Q2 2026 - People Aren’t Hiring You for What They Think You Are

When I got my first professional job as a Bay Area publicist, I was super eager to prove that I belonged in that room.

I threw every skill I'd learned as an actor, producer, and writer onto the table, hoping people would see I was capable.

That's not because I lacked confidence. It's because, early in a career, capability is the currency.

Now, a couple decades later, I've realized something different.

My clients aren't looking for someone who can simply do the work. 

They're looking for someone who knows which work is worth doing in the first place. 

Many of them have already invested time and money into projects that were executed flawlessly but solved the wrong problem.

The greatest gift of experience isn't knowing how to do more tasks. 

It's having developed the judgment to know what matters before anyone opens Squarespace, writes a line of copy, or starts their project.

I didn't realize until recently that my website was still trying to prove what I could do instead of how I help people think

That's why I redesigned it.

Early in our careers, we're hired because we can execute our responsibilities effectively. But after years of experience, something changes.

People aren't paying for execution alone anymore. They're paying for judgment: the ability to make the right decisions.

They're hiring someone who knows which questions to ask before anyone starts building.

Someone who can prevent expensive mistakes because they've already lived through them dozens of times.

Someone who sees patterns others miss.

Maybe that's why this realization feels even more relevant now. As task execution becomes easier to automate, human experience and good judgment become even more valuable.

When I looked at my own website, I realized it was underselling that part of my work.

So I rewrote it.

Less about deliverables. 

More about strategy.

Less about websites. 

More about helping accomplished professionals translate decades of expertise into an online presence that earns the same trust they've already earned in person.

It made me wonder how many of us are still marketing ourselves as practitioners when we've actually become advisors.

If your website, LinkedIn profile, or elevator pitch still sounds like it did five or ten years ago, it might be worth asking: Does it showcase what you produce...or the judgment people are really hiring you for?

Those are rarely the same thing.

I'd love to know if you've reached that point in your own career.

Hit reply and tell me: If you rebuilt your website today, not to impress a stranger but to accurately reflect the professional you've become, what would you leave off?

And what would finally deserve to be front and center?

Maybe the "Look what I can do!" version of us got us in the room. But it doesn't have to write our websites forever.

P.S. If this newsletter made you wonder whether your own website is still selling the version of you from five years ago, take a look at mine. It might spark a few ideas before you touch a single page of your own.