Fame Formula (Atwood's Rule)

Write regularly for two years and you'll become known in your field

Gergely Orosz
Leaving big tech to build the #1 technology newsletter

Fame Formula (Atwood's Rule)

"He said, there's three simple steps. One, write a blog post. Two, do this three times a week. Three, do it for two years. And I guarantee, if you do this, you're going to be famous." - Gergely Orosz, quoting Jeff Atwood

What It Is

Jeff Atwood, founder of Stack Overflow and author of the legendary Coding Horror blog, distilled his approach to building a professional reputation into a deceptively simple formula. The power isn't in any single post—it's in the compounding effect of consistent output over time.

Gergely Orosz credits this framework as the foundation of his journey from unknown engineer to running the #1 technology newsletter on Substack. He started writing in 2015, long before he saw any business value, and the years of accumulated content and audience became the launchpad for his paid newsletter success.

How It Works

The Three Components:

  1. Create consistently - Write a blog post (or equivalent content)
  2. Maintain frequency - Do this three times a week (or at least regularly)
  3. Commit long-term - Continue for two years minimum

Why Two Years Matters:

  • Your first posts won't be great—you need volume to improve
  • Building an audience takes time—there's no shortcut
  • Compounding kicks in—one post might go viral and bring readers to your backlog
  • You develop a unique voice and perspective through repetition

How to Apply It

  1. Choose your medium - Blog, newsletter, YouTube, podcast, Twitter threads
  2. Pick a niche - Focus on a specific area where you have expertise or genuine curiosity
  3. Set a sustainable cadence - Three times a week is ideal, but once a week works too
  4. Track publicly - Announce your commitment so others hold you accountable
  5. Don't stop - The rule only works if you persist through the inevitable dips

When to Use It

  • When building expertise in a field and wanting recognition
  • When transitioning from practitioner to thought leader
  • When building an audience before launching a product or business
  • When trying to establish credibility in a new industry

The Hidden Work

Gergely's "overnight success" with his newsletter came after six years of blogging. When he announced his paid newsletter, he already had:

  • 10,000 Twitter followers
  • Multiple posts that had gone viral on Hacker News
  • A back catalog of in-depth content people valued
  • Name recognition in the software engineering community

This illustrates the framework's key insight: the two years of work creates a foundation that makes success possible, even if not guaranteed.

Source

  • Guest: Gergely Orosz
  • Episode: "Leaving big tech to build the #1 technology newsletter"
  • Key Discussion: (00:56:00 - 00:58:00) - Gergely explains how Jeff Atwood's advice shaped his approach
  • YouTube: Watch on YouTube

Related Frameworks

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