V003 has arrived and with it this sentiment.
“When asked if it is the journey or the destination? Our answer is always, the company we keep.”
So thanks for reading, subscribing and caring.
Enjoy.
Who is buntu. and why what we do matters now?
buntu means people.
It’s a derivative of the South African word ‘ubuntu’, which means I see you, I recognise and appreciate you. It’s about community.
The buntu. team are your contemporary ‘human to human’ communication and connection specialists for business.
Our role is to help you resonate with creative, collaborative and contemporary response-worthy comms, both offline and online.
While ‘everybody’ is zigging into AI, communication automation, transactional efficiency and doing ever more with less, the buntu. team are focused on providing a counterbalance, a connection with intention and recognition of our humanity in business.
Surprise and delight does not need an algorithm. None of us will have ‘I made budget’ or ‘She mastered AI’ as an epitaph.
Our intention is to keep a focus on ‘real’ and ensure that our clients uncover who they are, really, and help them express the essence of what it is that they are up to and why that matters now.
Our focus is on being unreasonably creative and the refreshingly possible for YOU.
YOUR buntu. YOU newsletter has been designed to offer insight, learnings, creativity and storytelling.
Good energy, resonance and the occasional dad joke are our jam.
It is not until we stop looking for things that we begin to see, so come and sit under our tree without distraction to uncover buntu. YOU.
Be unreasonable. Soar above the noise.
Did you know the largest kite was 40 x 25 meters and 180 hours is the world’s longest kite flight?
As I sit here typing before Christmas, it feels weird to be welcoming you to buntu. in 2025
My head and heart are not quite there yet.
What I AM looking forward to is putting the personal and business challenges of 2024 behind me and to set some new records.
While we plan to soar to new heights, being the biggest, longest or fastest in our category is secondary to buntu. building our reputation while quietly helping our clients communicate the significance of their work.
In the era of AI, the counter-trend we are creating is designed to get you the human to human attention you deserve. All achieved in unreasonable and imaginative ways so you get as close to your goal as possible.
We are the go-to team to help you uncover your sequel, express and then amplify your soul driven intent, with clarity, to the right audiences.
Looking forward to collaborating on making the world a better place for us both having been here.
Greg Smith – CEO
The Power of Embracing Yourself: A New Year’s Reflection
New Year, new beginnings — it’s a phrase we hear often. But is it really true?
I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve firmly resolved to become a better person, to do better, to be stronger — all those positive “ers” we’re told to strive for. Yet, each year, I found myself falling back into old habits, wondering if real change was ever possible.
As I reflect on the past year, I realise that it wasn’t just another cycle of resolutions and broken promises. It was, in fact, a journey of rediscovery. This year, I don’t need a new resolution. I had already made the most important one: to embrace myself, flaws and all.
It isn’t about achieving perfection. It’s about being real — accepting my imperfections and, above all, learning to be kind to myself.
My journey isn’t over, though but for the first time in years, I feel at peace with who I am.
New Year’s resolutions often come with big expectations, but real change starts from within. It’s easy to get caught up in goals that focus on outward success, but the most meaningful resolutions are the ones that help us grow and accept ourselves.
So, what if we decided to be kinder to ourselves this year? Celebrate the small wins, and trust that even slow progress is still progress, leading us to a better version of who we are.
Differences Between LinkedIn Articles and LinkedIn Status Posts 💡.
LinkedIn offers two primary content formats for users: articles (long form content) and status posts (short form content) .
The main differences between a LinkedIn Article (Character limit of 125,000) and LinkedIn Status post (Character limit of 3,000)
Two different types of communication styles on LinkedIn between LinkedIn Articles and LinkedIn Status Posts
Format and Length
LinkedIn Articles:
- Long-form content resembling a blog post or LinkedIn Newsletter
- Character limit of 125,000, allowing for in-depth exploration of topics
- Offers formatting options such as headings, bold text, italics, and embedded media links.
LinkedIn Status Posts:
- Short status updates designed for quick engagement.
- Character limit of 3,000
- Limited formatting options; primarily text with the ability to add images, videos, or PDF documents
Visibility and Engagement
LinkedIn Articles:
- Not favoured by the LinkedIn algorithm for visibility in the news feed, resulting in fewer immediate views.
- However, articles do appear in search engine results (SERP), contributing to long-term visibility and authority.
LinkedIn Status Posts:
- Highly favoured by the LinkedIn algorithm, appearing prominently in the news feed of connections, which increases the chances of immediate engagement and shared virality.
- Typically generate more views quickly, but have a shorter lifespan as they get buried under new content – normally within 24 hours of publishing
Sharing and Tagging
LinkedIn Articles:
- Can be shared across multiple platforms like Facebook and X (Twitter), enhancing reach beyond LinkedIn.
- No tagging functionality is available within LinkedIn articles
LinkedIn Status Posts:
- Sharing is limited to LinkedIn and X (Twitter).
- Users can tag others (@mention) in their posts, fostering interaction and engagement within their network members.
Purpose and Use Cases
LinkedIn Articles:
- Best suited for sharing comprehensive insights, industry analyses, thought leadership pieces, or detailed experiences.
- Ideal for users looking to establish authority in their field through well-researched content.
LinkedIn Status Posts:
Effective for maintaining ongoing conversations and interactions with connections. follow the correct steps to upload a PDF. Ensure to choose the correct file from a device or cloud service.
Designed for quick updates, sharing news, or engaging with followers through multimedia content.
No one really likes crickets!
Communication should be fun.
Telling stories, having a laugh, sitting around chatting.
So why do we make it so terribly difficult?
And why do we avoid it?
Difficult conversations do not need to be difficult.
Saying what you want to say, what you need to say, even what needs to be said.
Are all extremely different.
But not all equally difficult.
Communication is all about timing.
And what seems to be happening of late, is humans are confusing timing with speed.
Abbreviations, talk text, AI.
NOT what I am referring to.
When is the right time to say I love you, the appropriate time to express disappointment?
And if you are going to get smart with someone the STING is in the timing.
So why do we as businesses and humans continually get crickets.
Life gets in the way and that is ok.
But let us know what’s on YOUR mind, YOU never know we might just be able to help out and
bring the energy back up.
Perhaps even point you in the right direction.
What ALL OF US will be able to do is exhale.
Because we have communicated.
Let’s aim to remove the anxiety and worry that really needs not to be there.
No more crickets. It’s better that way.
Life is about using the entire box of crayons.
Don’t give YOURSELF excuses.
Block out some time to do this.
Layout all the things that didn’t quite work last year.
So that YOU can ‘sort how to sort.’
What did YOU like about last year?
What did YOU not?
What are the things YOU wanted to achieve last year?
What did YOU neglect?
So NOW this year.
Be COURAGEOUS
Don’t be predictable and stick to what YOU know.
This year explore more FUN.
Work on what brings JOY.
And make sure YOU are acting from the HEART.
A lot can happen in one year.
Make the change and ‘use all of the crayons.’
Where YOU are OUR focus – Come and take a peek at what we are up to.
From all of us here at buntu. I’d like to say thank YOU for showing an interest in what we are up to. If you would like to understand a little more the importance of the ‘human to human’ connection, happy to chat. Greg Smith.
Greg’s Calendar. 📅➡️ Not a part of our community yet? 🛎️ Subscribe to our newsletter.
