CarTalk with Kartik

CarTalk with Kartik #310: Can Your Idea Travel? Can your big idea survive outside your zip code? That's the question one of my CEO clients and I discussed recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and named a Top Consultant of the Year by PMA, here's my take. A CEO book should not just prove that your idea worked once. It should show why it can work again....

CarTalk with Kartik #309: The Book Inside Your Pain What does being alone, not lonely, really mean? That's the question one of my CEO clients and I discussed recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and named a Top Consultant of the Year by Product Marketing Alliance, here's my take. Being alone is not the same as being empty. Sometimes it means finally he...

CarTalk with Kartik #308: Launch Starts Before Writing What happens when positioning shows up after the product is done? That's the question I recently discussed with one of my CEO clients. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and named a Top Consultant of the Year by PMA, here's my take. This mistake happens all too often with CEO books. Some CEOs write the who...

CarTalk with Kartik #307: The Hero Trap Is your business secretly held together by one heroic person? That's the question I recently discussed with one of my CEO clients. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and named a Top Consultant of the Year by PMA, here's my take. If your company works only because Sarah remembers every customer detail, Roger knows every w...

CarTalk with Kartik #306: Write The Hard Truth What if your book is not a project, but an instruction? That's the question I discussed with one of my CEO clients recently. Hey there, welcome to CarTalk with Kartik, I'm Nitin Kartik. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and named a Top Consultant of the Year by PMA, here's my answer. Sometimes your book does...

CarTalk with Kartik #305: Ego Book or Growth Book? Is your book aligned with your CEO goals, or just your ego goals? That's the question I recently discussed with one of my CEO clients. Hey there, welcome to CarTalk with Kartik, I'm Nitin Kartik. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and named a Top Consultant of the Year by PMA, here's my take. A CEO book sh...

CarTalk with Kartik #304: Make Your Mission Inevitable What if your book could make your mission feel inevitable? That's the question I recently discussed with one of my CEO clients. Hey there, welcome to CarTalk with Kartik, I'm Nitin Kartik. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and named a Top Consultant of the Year by PMA, here's my take. A powerful CEO b...

CarTalk with Kartik #303: Your Book Is Your Homecoming What if becoming an author is really about coming home to yourself? That's the question I recently discussed with one of my CEO clients. Hey there, welcome to CarTalk with Kartik, I'm Nitin Kartik. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and named a Top Consultant of the Year by PMA, here's my take. For man...

CarTalk with Kartik #302: Your Book Builds Champions How can your book turn customers into ambassadors? That's the question one of my CEO clients asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here's my answer. Most CEOs think a book is just a credibility tool. It is. But it can also become an ambassador engine...

CarTalk with Kartik #301: The Book Funnel Mistake Should your book replace your sales funnel? That's the question one of my CEO clients asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and named a Top Consultant of the Year by Product Marketing Alliance, here's my answer. No. Your book should not replace your sales funnel. It should make your sales funnel...

CarTalk with Kartik #300: Five Stories First Why should a book include personal stories? That’s the question one of my CEO clients asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here’s my answer. Because people don’t connect with your resume. They connect with your receipts. Your awards, titles, and company milestones...

CarTalk with Kartik #299: Make Readers See Themselves Should a book tell stories or teach lessons? That's the question one of my CEO clients asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here's my answer. Your book should do both. Lessons make the reader think, “Interesting.” Stories make the reader think, “Wa...

CarTalk with Kartik #298: Content with Consequences Should a book inspire people or drive business? That’s the question one of my CEO clients asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here’s my answer. A great CEO book should inspire readers and support business goals. Otherwise, it becomes a very expensive diary...

CarTalk with Kartik #297: Humanize Your Big Idea Should a book explain your products or tell stories? That's the question one of my CEO clients asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and named a Top Consultant of the year by Product Marketing Alliance, here's my answer. If your book reads like a product manual, your reader may suddenly remember...

CarTalk with Kartik #296: Stop Writing Release Notes Should a book focus on features or feelings? That’s the question one of my CEO clients asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here's my answer. Your book should not read like software release notes wearing a blazer. Yes, your ideas matter. Your framework...

CarTalk with Kartik #295: Turn Books Into Snacks Should a book become snackable content? That's the question one of my CEO clients asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here's my answer. Your book should be the Thanksgiving turkey. But your content should be the leftovers. Most CEOs think, “I wrote the...

CarTalk with Kartik #294: Make Readers The Hero How do you actually make your book interesting? That's the question a #CEO asked me recently. Hey there, welcome to CarTalk with Kartik, I'm Nitin Kartik. As a 2X #bestselling author featured on #BBC TV & Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here's my answer. Your book becomes interesting when your reader becomes th...

CarTalk with Kartik #293: Books Warm Buyers Should my book sell my company’s products right away? That's the question a CEO asked me recently. Hey there, welcome to CarTalk with Kartik, I'm Nitin Kartik. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here's my answer. No. Your book should not behave like an over-caffeinated s...

CarTalk with Kartik #292: Don’t Bore Buyers Can a better story beat a better product? That's the question a CEO asked me recently. Hey there, welcome to CarTalk with Kartik, I'm Nitin Kartik. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here's my answer. Yes. Not always, but more often than technical founders like to admit....

CarTalk with Kartik #291: Books Need Brevity Is my book idea too complex for busy readers? That's the question a CEO asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here's my answer. Probably yes. But that is not a problem. It is the job. Most CEOs have powerful ideas, but they often explain them like they are p...

CarTalk with Kartik #290: Your Book Builds Your Reputation What should show up when buyers Google you? That's the question one of the CEOs I collaborated with asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here's my answer. Before a CEO writes a book, I always ask them to look at their digital footprint. Becaus...

CarTalk with Kartik #289: The Ice Cream Truck Effect How can your book make buyers feel something? That's the question one of the CEOs I collaborated with asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV & Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here's my answer. Your book should not just inform people. It should influence how they feel about you. Think...

CarTalk with Kartik #288: What Belongs in Your Book How do you decide what belongs in your book? That's the question one of the CEOs I collaborated with asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV, Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here's my answer. Use an impact-effort matrix. A great CEO book is not a dumping ground for every story, lesson, fram...

CarTalk with Kartik #287: Make Value Visible Should your book reveal your product early? That’s the question one of the CEOs I collaborated with asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV, Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here's my answer. Absolutely! If you are writing a book as a CEO, don’t treat your product, framework, or methodology like the su...

CarTalk with Kartik #286: The One Sentence Strategy Why does a great book still need sales enablement? That's the question one of the CEOs I collaborated with asked me recently. As a 2X bestselling author featured on BBC TV, Times Square and having collaborated with over 70 CEOs, here's my answer. Your book should not just explain your ideas. It should help your team sell them. When I help...