Welcome Snafu, a weekly newsletter about selling without being salesy.

Selling your ideas means making a promise in return for someone’s time or money – and then delivering on that promise.

In today’s article, I outline the promises of Snafu: what this newsletter can do for you and who you’ll become if you read and engage each week.

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Selling Snafu

I recently started working with a newsletter coach who challenged me to articulate the purpose of the Snafu newsletter.

And since this is a newsletter about selling and some of you are new here, I thought it would be useful to pitch Snafu to you, dear reader!

The importance of a promise

When you are selling an idea, you’re making an implicit or explicit promise to the other person. These promises are the reason someone says “yes” or “no” to what you’re selling.

It is your delivery against these promises that makes your reputation – that results in repeat business or in your customer badmouthing you to their friends!

What follows are the promises I’m making to you. It’ll be up to you to let me know how I live up to them.

Take care of yourself and your family

Selling allows you to take care of yourself, your family and your community. When you can sell, you are always able to earn enough to support your loved ones, stand up for your ideas and build the world you want to live in.

A turning point in my life came a few months after I began Robin’s Cafe. After the dust settled on the opening of my restaurant, and life settled into the only slightly less manic pace of operating a restaurant, I realized that I was going to be okay.

Even if business failed – if someone broke into my cafe and stole everything – I’d learned enough in just a few months that I was certain I could do it again. From raising money, to recruiting staff and bringing in customers, my new abilities as a salesman meant that I’d always be able to take care of myself.

No matter what life throws at you, you will be able to earn enough or advocate for what you want. As you learn to sell, you learn that you really are going to be okay.

Reclaim "selling"

Scammy salespeople have given selling a bad reputation. Used car salesmen, telemarketers, the Wolf of Wall Street. None of us want to be treated like that and very few of us want to become those people.

But most of selling is actually much less loud. Good selling is done with consent and the best benefits everybody involved.

Whether through promoting your product or proposing an idea, selling is how you make an impact. We’re going to claim “selling” back from the hucksters.

Authenticity

Authenticity is a defining characteristic of my approach to sales. It’s who I am: genuine and authentic.

But I also have an ulterior motive. A lot of popular approaches to selling are manipulative. They try to get someone to do something that they don’t want to do.

I aim to prove that genuine connection fosters trust, and that trust makes for good business.

This newsletter is designed to model that approach, too.

Homework

There’s a lot of information out there about how to sell that doesn't address how this applies to you.

Snafu distills a story or idea into a specific, trainable skill. You can expect specific tactics and examples of how selling actually works. I want you to go out and do these things, too!

Each week you’ll get homework – an exercise, prompt or habit – that will challenge you to put an idea into function.

Develop courage

When I first stepped into a gymnastics gym at 19 year old, I was scared and did so, anyways. When I started Robin’s Cafe, including raising $50,000 in 20 days and then selling the business on Craigslist few years later, I took action despite my fear. Almost everything good that I’ve experienced has come from acting despite fear.

And there’s something special that happens when you start selling. You develop confidence and courage!

If you read Snafu each week (and do the homework), you’ll change. You will become more of the person you want to be.

Today’s homework

Reply back to this email with one way in which you’d like to get better at selling in the next couple of months.

Tell me about a business pitch you would like to refine, someone you’d like to ask out for a date, or your kid, who you’d really like to spend less time on screens.

Reply with one thing you’re selling or one small aspect of a sale you’d like to improve!

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3 Things I’ve Loved This Week

What I’m reading: The Dark Side of Sales by David Sacks

David Sacks is the founder of PayPal and co-founder of Yammer (along with my friend Adam Pisoni). David is one of the four people that make up the mega-popular podcast All-In, and while I vehemently disagree with a lot of his politics, he’s an undeniably thoughtful leader in technology. His recent article The Dark Side of Sales is an interesting read.

Netflix docuseries I’m watching: Arnold​

A client of mine knows Arnold Schwarzenegger well, so I’ve heard some hilarious stories. But I just watched this three part miniseries about Schwarzenegger’s life as a bodybuilder, actor, and politician.

He’s an incredible self-promoter, but I’m also struck by the fierce dedication to his crafts. I also appreciated his introduction of the German word “smäh,” which roughly translates as promotional bullshit or a jokey con job.

I’ve just joined his daily newsletter, Arnold’s Pump Club, which is described as the positive corner of the Internet.

Book I’m reading: Gut: The Inside Story of Our Body's Most Underrated Organ​

I haven't been writing about it lately but I am continuing my study of the gut and gut health. Gut is the latest book I've picked up, a New York Times bestseller about one physician’s study of the alimentary tract.

The book is hilarious. While it is deeply informative, it also reminds me of Mary Roach’s hilarious exposes. The author uses metaphors and anecdotes alongside recent scientific data to answer important questions like what is the appendix for. (It isn’t vestigial.)

For more on this topic, I wrote about some Habits for Inflammation a few months ago. Gut health is one of my two personal focuses for the first three months of 2024, alongside selling.

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Support Snafu

This newsletter is free and I don’t run ads, but I do spend dozens of hours on Snafu each week. If any of these offers are useful or interesting to you, here’s how you can support Snafu... Your consideration means the world.

​Schedule a consult - I’m working with a small handful of folks to improve their ability to sell. In February, I’m doing these for free, but they won’t be free for long. Book 15 minutes and I’ll give you feedback on your pitch or a specific sales skill.

​Refer Snafu - Do you have a newsletter and think this newsletter would be valuable to your readers? I'm now on SparkLoop and ConvertKit's Creator Network so you can get paid for referring Snafu.

​Books by Robin - So far, I’ve written two books. Neither one is about selling, but if you’re interested in learning to do a handstand, check out How to Do a Handstand. If you’re building a company or want to improve your company’s culture, read Responsive: What It Takes to Create a Thriving Organization.

Until next week,
Robin

Thanks for reading! I appreciate you being here. Do you have questions, thoughts, or feedback? Just reply and let me know.