Ask me anything: 1,000 subscribers edition
Last week I hit the milestone of 1,000 subscribers.
I feel incredibly grateful and privileged that so many of you have chosen to read what I write. In addition to hitting 1,000 subscribers, every post bar one1 this calendar year has now had over 1,000 views - with several having multiple thousands - a reassuring statistic that people are not just subscribing, but reading.
To mark hitting 4 digits, this is an ‘Ask my Anything’ piece, for all the things you’d like to ask me but that I haven’t yet written about. We did this back in September, when I hit 500 subscribers2 (the answers are here) but now with an extra 500 regular readers, it feels time to do it again.
So ask me anything. It can be on any subject you like - current affairs, education, books, games, favourite pie3 - and I will do my best to answer insightfully, concisely or, failing that, entertainingly.
To ask a question, just leave a comment. I’ll then do a post answering the questions next week.
Ask away! No question too zany! And remember, please do share this blog with those you think would like it - I rely on word of mouth for my audience and personal recommendations are a core part of that.4
FAQ
Will you answer any question?
I'll try to answer any question asked in good faith. I won't answer a question if it would breach a confidence that's not mine to share, or if it's so taboo that just writing about it can get you in trouble. Anything about my current work is off limits, for obvious reasons.
I'm happy to answer most personal questions, but there may be the odd one which I'll skirt around.
In general, I'll try to answer part of a question rather than none at all, or something related, or, at worst, say I won't answer. But the odds are I will, so ask away.
Can I ask you about something you know nothing about?
Yes, but don't be surprised if the answer is very short!
How long will each answer be?
I'm anticipating one to three paragraphs, but I reserve the right to vary this.
Can I ask more than one question?
Yes. If you do I'll choose which one to answer.
How do I ask my question?
Please write it as a comment below this post.
What question should I ask?
Anything you like. Ask away!
The April Fool post - at 925.
The sharp-eyed will note that my doubling-time has slowed from every six months to every seven months - a marginal change, one might think, but one that shockingly puts back the date at which, on current trends, the entire global population will subscribe to this substack almost two years, from November 2036 to August 2038.
Steak and kidney.
Or, if you have your own substack and enjoy reading this one, add me to your ‘recommendations’ - it makes a big difference.
If you got a phone call from the Right Honourable Secretary of State for Education asking you to establish NICE for Education, what would the first two months look like? Who would you headhunt? Whitehall can be quite political; what common pitfalls would you want to avoid?
It is August 2038 and, as forecast, your blog is now subscribed to by the entire global population! Disappointingly, though, the immutable rules of the blogosphere somehow limit you to just one last post. In one to three paragraphs, what is your final message to humanity?