TTL 46
Lately, I’ve been putting real effort into my personal branding. I’ve been posting more consistently on my blog and started using LinkedIn.
It’s been rewarding. I’ve had new ideas, and finally organized many of the old ones that were floating around.
Writing, for me, isn’t just a way to communicate — it’s a way to think.
If you’ve been following my posts, though, you might’ve noticed something: I was pretty consistent last fall, and again this summer. But there’s a big gap — the first six months of 2025, when nothing was published.
Here’s what happened.
Have you read my post NOT a self-made man? If not, I recommend it — it explains much of the philosophy behind what I’m about to share.
So, the truth is: I don’t write my posts on LinkedIn or ttl.blog – she does.
(I am the only one writing on paolo.blog, that’s my outlet of choice when I want my fingers to be hitting the keyboard, and monochrome.blog is instead a collaboration between me and ChatGPT)
### Hi, I’m Francesca, and I’m Paolo’s personal editor. I figured I would say hi and break the fourth wall for once 👋 ###
Okay, Paolo here again — thanks, Francesca.
Sounds confusing? Let me clarify.
I’ve had a blog since the early 2000s. I love writing, sharing ideas, and I deeply love blogs — they’ve been both my passion and my job. But that also means most of my time goes into helping the world create them, not into me writing.
That’s why I’ve always struggled to keep my own blog updated.
So, in 2024, I made a decision.
Since I truly believe no one is self-made — and that the best way to achieve meaningful work is by asking for help — I partnered with Scaling Tales, a content delegation service that helps me stay consistent and sharp in my publishing.
We’ve been working together ever since, except for a few months last winter (the same ones when I didn’t publish anything 😂).
That’s when Francesca and Riccardo came in.
Every week, we have a short 30-minute call to discuss ideas and topics. Then, the process begins: they help me pinpoint what’s most relevant for my audience and turn my raw thoughts into clear, engaging words. Then, we refine everything together until it sounds unmistakably mine.
So yes, the cat’s out of the bag. (Though, honestly, it never really wasn’t.)
Is ghostwriting… ethical?
We often imagine authors as lone geniuses — sitting at a desk, conjuring perfect prose from nowhere.
It’s a romantic image. It’s also false.
Good writing is collaborative. It’s a process of trial, error, and iteration. Editors, proofreaders, and researchers — they all help an author make their ideas shine.
That’s why we thank them in acknowledgments.
Now, is ghostwriting ethical?
It depends on the purpose of the writing.
When someone writes a novel, the text is the product. The specific sentences, the rhythm, the style — that’s the art.
But for me, writing isn’t the product. I’m not chasing literary perfection.
My goal is to share useful ideas — clearly, honestly, and in a way people can relate to.
In my case, the product is the thinking. The writing serves it.
What about AI?
AI can speed up research, drafting, and analysis. But it can’t replace the human part: intuition, doubt, the gut feeling that one idea is better than another.
So no, I don’t just ask ChatGPT to write my posts. (Although I do use it as a sparing partner to bounce ideas and find flaws in them).
Because AI doesn’t call you when you procrastinate.
It doesn’t challenge your ideas.
It doesn’t sense your excitement — or hesitation.
It’s still a useful tool, but not a substitute for human judgment (nor human-to-human accountability).
Why does my name stay on the byline?
- The ideas originate with me — the insights, distinctions, and frameworks come from my experience.
- I’m accountable for every argument — if something’s wrong or unclear, that’s on me.
- I do a full ownership edit — nothing gets published that I wouldn’t stand behind.
- Transparency is intentional — process should create trust, not suspicion.
If I ever publish something based on someone else’s ideas, they’ll be credited — or they’ll sign it. Simple.
Please reply, disagree, or add nuance. If you write — sometimes or often — I’m curious: Where do you sit on the authorship spectrum? What’s the single bottleneck slowing your publishing cadence? What kind of help (editorial, structural, research, accountability) would remove it first?
And if you’re struggling to write your own blog, social media posts, or anything else you care about, I highly recommend finding someone to help you.
The ideas will still be yours; the process might get faster.
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I also publish on paolo.blog and monochrome.blog.
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