The four things you can count
World, drama and compression are invisible. These four are countable, and they tell you whether the three are there.
“I”Is there a person behind this? Strongest signal in the study — 35 of 37 people.
Hook ÷ bodyIs there anything behind the tap? Winners: a quarter. Losers: over half.
Words, lines, paragraphsIs the world actually in the post? Longer wins, in 7 of 10 people.
Type–token ratioPatterned, or just long? Winners repeat themselves more.
Part one — Bill Krell, top 5
01The inversion
US civil & geotech recruiter · 613 engagements · 34× his median
I get asked about AECOM, WSP, Jacobs, Stantec all the time. Engineers want to know how to get a seat at one of the largest firms.
I also talk to the engineers leaving them…pretty regularly.
The reasons are consistent…
Stuck in a narrow scope of work.
Pay that doesn’t match what they see other people making.
Tired of the corporate structure.
I get asked about [4 BRANDS THEY ASPIRE TO] all the time.
[TRIBE] want to know how to [GET IN].
I also talk to the ones leaving them… pretty regularly.
The reasons are consistent…
WORLD — four real firms in eleven wordsDRAMA — the destination is an exitCOMPRESSION — “pretty regularly” carries the argument
See the post →
02The fork
Bill Krell · 542 · 30× median
Civil engineering pays $100K on average. But nobody in school tells you which path gets you to $200K and which path gets you stuck at $80K.
Here’s what they should have told you:
The path you pick matters more than the diploma.
[TRIBE] pays [AVERAGE] on average.
But nobody tells you which path gets you to [HIGH] and which gets you stuck at [LOW].
Here’s what they should have told you:
WORLD — the salary everyone knowsDRAMA — one number splits into two futuresCOMPRESSION — three numbers, one sentence
See the post →
03The trade
Bill Krell · 327 · 18× median
I talk to engineers who chose $120K + life....over $180K + stress.
I talked to an engineer who made it part of his life plan to stay in central Arkansas.
He works as a 1099 for three or four different engineering firms.
Not one full-time job. Multiple clients. Flexible schedule.
I talk to [TRIBE] who chose [LOWER $] + life… over [HIGHER $] + stress.
I talked to one who [SPECIFIC CHOICE, NAMED PLACE].
WORLD — a real placeDRAMA — less money as the winCOMPRESSION — the thesis is one line of arithmetic
See the post →
04The costly quit
Bill Krell · 260 · 14× median
I quit a job I actually liked.
Good pay. Good work. Good people.
But I was doing 55+ hours a week with a 3 toddlers at home at the time.
I asked for a more consistent schedule. Less hours.
Week after week. Nothing changed.
I quit a job I actually liked.
Good [X]. Good [Y]. Good [Z].
But I was [THE REAL COST, WITH A NUMBER].
WORLD — almost none, deliberatelyDRAMA — he is the subject and he looks badCOMPRESSION — three fragments, nine words
See the post →
05The stale model
Bill Krell · 251 · 14× median
Inflation broke salary intuition. What $100k felt like in 2019 is $130K today.
I talked to a structural SE a month or so ago making a little less than ~ $130k.
12+ years experience. Broad project range. Building an entire department from scratch. Working a lot of hours a week.
He thought he was doing well.
[EXTERNAL FORCE] broke [BELIEF THEY HOLD].
What [NUMBER] felt like in [YEAR] is [NEW NUMBER] today.
He thought he was doing well.
WORLD — the number they carry in their headDRAMA — the world moved, your model didn’tCOMPRESSION — the last line is five words
See the post →
Part two — 15 that transfer to any niche
06The number gap
Angus Stephens · NHS consultants · 223
For NHS consultants, a £5,000 pay rise might only put £1,250 in your pocket.
The 3.5% pay rise for NHS consultants, salaried GPs and SAS doctors just landed in June payslips.
Whether you think 3.5% is enough is one conversation.
What actually reaches your bank account is another.
Last week, up and down the country, senior NHS doctors were all doing the same thing:
Logging in to ESR.
For [TRIBE], a [HEADLINE NUMBER] might only put [REAL NUMBER] in your pocket.
Whether [THE DEBATE THEY’RE HAVING] is one conversation.
What [WHAT ACTUALLY LANDS] is another.
DRAMA — quantityWORLD — DDRB, payslip, the band
See the post →
07The category inversion
Jack Henderson · AU high-income PAYG · 1,745 · 20× median
$250k PAYG is now a poor Aussie battler
A $10,000 pay rise clears about 4 grand.
And in 5 days it gets worse.
July 1, Division 296 switches on.
Chalmers gets his hand into your super.
Albanese calls it the fair go.
[HIGH-STATUS TOKEN] is now [LOW-STATUS FOLK FIGURE]
[THE MONEY MATHS IN ONE LINE]
And in [N] days it gets worse.
[DATE], [NAMED MECHANISM] switches on.
WORLD — two tokens that shouldn’t touchDRAMA — categoryCOMPRESSION — 16 words
See the post →
08The status inversion
Mando Sallavanti · salespeople · 2,100 — biggest in the set
$205k salary. Home by 6PM. Debt-free.
TikTok calls this settling.
Imagine thinking this is a mediocre life:
Weekly date nights.
Actually using your PTO.
Coaching your kid’s games.
Watching them grow up in real time.
The "hustle harder" crowd won’t tell you that many 7-figure earners would kill for this life.
They’re missing their kids’ memories.
[THREE GOOD FACTS, AS FRAGMENTS]
[OUTSIDE GROUP] calls this settling.
Imagine thinking this is a mediocre life:
[LIST OF ORDINARY THINGS THEY SECRETLY WANT]
DRAMA — status inversionCOMPRESSION — fragments, no verbs
He ran this twice. $205k then $225k. Same skeleton, new anchor, both in his top two.
See the post →
09The narrowing
Chester Maglo · UK business owners · 494
There’s only 1 type of person that should wake at 5am
And it’s not based on your chronotype
It’s based on your occupation
Business owners.
Let me explain...
The reason Hormozi wakes at 4am
Isn’t because he enjoys dark mornings
It’s because there are no distractions
There’s only 1 type of [TRIBE] who should [DO THE THING]
And it’s not [THE OBVIOUS REASON]
It’s [THE REAL REASON]
[THE REVEAL — ONE OR TWO WORDS]
DRAMA — causalCOMPRESSION — four lines, one idea
His losers are the same opinions with nobody to disagree with. He always names a real guru and corrects them.
See the post →
10It’s actually simple
Dan Genzel · US commercial real estate · 1,012
How to analyze a commercial property in 20 minutes
Most people think analyzing commercial real estate is complicated.
It’s not.
You need 5 numbers for initial deal analysis. That’s it.
Here’s how I evaluate any commercial property in 20 minutes or less:
1. Purchase Price — What are you paying?
2. Net Operating Income (NOI) — Total income minus operating expenses (not including debt service). This tells you what the property actually makes without a loan payment.
How to [DO THE HARD THING] in [SHORT TIME]
Most people think [THE THING] is complicated.
It’s not.
You need [N] things. That’s it.
DRAMA — causal reversalCOMPRESSION — “It’s not.” on its own line
See the post →
11The scene
Lisa Macqueen · commercial cleaning · 2,052
Him: “Can I talk to your husband please?”
Me: "But I run the company.”
He still wanted to talk to my husband.
Apparently, being the CEO isn’t enough when you’re a woman.
It wasn’t the first time.
It probably won’t be the last.
Them: “[THE LINE THEY ACTUALLY SAID]”
Me: “[WHAT I SAID BACK]”
[THEY DID IT ANYWAY]
[NAME WHAT JUST HAPPENED]
DRAMA — moral orderCOMPRESSION — dialogue, no narration
She posted this twice. Both versions are in her top three.
See the post →
12The transcript
Richard Wilson · corporate affairs · 334
Corporate Affairs: Can we quickly walk through the comms for Tuesday’s redundancy announcement.
CEO: Absolutely. People-first. That’s the whole point. I want our workforce to feel held through this.
CA: Good. So, the consultants’ deck. It refers to staff as "FTE pools" and talks about "delayering non-value-accretive nodes." Can we get a plain-English version of what’s actually changing?
CEO: That’s exactly the kind of thing you’re brilliant at. Translate it. Humanise it.
[ROLE A]: [the reasonable request]
[ROLE B]: [the noble-sounding answer]
[ROLE A]: [the document that contradicts it, quoted]
WORLD — real job titles, real euphemismDRAMA — other minds
See the post →
13The named authority, attacked
Syed Mustafa Hassan · US financial planners · 205
Dave Ramsey has no CFP, no license, and calls the whole financial industry crooks.
20 million people take his money advice anyway.
He tells them to never trust a commissioned salesman.
Then he sells those same people to advisors who pay him every month to be a "SmartVestor Pro."
So I checked who the market actually rewards here.
It is not the qualified one.
[FAMOUS NAME] has no [CREDENTIAL] and says [THE THING THEY SAY].
[BIG NUMBER] of people believe them anyway.
Then they [THE CONTRADICTION].
DRAMA — moral orderWORLD — CFP, fiduciary, the 1% fee
See the post →
14The costly self-disclosure
Bec Lindert · rural Australia · 492 · 24× median on 2,700 followers
We’ve had a gutful of Canberra.
Historically, I’m not a One Nation supporter.
But times are changing, and I’m thinking hard about who I vote for right now. Seats that were Liberal National safe my whole life aren’t safe anymore. That’s not a shift to take lightly.
We’ve seen this before. Trump in the US. Brexit. Boris Johnson. People get sick enough of being talked over by the same two options that they take a punt on someone else.
This isn’t a swing on policy. It’s a swing on being heard. Both major parties campaign in our shire halls and then govern like we don’t exist. We’ve been polite about it. Until now.
[COLLECTIVE GRIEVANCE, IN THE TRIBE’S OWN IDIOM]
Historically, I’m not [THE THING THIS ALIGNS ME WITH].
But [WHY THAT’S CHANGING].
DRAMA — speaker, it costs her to say itWORLD — “gutful”, Canberra
Her losers are full of the things her winners have none of: bullets, hashtags, “you”. The moment she writes like a content person, they stop reading.
See the post →
15The flat kill
Megan Gross · SF investors & operators · 588
Networking is dead.
People are exhausted with networking events.
Every event promotes “networking.”
But really, all they’re doing is carving out time for serendipity - hoping you might meet someone relevant.
That’s not connection.
That’s chance.
[THE RITUAL EVERYONE DOES] is dead.
People are exhausted with it.
Every [X] promotes it.
But really, all it does is [THE UNFLATTERING TRUTH].
DRAMA — categoryCOMPRESSION — three words in line one
See the post →
16The origin scar
Dylan Grocer · medical & pharma sales reps · 821
Five years ago, I almost quit.
I was 21, sitting in my apartment making cold calls… trying to convince friends to become clients.
They tell you to “start with your natural market.”
Talk to friends. Talk to family.
Here’s how I felt:
Friends didn’t see me as an advisor.
[N] years ago, I almost quit.
I was [AGE], [THE SCENE, ONE CONCRETE IMAGE].
They tell you to [THE STANDARD ADVICE].
[WHY IT DOESN’T WORK]
DRAMA — speakerCOMPRESSION — one image does the whole scene
He’s a financial advisor whose personal milestones beat all of his advice content.
See the post →
17The volume receipt
Chris Taylor · leadership programmes · 1,668
We analyzed 3,276 training workshops.
Here’s everything we learned about how to Demonstrate Impact.
HOT off the presses...
From Anecdote to Evidence; How to Demonstrate Impact in Leadership Programs
We analysed [ABSURDLY SPECIFIC NUMBER] [THINGS].
Here’s everything we learned about [THE PROBLEM THEY HAVE].
DRAMA — volume as evidenceCOMPRESSION — two lines
He ran it three times — 3,276, then 6,814, then 2,740. All three are in his top five. The formula does the work, not the number.
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18The artefact gate
Loma Naser · NDIS providers · 130 likes / 1,417 comments
𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗗: The NDIS provider CHEAT list for hospital discharge
(YES this is part II)
I’m giving away my strategic list of 𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗔𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗮 for NDIS participants.
I also include what you need to do to start getting hospital referrals.
Comment "Hospital" and I’ll send it to you (must be connected)
P.S. If we’re not connected, send through a request, and ill approve and share the list!
The [TRIBE] CHEAT LIST for [THE TASK THEY DREAD]
(No one ever shared this before)
I’m giving away [THE ACTUAL ARTEFACT, NAMED SPECIFICALLY]
WORLD — only an NDIS provider can read thisDRAMA — the secret, shown
Eleven comments for every like. If anyone still thinks likes are the scoreboard, show them this one.
See the post →
19The live proof
Evan Sukman · Canadian students · 2,468
5 of my students are in EY 2nd rounds this week.
I’m sharing a 23-min prep video I made for them.
It covers:
• EY 2nd round formats (short vs. long cases)
[N] of my [PEOPLE] are in [NAMED FIRM / EVENT] [STAGE] this week.
I’m sharing the [ARTEFACT] I made for them.
WORLD — “2nd rounds” sorts the room instantlyDRAMA — time, it’s happening now
Every one of his losers pitches his paid workshop. Every winner gives an artefact away. Same theme in both — the CTA is the whole difference.
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20Inside the world
Ben Blumenfeld · the frum community · 699
You can be earning $1 Million+ as a frum person and still feel choked.
The frum lifestyle doesn’t care how much you’re making.
It can devour whatever you bring to the table.
• THOUSANDS in tuition every year.
• A home big enough for a family of 6+.
• 2 or 3 (LUXURY) cars in the driveway.
• Yom Tov expenses that would blow most people’s minds.
The [TRIBE] life: [TWO RITUAL FACTS]
[FOUR INSIDER WORDS, NO EXPLANATION]
[THE EASY PHASE]. Life’s simple.
[THE THING THAT ENDS IT]
WORLD — the densest in the whole studyCOMPRESSION — four words, four rituals
You cannot read line two. That is the entire point — and it’s one of his best posts.
See the post →
Close on this
Three people, three countries, three industries, none of whom know each other. Same rhythm.
“Good pay. Good work. Good people.”
“Daven. Coffee. Chavrusa. Shteiging.”
“Weekly date nights. Actually using your PTO.”
That is what compression looks like on the page. Not fewer words — more pattern per word. Across 37 people, the winning posts are longer than the losing ones and simultaneously more repetitive. A short post with no pattern isn’t compressed. It’s just short.