8 Lessons from a Conversation Between @CulturalTutor and David Perell

05 Apr 2025 #writing

From cleaning at McDonald’s to 1.7 million followers on Twitter/X.

Sheehan Quirke (@CulturalTutor) was trying to find ways to make money writing. His best plan was offering tutoring in literature, architecture, and culture. He started his Twitter/X account to drive traffic to his tutoring gig.

Plot twist? People on Twitter didn’t want his tutoring sessions, but his threads.

That’s how Sheehan started. He shared his story here:

And here are my lessons from that interview:

#1. Don’t read anything written in the last 50 years. If you read what everybody else reads, you’ll say same the same things as everybody else. And you’ll think like everybody else. Find good sources of inspiration.

#2. Focus on writing good stuff. Forget about algorithm hacks and engagement pods. Just write.

#3. Write good hooks. Our content is competing with memes and 6-pack abs. Our content will pass unnoticed unless we write opening lines that make people stop scrolling. Steal your hooks from influencers.

#4. The best way to stay consistent is to always believe you can improve. Your writing today is practice for better writing tomorrow.

#5. Find peers who encourage you. This is what James Altucher calls finding your EQUALS. People on the same journey who can challenge and encourage you.

#6. Treat writing as your full-time job. A young boy who wants to make it to the Major Leagues knows he has to train and practice every day. Writing shouldn’t be anything different.

#7. Focus on one thing. It’s easy to get distracted by too many platforms, pretending to be everywhere. Twitter/X, Medium, Substack, LinkedIn, etc. Focus on one thing in one place. When Sheehan was starting on Twitter/X, he wanted to start a newsletter. That would have distracted from what was working: Twitter threads.

#8. Find ideas on your daily conversations. And refine them by talking about them. This sounds like the 3-strike rule to write posts I found the other day.