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An year of writing newsletter | Learnings from reaching 20K subscribers in 1 year

Hey, Prasad here 👋 I'm the voice behind the weekly newsletter "Big Tech Careers."

In this week's article, I share how I started the weekly newsletter and the learnings I’ve had over the past year growing the audience to 20K subscribers.

If you like the article, click the ❤️ icon. That helps me know you enjoy reading my content.

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This week marks exactly one year since I started my weekly newsletter. I published my first article on July 28th, 2024, and just last week crossed 20,000 subscribers.

Honestly, I never imagined reaching this milestone so quickly—especially since I haven't been perfectly consistent. Out of 52 possible weeks, I published around 40 issues, missing quite a few weeks along the way. Yet somehow, we made it to 20K together.

In today's newsletter, I want to share how I got started and the key lessons I've learned over this past year of newsletter writing. My hope is that these insights will help you on your own newsletter journey.

I'll structure this around the main challenges I faced and how I overcame them.

Challenge 1: Publishing That First Article

I first thought of starting a newsletter around mid-2023, primarily because of LinkedIn's limitations. The word count restrictions and poor searchability made it frustrating to share longer-form content or find my old posts later.

But it took me almost a full year to actually publish my first article.

I kept delaying for three main reasons:

1. Self-doubt about value: Why would people want to read my articles every week?

2. Content concerns: Would I have enough ideas and topics to write about consistently?

3. Consistency fears: Did I have the discipline and bandwidth to write every week?

Here's how I worked through each of these obstacles:

Finding My Why: The Value Question

The answer turned out to be straightforward—provide genuine value. People will read your content if they get something meaningful from it.

But how could I provide value? By writing at the intersection of my knowledge and market gaps.

I've always been passionate about behavioral skills in the workplace, mainly because I struggled with them early in my career. Coming from a small town in India, I lacked the soft skills that seemed to come naturally to others. I had to learn these behavioral skills on the job, often through trial and error.

This personal journey gave me the idea for my newsletter: "Behavioral OS for Techies."

The concept was simple and rooted in my experience—those who excel in their careers invariably possess strong behavioral skills alongside their technical expertise. My theme became:

"Whether you're aiming for your next promotion, preparing for a big interview, or just looking to be more effective in your current role, I'm here to help you build your own Behavioral Operating System for success in tech."

I later pivoted to rename the newsletter 'Big Tech Careers' to expand the scope of the newsletter.

Solving the Content Problem: Building an Idea Bank

Once I had my theme, generating ideas became much easier. To overcome the "running out of topics" fear, I created a comprehensive list of potential articles.

When I had around 10 solid topics mapped out, the whole endeavor felt less intimidating. Having that runway of content gave me confidence that I could sustain the newsletter beyond just a few weeks.

Conquering Consistency: The Buffer Strategy

This fear lingered the longest. The only solution I could think of was to write several articles in advance before launching, creating a buffer of at least a month.

So that's exactly what I did—well, almost. I wrote two complete articles and detailed outlines for two more before publishing my first issue.

The key learning was simple: identify what's keeping you stuck (in my case, fear of inconsistency), find a practical solution (building a content buffer), and take action on it.

Starting a newsletter taught me that most barriers are psychological. Once you break through that initial resistance and publish your first piece, momentum begins to build naturally.

Choosing the Right Platform

I won't dive deep into platform selection—there are plenty of comprehensive guides out there. Every platform has its pros and cons, so do your research quickly but don't fall down a rabbit hole. Pick one and start writing.

Here's why I chose Substack:

Platform diversification was key. While I had a decent following on LinkedIn and could have easily launched my newsletter there, I wanted to diversify beyond a single platform. Putting all my content eggs in one basket felt risky.

Low barrier to entry. Substack offered everything I needed: free publishing, all the essential features, and a straightforward setup process.

I realize this approach isn't for everyone—some people find that making an upfront investment creates better commitment and follow-through. Feel free to choose the platform that suits you best.

Challenge 2: Maintaining Weekly Consistency

Getting started was one thing—staying consistent was another beast entirely.

The Initial Momentum

My initial content buffer and excitement to write consistently served me well for the first 20 weeks. Having few articles written in advance and topics mapped out gave me the confidence to publish regularly without the weekly scramble of "What am I going to write about this time?"

But then life happened. December arrived, work got hectic, and I found myself burned out. I took a break for a few weeks, and honestly, I felt terrible about it. I thought I had failed at the one thing I was most worried about—consistency.

Redefining Consistency

This break taught me one of my most valuable lessons: consistency doesn't mean perfection.

I had fallen into the trap of thinking that missing even a single week meant I was inconsistent. But that's not humanly sustainable, especially when you're running a newsletter as a side project alongside a demanding career.

Real consistency means showing up regularly over the long term, not adhering to a rigid schedule that leaves no room for life's inevitable interruptions. Some weeks you'll miss, some weeks you'll publish late, and that's completely normal.

The key is getting back on track without letting temporary breaks turn into permanent abandonment.

The Power of Collaboration

One strategy that significantly helped my consistency was inviting guest writers to share their experiences and knowledge. This approach solved multiple problems at once:

Reduced my content burden. Guest posts gave me breathing room during busy periods while still delivering value to subscribers.

Brought diverse perspectives. My readers got insights from different viewpoints and experiences, making the newsletter richer and more comprehensive.

Created some of my most popular content. I'm incredibly grateful to Amir Malaeb, Austen McDonald and Ron Melanson, who contributed guest articles that became some of the most-read issues of the newsletter.

Collaboration reminded me that a newsletter doesn't have to be a solo endeavor. Building a small network of contributors not only helps with consistency but also elevates the overall quality and appeal of your content.

Challenge 3: Reaching the Right Audience

Building a subscriber base feels like a daunting challenge initially. How do you find people who actually want to read what you're writing? Here are a few things that worked for me and that I should be doing more of.

What I Did Well

Made myself discoverable where my audience already was. I consistently posted about my newsletter articles on LinkedIn, where I had an existing following. This wasn't about spamming my network—it was about letting people who already knew my work discover that I was writing longer-form content elsewhere.

Leveraged the power of community. This was my biggest growth driver. I run a free mentoring initiative called BeSA (Become A Solutions Architect) along with several other volunteers. Nearly 70% of my subscribers came from this existing network of people who already knew and trusted my expertise.

The lesson? Your newsletter audience often starts with your community. Whether it's colleagues, mentees, workshop attendees, or online connections—these people already understand your value proposition and are most likely to become engaged subscribers.

What I Could Do Better

More strategic collaboration. While I successfully brought few guest writers to my newsletter, I missed opportunities to contribute guest articles to other newsletters in similar spaces. This kind of cross-pollination is one of the most effective ways to reach the right audience.

I was able to collaborate with

Jordan Cutler

and

Gregor Ojstersek

and that has helped immensely. But it's something I should be doing much more of. The strategy is simple: identify newsletter writers in your niche and propose writing guest articles for their audience. It's a win-win—they get quality content, and you get exposure to readers who are already interested in your topic area.

Underutilized Substack's social features. Substack isn't just a newsletter platform—it's a full-blown social media network where you can write notes, comment on other newsletters, and engage with the broader community.

Since LinkedIn is the only social media platform I actively use, I missed out on building relationships within the Substack ecosystem itself. Being more active on Substack Notes and engaging with other writers' content would definitely help grow my audience organically.

The bandwidth reality: I'll be honest—it always comes down to bandwidth. Between a full-time job, running BeSA, and writing the newsletter, adding more growth activities feels overwhelming. But I've learned that even small, consistent efforts in audience building compound over time.

The key insight from this challenge is that audience growth happens through relationships, not just great content. Your existing network, strategic collaborations, and community engagement are often more valuable than any growth hack or marketing tactic.

Looking Back, Moving Forward

As I reflect on this first year of newsletter writing, I'm struck by how much of the journey was about overcoming my own mental barriers rather than mastering any particular writing technique or growth strategy.

The biggest lesson? Start before you're ready. I spent almost a year overthinking the decision to launch, worried about consistency, content, and whether anyone would care. Yet once I published that first article, each subsequent challenge became manageable because I was learning by doing, not by planning.

Here are the key takeaways that might help your own newsletter journey:

Perfection is the enemy of progress. Missing weeks doesn't make you inconsistent—quitting does. Build buffers where you can, but don't let the pursuit of perfect regularity prevent you from starting or continuing.

Your existing community is your launch pad. The people who already know your work are your most likely early subscribers. Don't overlook the network you've already built in pursuit of some mythical "perfect audience."

Collaboration amplifies everything. Guest writers helped with consistency, quality, and some of my most popular content. Cross-newsletter collaborations remain my biggest missed opportunity for growth.

Value beats volume. I published only 40 out of 52 possible weeks, yet still reached 20,000 subscribers. Consistent value delivery matters more than perfect publishing schedules.

Looking ahead, I'm excited to continue refining this craft while applying the lessons I've learned. The goal isn't just to grow numbers—it's to build a sustainable practice that serves both my readers and my own professional development.

To anyone considering starting their own newsletter: the hardest part isn't the writing, the platform choice, or even finding your audience. It's hitting "publish" on that first article. Everything else you can figure out along the way.

Thank you for being part of this journey. Here's to year two.

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