a little embarrassing to admit but when I first started as a Substack virtual assistant, I felt like I was infringing on certain territory. There were already plenty of amazing people here offering help. Who the heck was I to step into the arena?
But I slowly realized that we’re all offering DIFFERENT help and none of us are competing. Instead, we’ve created a referral ecosystem that seems to be working beautifully. Some of us are even hiring each other 😊
I’ll never forget the first time a new client told me that
had referred them to me. I was like, “Sarah Fay knows who I am?????” But it didn’t take long to understand that we all know of each other and we’re working together for the same reason….to help EVERYONE succeed.5. There’s no computer screen big enough for the number of newsletters on my admin dropdown list.
Most of you write ONE newsletter. I write three of my own, PLUS I’m an admin for at least 25 others because of the backend work I do.
The dropdown list no longer fits on my screen 😂 I guess there are worse problems to have.
6. I’m proud when people don’t need me anymore.
This is perhaps the most important thing I’ve learned in my short time as a virtual assistant on this platform.
Although it’s sad when a client no longer needs me, I’m so proud. Taking them off my admin list feels like sending a child off to college! Like they’re spreading their wings and flying on their own 😁
So far, my favorite college kid has been
, because she is SO enthusiastic each time her lightbulb turns on. We’ve shared some hilarious emails containing her A-HA moments.7. Some of them never leave the nest…AKA…repeat clients.
This is the ultimate compliment! When someone I’ve worked with several months ago comes back with a new project for me….THIS is the reason I show up and do the work every day.
Imposter syndrome inevitably creeps up in stealth mode on occasion, but when a past client comes back for more? That’s when I’m humbled knowing they liked me enough to return.
That’s why all businesses are in business - to build a base of satisfied customers.
BONUS #8:
This is a funny one. It’s one of those face-palm moments that when you realize it, you’re like:
If you don’t know, I’m Canadian and I charge in $CAD. Had I known in the beginning that 90% of my clients would be American, I would have set up differently (for purely selfish reasons).
Of course, what this means for YOU as my (mostly) American clients….I AM A BARGAIN 😂😂 I’m like the Walmart of virtual assistants because the Canadian dollar sucks compared to USD. I even have self-checkouts like Walmart.
But I assure you, NO sweatshops are running behind the scenes here! SweatPANTS maybe, but not sweatshops.
Please consider this as a massive THANK YOU for your support and trust in working with me. I appreciate all my clients the same but in many different ways. I’m learning so much from you and I hope it’s mutual.
May you all go forth and run the best friggin’ Substacks that Substack has ever seen!
I wondered about your service pricing for CAD. You should just raise your prices!
I may be contacting you as I’m still not public - only my comments reach the reading public and I cannot post or restack my fav reader’s posts on the mainstream - they show up only on my profile.
But I have followers! Amazing on that (!) since they’re basing only on my personal comments over the months I’ve been on.
Now I’m entertaining the idea of a full blown stack, (not interested in making money, honestly I didn’t even know you could do that!) PLUS I have to find a “schtick” and a title as to what I’m all about. That’s the hard part - how do I want to present myself?
There must a “set-up” process to go through to get official. I haven’t figured out how or where to go for that - it’s not just switch that you throw.
But I love Substack and read and LEARN a lot. Sincerely, A Late Bloomer