Change Is in the Air

I have been curating and editing “newsletters” in some form or another for years. Usually for colleagues or clients, small closed lists. I enjoy it. There is something about the rhythm of it, the discipline. But I have always wanted to do something bigger, something at scale. I waited too long, but here we are.

I launched The Big Shift: AI @ Work on a whim. A few weeks in, I have learned a lot. Enough to know I need to make some changes. More on that in a minute.

First, let’s talk about newsletters.

Newsletters are the new blog. Everyone has one these days. It’s a little annoying.

The thing is, people actually read newsletters. They do not just stumble upon them by chance in their feeds. They sign up, they invite you into their inbox, and that is a big deal. I would take one email subscriber over a hundred social followers any day.

The technology behind newsletters is ancient. As old as the internet.

So why now? Why are newsletters exploding in the era of feeds… TikTok, Apple News, X, Bluesky and whatever?

A stroll down memory lane.

First, you had to bookmark. Remember your favorite sites, visit them one by one. Laborious. Only for the truly devoted.

Then came RSS. RIP Google Reader. I’ve mourned the death of no other software more than thee. Subscribe once, get a clean, reverse-chronological feed of everything you care about all in one place. But it was too nerdy, too niche. A tool for information obsessives.

Then came social. Subscribe to your friends, let them curate for you. For a while, it was fun. Then the publishers caught on. That wasn’t so bad at first. But then came the trolls, then the algorithms, then the influencers. Those damn influencers. The feed got murky. Greed took over. The same greed that ruined search (Google Ads and SEO) and shopping (Amazon’s "sponsored" junk) came for social. 

Got to pay the bills, I suppose.

So, social became an ad channel. Your feed filled with content designed for engagement, not quality. The joy of seemingly serendipitous discovery disappeared.

So where do you go when the algorithm stops working for you?

Newsletters.

They bring back control. No algorithmic gatekeepers. No engagement hacks. Just direct, predictable content from someone you chose to hear from.

They fill the void left by RSS.

They offer an alternative to institutional media.

They let creators own their audience. No platform risk. No shifting rules.

Most importantly, they offer focus. Newsletters do not fight for your attention the way social does. They are read with intent.

That is why they are back.

Now, about The Big Shift.

I launched with a daily format. Three stories, every day. A wrap on AI’s influence on work, the labor force, and the economy. The newsletter grew fast. Almost entirely from referrals, which was incredibly gratifying. Even more gratifying? The engagement. Open rates, click-throughs, referrals—off the charts.

Your feedback has been thoughtful, constructive, encouraging. I appreciate it.

I have also realized something.

Many of you are AI-curious. You want insight. You want to track the big themes. But you do not need a daily update. It is too much.

Also, despite the daily deluge of stories, AI news has started to feel redundant.

AI will take your job. AI will not take your job. Many companies cannot seem to scale AI. Some companies are really scaling the hell out of AI. The workforce needs upskilling. An AI company released a new model. Blah. Blah. Blah. The same stories. Again and again.

That is a failure of curation. That is on me.

So here is what is changing.

Starting this week, The Big Shift will be weekly. A Friday wrap. 3-5 top stories. Less but better. Thematic analysis, usually multiple sources per breakdown, not just a string of single-article summaries.

And since some of you seem to like the original editorial pieces, I will keep them coming. That was unexpected, and I appreciate the vote of confidence. The ideas flow like water, but shaping them into a coherent narrative with a point of view does not. That part is hard. But I have come to understand that I need that challenge. The discipline of crafting something I think is thought-provoking, with a clear perspective, and worth your time has been good for me.

So, Sunday Prompts will stay. I might even drop the occasional mid-week reaction when something big happens.

That is it. The shift in The Big Shift.

If you made it this far, thank you.

See you Friday.