You need words.
I’m here to help.


The Problem: You Want to Stand Out

Let’s talk about you and your tech company.

You’re doing interesting things but people don’t get it. So you want to publish smart ideas that show you’re remarkable and get people talking. Maybe it’s a thinkpiece or a manifesto. Or maybe you want to profile your customers or create a fun video. Or maybe it’s time to create a newsletter or a podcast.

But you’re busy. You’re already wearing a bunch of hats and you don’t have time to write, hone, and perfect your ideas. Plus, you’re a doer not a writer. If only someone else could pick your brain, extract the best ideas, and run with them. 

 

The Solution: A Writer Who Gets It

Good news! Help is on the way.

My name is Matt Ruby and I’m a writer 📯 horn toot ahead 🎷 who’s written a NY Times bestselling business book, a groundbreaking business blog, a web series that’s been viewed millions of times, and a standup comedy album that went top 10 at iTunes.

My specialty is taking drab tech/business topics and making them interesting and accessible to regular people. Boredom and jargon are my enemies and creativity and plain English are my superpowers.

So. Many. Notes.

So. Many. Notes.

“So you’re a ghostwriter?”

Think of me as an embedded journalist for your company. I dislike “ghostwriter” because 1) I’m not spooky and 2) it makes this sound like some fantastical process where an otherworldly spirit goes off and invents wonderful things on your behalf. I view us more as collaborators: You’ll be the idea (wo)man, I’ll serve as translator/wordsmith, and together we’ll broadcast your ideas (in your voice) to the world.

 

The Specifics: How We’ll Collaborate

Don’t worry, it won’t be a chore. It’s as easy as talking on the phone (video chat or in person works too). Your good ideas already exist, we just need to surface them.

How I typically work: I record our conversation(s), transcribe them, and craft them into compelling pieces you can publish (audio/video possibities too). I repurpose everything into bite sized snippets perfect for social media posts too. You have complete creative control and own the final product (no need to put my name on it).

Send me an email and we’ll discuss it further. 

 

About Me: The Part Where I Brag

  • Co-author of three books: REWORK (a bestseller in the US and UK, Mark Cuban said, “If given a choice between investing in someone who has read REWORK or has an MBA, I’m investing in REWORK every time. A must read for every entrepreneur.”), Getting Real, and Defensive Design for the Web.

  • Employee #1 at Basecamp (formerly 37signals) and co-author of the pioneering company blog Signal vs. Noise and the 37signals Manifesto that launched the company. There, I also created podcasts, videos, web designs, and satirical projects like eNormicom, which was featured in the NY Times.

  • Creator, writer, and star of Vooza, a video comic strip about the startup world (Forbes: "Comedic genius." The Next Web: "A must watch." HuffPo: "Hilarious."). The show’s 180+ episodes have been viewed millions of times and received press in publications like Vice, TechCrunch, Wired, Inc., and more. The Vooza team also creates fun videos for a wide range of clients.

  • Consultant: I’ve also provided writing, creative strategy, and video production services for clients like Mailchimp, Turkish Airlines, Heartbeat, Disqus, New Relic, Ustream, VMware, AppDynamics, Twenty20, and many more. Email me for samples.

  • I’m a standup comedian. My debut standup album “Hot Flashes” made the Top 10 at iTunes and is in regular rotation on SiriusXM. I’ve been filmed by Comedy Central, NBC/Seeso, Fox, and MTV and perform regularly at the Comedy Cellar in NYC and at comedy clubs across North America (and the rest of the world too).

 

Philosophy: 10 Things I Think

  1. The worst thing you can be is boring. Let’s bring out the ideas you have that are controversial, offensive, funny, antagonistic, or surprising – anything but dull.

  2. People who overuse jargon are trying to hide a lack of good ideas. Let’s speak in a way that everyone can understand.

  3. It’s good to have an enemy. It helps you define what you stand for and build your tribe. Let’s take a stand.

  4. Use the whole buffalo. Let’s repurpose your ideas in different forms (social media posts, blog entries, video snippets, etc.) so they have a longer shelf life/greater impact.

  5. Awards are dumb ego-strokes.

  6. Anyone who promises you’ll go viral is lying.

  7. No one reads resumés.

  8. Red tape, proposals, and negotiations are boring. Let’s figure out how to get started and actually make something. Minimal viable everything.

  9. Ideas are worthless, execution is everything.

  10. Don’t force it. If you’ve only got 9 things to say, screw #10.

 

Let’s Talk: Get in Touch

Let’s schedule a consultation. We’ll talk through the options and figure out next steps.

And feel free to shoot me an email to discuss anything. I’d love to hear from you.

Best,
Matt

P.S. You can also sign up for my newsletter. It's got jokes, videos, essays, and all kinds of groovy stuff:

 

Testimonials and
Writing Samples

“We ended up with a TechCrunch article, a huge increase in traffic and a measurable increase in sales.”
-Andrew Angus, Switch Video

“Couldn’t be happier, a big hit both internally and externally.”
-Kevin Goldberg, AppDynamics

“Our video went viral and was tweeted by a lot of the press.”
-Monica McDermott, Ustream

“The perfect balance of informative and humorous!”
-Victoria Sevilla, VMware

“Everyone who saw it LOL’d. They are comic geniuses.”
-Alexandra Watkins, Eat My Words

“We’ll definitely work with them again soon.”
–Amy Pritchard, Metaverse Mod Squad

“The buzz we got was overwhelming!”
-Zeena Bushnaq, BrandBucket


“Side Hustle” as a Sign of the Apocalypse
“Mom-tech” means we’re letting our lives be dictated by brogrammers who want to breastfeed forever.

Tone is in Your Fingers
An excerpt from REWORK on how gearheads get it wrong.

The Things That Matter When You Die
Watching my father pass away taught me a lot about how to live

What Glossier, Lululemon, & Patagonia all have in common. Hint: It’s more than 1B+ valuations
You want an audience that “gets” you and subscribes to you. Then you don’t have to waste money on huge advertising budgets.

Scott Heiferman looks back at Meetup's bet-the-company moment
When Meetup went from free to pay, many customers were outraged.

The Gift of Bitcoin: Introduction to Bitcoin
The first chapter of a Bitcoin education book sent to new Bitcoiners.

Q&A with Chris Wanstrath, CEO and Co-Founder of GitHub
Part of a series on “Bootstrapped, Profitable, & Proud” companies.

What I’ve Learned From 10 Years of Doing Standup Comedy
Jokes, jealousy, and the journey of being a comedian in New York City

Tesloop brings Teslas to the masses via blockchain
Making electric transportation more accessible via the blockchain.

WorkCoin founder Fred Krueger reinvents freelance work on the blockchain
A veteran founder explains the lessons he’s learned on his path

Radimparency
One of the most shared tech startup videos ever. “To come up with something truly original, you have to ignore common sense.”

Bitcoin and the Technological Evolution of the Financial System
We are living in hyper­bit­coiniza­tion and it’s basically repricing the world in Bitcoin.

The long cut: How taking the scenic route can yield great results
The tech world has an “always be rushing” obsession with bots, surveys, outsourcing, and speed networking. There’s a better way.

Welcome to eNormicom!


Featured in the NY Times: “Look, we don't want to waste your time...or ours.

You must be determined to create massive economic results in the next 10 minutes.”

The 37signals manifesto
A collection of 37 nuggets of online philosophy and design wisdom.

Ten Lessons from Standup Comedy That Will Make You a Better Speaker
How thinking like a comedian can help you win over a room