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Here, Read This: “A career secret weapon: Thank-you notes.”

I’ve written before about the power of thank you notes. Here’s a survey that suggests that they really do have an impact:

There is one old-time tradition that seems to be holding on: the thank-you note.

To some it may seem laughably archaic to hand-write a note, drop it in snail mail and hope the recipient gets it a few days later. One study by staffing firm Accountemps found that only 24 percent of job applicants bother to send thank-you notes these days.

But here is the rub: 80 percent of human resources managers surveyed felt those messages were useful in evaluating potential hires.

Read the whole story here.

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Three Things to Know When You Negotiate Your Contract at a New Job.

The job hunting process can be a grind. You wrote a great resume and cover letter. You interviewed. You followed up with thank you notes. You interviewed again.

You got offered the job!

But that’s not the end of the process. Don’t accept it just yet — you should still think about how you can negotiate for more.

Most companies build some wiggle room into a negotiation. They’re expecting you to counter by asking for a little more, and if you don’t, you’re leaving money on the table.

Here’s how to prepare yourself for a contract negotiation:

1) Do your research — When you’re first thinking of applying to a job, go out and talk to your friends in the industry, and ask them for guidance about what you should be asking for. Don’t make the mistake I once made:

When I was interviewing at BuzzFeed, I was wading into brand new territory. I’d never worked at a start-up like that before. I didn’t have a good sense of how much they’d pay, what my hours would be like, or whether or not their offer of stock options was something I should take seriously.

I also didn’t utilize my network correctly. I should have also been talking to colleagues a few years older than me, who could have told me more about what to expect from a growing company like this, and peers my age, who could have told me more about what they were making at similar jobs in the same city, and made sure I understood how much I really needed to make to live in New York.

Looking back, it’s clear that by failing to understand the market value for the job, I cost myself thousands of dollars. Learn from my mistake, and utilize your network!

On top of that: Make sure you check sites like Glassdoor, which can help set a reasonable salary range for this job.

2) Give them your number, but be flexible — This part of the negotiation actually starts before you get the offer, since most companies will ask for an expected salary during the interview process, hoping to weed out candidates who are asking for something out of their target range. When you do that first interview with a recruiter or HR, make sure you have number in mind. (It can be a specific number, like $50k, or a range, like $50-55k. Make it a round number — what matters here is that you set an anchor price around which you can negotiate.)

Then memorize these words: “This is what my number is. But I’m willing to have a conversation about it.” They may not be able to offer you exactly that number, but signaling openness to negotiations is key. Maybe they’ll come in below your number, but they’ll offer you bonuses or other opportunities (like stock options) to help you reach that number. Or perhaps you’ve just set the expectation that when you do get an offer, you’ll likely be asking for a little more. Either way: Be flexible with that number.

3) Look for leverage — When you finally get the offer, maybe you’ll be able to leverage another offer — like if your current company decides to match or beat the number — to get the best possible contract for you. Maybe you’re leaving something behind at an old job — stock options, an upcoming bonus, or even a more generous vacation policy — that you can bring up in the negotiation. Maybe you’re thinking about going back to school, and can use that opportunity to put pressure on your potential new employer. Be upfront with this sort of thing. Say, for instance: “Hey, I’ve got a bonus coming up next month that I’m leaving on the table if I take this job. If you could match that number, it would make this decision a lot easier for me. What do you think?” Maybe they’ll match, or maybe they’ll give you the chance to start a few weeks later, enabling you to collect that bonus or take a few extra vacations days.

And remember: It doesn’t hurt to negotiate. It’s highly unlikely that a company will pull their offer because you asked for more. They’ve gone through the process, looked at potentially dozens of candidates, and decided on you. They’ve invested a ton of hours in your candidacy. They really want to hire you — and in the end, they’re not going to back away from the table if you ask for 5% more in salary. You may get a fraction of that, or nothing at all, but if you don’t ask, the answer is always no.

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At top, a photo of the figurative negotiation table, by Samuel Zeller for Unsplash.

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Introducing… Not a Newsletter: A Monthly Guide to Sending Better Emails.

I really believe in side projects. At BuzzFeed, everyone had something interesting they did on the side. I’ve written about some of these side project stories here on the site. I think a great side project can be a valuable tool for showcasing your skills, sharing what you’ve learned, and building communities.

And now might be a good time to mention that I’ve got a new one of my own.

In January, I launched a new monthly briefing around email and newsletters. Every month, I pull together resources — links, news, tips, and other ideas — that might help others send better email. I publish everything in a Google Doc, and since it’s a Google Doc — and not a monthly newsletter that I send out — I call it… Not a Newsletter. (One lesson from my stry.us days: Always pick a name that people will remember and can easily spell.)

Why create something like this? It’s pretty simple: I want to improve the conversation around email, and I want to get as many people as I can involved. I’m following the lead of those in the open-source community: By making all of this accessible to everyone, I’m hoping that others will be able to share their learnings back and build on top of the ideas in the doc. In the long run, I think that the more people we can get involved in this conversation, the better we can make our inboxes.

If you’re interested, check out the doc at notanewsletter.com. And if you’d like to be updated when the next edition goes live, sign up to be alerted at http://signup.notanewsletter.com.

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The Best Things In Life Are Free.

Believing in yourself is free.

It doesn’t cost a cent to be kind.

You don’t have to write a check to go the extra mile.

You don’t have to go to school to learn a new skill.

Connecting with an old friend costs nothing, and might mean a lot to both of you.

You can’t put a dollar value on hard work.

You can always make time for a good conversation, to offer advice, or to just listen.

There are certain things in life that are available to all of us. They don’t cost a thing, and they don’t require a fancy degree — just time, or kindness, or a little bit of effort. Make time for those things. Be good to others. Listen carefully. Challenge yourself. Work hard. Some of the best things in life are free — and entirely up to you.

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That photo at top comes via Michael Longmire for Unsplash.

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The Job You Want May Not Exist Yet.

I was having a conversation the other night with a friend from college, and we were talking about how much has changed in the decade since we graduated. “Did you ever think you’d be doing the job you’re doing today?” she asked.

I didn’t. Ten years ago, my current role — being the person in charge of a newsletter program for a news organization — didn’t exist. It was six years ago this week that I launched my very first newsletter at BuzzFeed, and I remember struggling to find many other people in the industry who were working on email full time. There just weren’t that many of us around — email was usually a small part of someone’s job. Six years later, most newspapers, websites, and magazines have someone in a dedicated Newsletter Editor or Director of Newsletters role. (Often, they have an entire team devoted to email!)

I’ve been thinking about this a lot: The job I’m working in today didn’t exist five years ago. The job before that didn’t exist before I helped create it.

Which means that the job that comes next may not exist yet, either.

If you ever get worried about the future, remind yourself: There is no defined path forward. Embrace the uncertainty. Keep learning, keep reading, keep asking questions, keep working. Every day is a chance to build whatever future comes next.

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That’s a screenshot of the very first BuzzFeed Today newsletter, sent on Feb. 4, 2013.

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Here, Read This: “Kindness Is a Skill.”

This week in The New York Times, David Brooks writes about tips for creating a kinder workplace. There are some fantastic ideas in here, including:

The all-purpose question. “Tell me about the challenges you are facing?” Use it when there seems to be nothing else to say.

Never threaten autonomy. People like to feel that their options are open. If you give them an order — “Calm down” or “Be reasonable” — all that they will hear is that you’re threatening their freedom of maneuver, and they will shut down. Nobody ever grew up because an angry spouse screamed, “Grow up!”

Presume the good. Any disagreement will go better if you assume the other person has good intentions and if you demonstrate how much you over all admire him or her. Fake this, in all but extreme cases.

Read the rest of the story here.

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The Shower Test.

I come up with lots of ideas — some good, most bad — and over the years, I’ve figured out a few different ways to determine if an idea is actually worth pursuing.

One of my favorites is also one of the simplest: The Shower Test.

Quite simply: If I come up with an idea in the morning, and I hop in the shower to get ready for work, do I keep thinking about that idea? Or do I get tired of it?

I find that when I’m truly excited about an idea, I keep working through it. I’ll think about what else I could do with the idea — who I could work with on it, what else I could build from it, what success would look like for it. Often, I’ll find myself rushing out of the shower to jot down a few more ideas on a notepad.

The shower is a great space to work through ideas. Everything in the shower is routine — how often do you put a lot of thought into your shower? — which leaves time to think. I know that if I step into the shower thinking about an idea, and I’m still working through it five or ten minutes later, I might be onto something.

Maybe your Shower Test is a different quiet space: a few minutes in the car on the way to work, an afternoon coffee break, or time cooking dinner alone. Give yourself a few minutes to think through those new ideas. The ones that stick with you might be worth trying.

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That photo of a shower comes via Abigail Lynn on Unsplash.

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Side Project Stories: Build A Space For Your Passions.

Brian Stelter’s the host of CNN’s “Reliable Sources.” Before that, he was a writer on the media beat for The New York Times.

And before that: He was a college student who launched a widely-read blog about cable news. Here’s his story:

I was a television news junkie, and I wanted to read more about the shows, the stars and the screw-ups.

I was also intrigued by this up-and-coming thing called blogging. In 2003, it suddenly became really easy to set up a blog and start publishing anything, anytime, anywhere. In the days before Facebook and Twitter, this was a revelation.

So in the fall of 2003, when I was starting classes at Towson University, I came up with CableNewser, the name of the website and my anonymous identity. I figured no one at the networks would take me seriously if they knew I was only 18 years old. I started the site on New Year’s Day 2004, when the biggest news involved Deborah Norville’s new MSNBC show and the expansion of CNN’s Inside Politics to Sundays.

The New York Times wrote about his blog back in 2006, and I love this anecdote:

The network publicists generally know his class schedule — afternoons on Tuesdays and Thursdays — and barrage him with material, which they often expect him to post within minutes. While recording a radio segment for one of his classes — Mass Communication 381 — he turned his cellphone off for 15 minutes, then turned it back on to find one nagging voice mail message from an ABC publicist and another from CNN.

I remember reading about Brian’s site when I was in college. It was such a simple idea: He loved cable news, and wanted to write more about it, so he created his own space to do so. A few friends and I were inspired by stories like his. I had a few small blogs in college, mostly about Mizzou sports. None were particularly good, but they gave me a space to collaborate with friends and try to learn how to write online. The goal wasn’t to become nationally-read sportswriters — although, secretly, I think we all thought we were a story or two away from being big names. We just wanted a place to write and write often.

Whatever your passions, find a friend who cares about that same thing, and make something with them: a blog, a podcast, a newsletter. You never know where it might lead you.

———

That MSNBC screengrab — I wonder what happened to the “I-PHONE”? — is used here thanks to a Creative Commons license.

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Setting The Intention.

I wake up at the same time every day. I eat the same handful of meals for breakfast. I take the same train to work, and walk the same route to the office. It’s easy for the days to feel repetitive, or even dull. That shouldn’t be the case — I have a great job at a remarkable company! — but when you’ve been at a job or in a role for a long time, it happens. There are days when the morning goes by on autopilot. I’ll look up and realize that I’m already walking into the office, and won’t even remember having left my apartment!

When that starts happening, you have to find a way to break your routine. Lately, I’ve been trying something new: Making myself set an intention for the day.

It’s a practice a former yoga teacher of mine used to preach at the start of practice. What’s your goal for the day? she’d say. Why are you here? What do you want to accomplish?

There’s a moment in my morning commute when I emerge from the subway, and I have a short walk to my office. As soon as I step out onto the street, I can see my building. That’s when I think about the day ahead: Why I’m showing up for work, and what I want to achieve. I’ll clap my hands a few times, and end with a positive thought: “Let’s make it a work day.”

It only takes a few seconds, but if I’m in a bit of a daze, it’s enough to snap me out of it, and set me up for a good day at the office.

——

That photo, by Dean Rose for Unsplash, is pretty much what I’m looking at when I’m walking out of the subway.

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So It’s Come To This: I’m Launching The Dan Oshinsky Quarterly Newsletter.

It’s a funny thing to admit, at least for a guy who’s been working in email since 2012, but: I don’t have a newsletter. I spend all day thinking about email and building email — not to mention replying to email — and for a long time, the idea of having to send one more email just seemed like too much.

But I’ve started to change my thinking on this. Thanks goes to some friends who’ve been sending occasional email updates: pals like Sean and Sapna, and industry folks I admire, like Robin Sloan.

So in 2019, I’m going to give this a try. Sign up, and every few months, you’ll get an email from me. I’ll feature some posts from this blog, recommend a thing or two, and ramble a little about “House Hunters.” (Sally and I watch a shocking amount of HGTV, and it’s time we discussed that.)

Anyway, you can sign up here:

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