Waiting for perfect isn’t strategic … It creates a cold start problem.

👋 Welcome back to Content to Commas, your weekly playbook for turning content into authority, consistency, and growth.

Last week in Atlanta at TED, someone told me, “You’re good at building in public.” It surprised me a bit, because I never set out to do it consciously.

You may hear “build in public” and think revenue screenshots and performative vulnerability. That’s not it, at least not to me.

Entrepreneurs have always built in public, social media just scaled it.

It's not "share everything" or "share nothing”, you just need the right framework for where you are … that’s where I come in.

If you want to build in public, these are the levels you need to know.

📌 In this issue:

Let’s get to work,

Brandon Smithwrick 🧠

Stanley is your AI content coach that studies your LinkedIn content, learns your tone, and writes in a way that actually sounds like you, not generic templates.

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“there’s levels to this” - Meek Mill

I’m not Meek, but I agree.

Building in public will look different but regardless of your niche, your community and future buyers need proof and they want to see your journey.

It's about showing people your work in a way that matches your style.

The pre-order screenshots, your product timeline with dates, rolling your luggage on the way to the airport for a conference, and a redacted document teasing something big.

Here’s your roadmap.

_{Reply with the level you’re at and the one move that will take you to the next.}

The bare minimum … but a meaningful minimum.

You’re showing up. Not super polished. Not frequent. But still better than silent.

You post when you feel “inspired” with no clear purpose or method.

Your are posting, which is good, but posting only when inspired trains inconsistency.

You’re not building a brand yet.

If you want to level up, commit to two posts a week for four weeks. Put them on your calendar like meetings.

This is less about your expertise and more about letting people in.

Small glimpses into how you work. Enough to feel human, but not enough to be a highlight reel.

Just watch out, you don’t want to turn your feed into a diary with no context.

Your process becomes a product. You teach by showing the work and you have enough content to back it up.

At this stage, you're doing one of the most important exercises to improve your content quality … repetition.

You can train that content muscle several times a week (at least).

If you run an errand in the city, grab coffee, attend an event … at Level 3 you notice the moments worth capturing.

At least 20% of people should be building at this level, but be careful. It's very easy to simply present your audience with receipts and passive video content, but you want to ensure it doesn't become content autopilot.

You’ve posted enough to earn the space to play.

One of my favorite personal brand examples here is George Heaton, founder of Represent UK.

He started by simply promoting his business, the new clothing samples, and new retail pop-ups. Then he did 75 Hard and began showcasing his workouts, and his community fell in love.

That experiment into fitness translated into a fitness line within his brand and an extra $40 million a year because his brand became so big. (hear more)

You're no longer just an online account; you're a persona, a brand.

My advice? Keep 70% proven and make 30% experiments.

One variable per week: topic, format, or style.

People recognize your content before seeing your name. That’s branding.

This is when your personal brand matures. You’re no longer “someone who posts.” You’re building a content identity.

This is brand territory. Once people recognize your content without your name attached, you’ve reached Level 5.

Want in? Start creating a content series and stick with it. Post it for 6-12 weeks straight.

Your story becomes the engine. People follow YOU.

At this level, you’re building a world.

Your audience isn’t just following content anymore.

This is the level most successful creators live at.

This is the level that builds movements, not follower counts.

Every week I share a quick practical tips on branding, monetization, growth strategies, and tools I actually use that you might’ve missed. Catch up in minutes…

🏆 Content to Commas was nominated for Best Social Newsletter.

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Voting ends November 21.