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Common Ground GuidesIdeas tested against real conversations and real work.
Original guides that connect what I've learned in coaching, podcasting, media and building businesses. Each one answers a durable question directly, then shows the judgment, examples and conversations behind the answer.
The first six guides
01How to build a podcast you won't quit after 12 episodesPodcast systems · Scope, cadence, production burden, the first 12 episodes and what to simplify.02What long-term personal training teaches you about trustCoaching · Competence, attention, identity and a relationship that survives changing goals.03How to build a personal brand without performing a characterPersonal brand · Being recognizable online without turning into a caricature of yourself.04Better conversations in a polarized, algorithmic worldCommunication · De-escalation principles, interview lessons and how to make disagreement useful.05A practical content system for a one-person businessSystems · Separate strategy, capture, production, distribution and follow-up.06Why consistency is an environment problem, not a motivation problemHabits · Designing the conditions that make the next good decision easier.
Guides publish one at a time. Want the next one when it's out? Subscribe on Substack.
The standard
More than a clean answer.
These aren't generic summaries or keyword articles. Each guide has a first-hand evidence base behind it.
- A direct answer near the top.
- First-hand context and clearly labelled judgment.
- A framework you can reuse.
- Specific examples, and their limits.
- Sources for claims that need evidence.
- Related conversations from the podcast.
- A visible publish and update date.
- One relevant next step.
Writing home
Essays stay on Substack.
Personal essays and the newsletter live on Insight by Chris Liddle. The guides here are structured resources for durable questions.