change is inevitable

but suffering is optional (not sure that’s the phrase)

tamara scott | february 16, 2026

Hello! It’s been a while. Yes, you’re in the right place. No, this isn’t a spam post.

I started this newsletter over a year ago as a way to support my freelance business, but in the last 6 months, that journey has ended.

Because I co-founded an agency, overQualified, with my colleague and endlessly knowledgeable business partner, Marc Fuson.

So, while this space looks a bit different, it’s the same great marketing advice, but hopefully a whole lot richer with Marc’s input. We’ve got a lot of fun things planned, and we’re testing things out, so please give us your honest (but not too honest) feedback.

Change is inevitable

Marketers and content writers are often the first in the company to take a hit in headcount, and the complete swan dive into AI from corporations looking to save a buck has just made things worse. And it’s not likely that your CEO will suddenly realize how important ongoing marketing efforts run by humans are to the continued success of their corporation.

So, we trudge on into the new reality and try to make the most of it.

But suffering is optional ¹

Several things can get lost in the frenzy of new initiatives.

The audience and your message (should) remain the same.
The basics will always remain the same.
Remember last year when the new initiative was the biggest deal and by July it was forgotten because there was a realignment around a new initiative?

I am not saying that you should ignore the new initiatives. If they want everyone to start using AI every day, then figure out a way to do that. Have AI give you a rundown of your meetings for the day, or use it to pull together resources you can use for your next campaign.

Heck, you can even let it write your content for you — but you better be ready to do a lot of fact-checking and humanizing edits.

What remains the same for marketers in times of change is that you know your audience, you know how much work you’re able to do every day, and you have to be able to either delegate the extras or drop them completely.

Know thyself

What items on your to do list get copied over day after day. Like, the ones that you’d rather sit on a 3 hour, agenda-less Teams meeting for a different department than actually do? Make the hard decision to delegate or drop it. If that chronic C-list item keeps getting passed over, then stop trying to do it.

Next, is there a way to do one of your tasks in a way that you like, but might be unexpected? Just last Friday, Marc and I were having our sync meeting, and we were discussing some really interesting and important thoughts about brand authority and consistency he had written out. Marc is a great writer, but I could tell he didn’t feel comfortable with the medium. However, he used to teach classes on branding, and could talk about those things for days.

I started recording our meeting and had him talk to me about brand. That video will probably get shared here very soon, because it has some great insights. And, he didn’t have to write another word.

So, long story long, where can you do your job in ways that you actually enjoy, or at least hate less? If you’re a great writer, then writing blog posts and newsletters are going to be easy. But if you’re struggling to get your marketing tasks done, then maybe think about how to bring down that barrier to entry a bit.

Okay, that’s it. Thanks for reading. If you want to talk about how you can simplify your marketing and maybe get some of those A and B list items done faster, send us an email. And if you liked what you read, please share!

¹ I know that the phrase is pain is inevitable but suffering is optional, but they’re both doing the same work here.