PR Expert for Thought Leadership

PR Strategist for Founder Thought Leadership I’m looking for a U.S.-based PR expert to help build and execute a thought-leadership strategy around me as an entrepreneur working across technology, design, art, AI, software development, and e-commerce. This is not a traditional “send press releases and pitch journalists” PR role. I’m looking for someone who understands how ideas, stories, media narratives, controversy, timing, positioning, and distribution can be used strategically to create attention and build long-term authority. A major reference point for this project is Ryan Holiday’s Trust Me, I’m Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator. I’m specifically interested in someone who understands the mechanics described in the book: how stories move through the media ecosystem, how smaller publications can influence larger ones, how journalists and bloggers find stories, how narratives gain momentum, and how attention can be deliberately engineered rather than simply hoped for. The objective is not to blindly reproduce everything Holiday describes. I want someone who understands those mechanisms well enough to intelligently apply, adapt, or reject them depending on the situation. What I’m Looking For You should be able to help with: Developing my positioning and public narrative Identifying interesting angles around my businesses, projects, products, and ideas Finding stories that are genuinely worth pitching Creating strategies for getting those stories into the media ecosystem Identifying publications, journalists, podcasts, newsletters, and other relevant channels Building relationships with writers and media contacts Developing unconventional PR campaigns when appropriate Turning existing projects and accomplishments into compelling stories Determining what I should publicly talk about and what viewpoints I can credibly own Building recognition around my name rather than simply promoting individual companies or products Creating a repeatable PR strategy instead of doing isolated press hits I have multiple businesses, products, software projects, creative projects, and intellectual property that can provide material for this. The job is partly figuring out which of those things can become interesting stories and how they connect into a coherent public identity. Important: I Do Not Want a Generic Application I do not need your résumé rewritten into the proposal. I can already see your Upwork profile. Do not send me a long description of your career history. Do not give me a generic explanation of what PR is. Do not summarize Trust Me, I’m Lying for me. Tell me how you would approach this project and what you think you could actually do with it. I want to communicate with the person doing the thinking and the work, not receive polished boilerplate generated by AI. Application Requirement You must own or have access to a physical copy of Trust Me, I’m Lying. To apply, include the third sentence starting in Chapter 5 from your physical copy of the book. This is intentionally specific. It is there to verify that you actually have the book in front of you. If you do not have the book, do not apply. If your application says that you cannot provide the sentence, cannot access the text, cannot quote copyrighted material, gives me a summary instead, explains what Chapter 5 is about, or provides any other AI-style workaround, your application will be disqualified. I am deliberately looking for a real person who owns the book, understands it, and can think independently about how its ideas apply to modern PR. Requirements: U.S.-based, strong written communication, genuine PR/media experience, strategic rather than purely administrative, and personally familiar with Trust Me, I’m Lying.