“Secrecy sets barriers between men, but at the same time offers the seductive temptation to break through the barriers by gossip or confession.” – Georg Simmel, Born Mar. 1, 1858. Secrets are power. Sharing secrets can weaken you and allow others to damage you. Generosity with plans and innovations can lead to disastrous competition. Even […]
The Real Secret About Why People Love Fake “Secrets” Read More »
“Give me a laundry-list and I’ll set it to music.” – Gioachino Rossini, Born Feb. 29, 1792. I hate hearing people say they have nothing to write about or nothing to say. Take a thing. Any thing you find. Scroll way down your news feed. Click “random” on Wikipedia. Then, connect it to your core
Pumping Up Reader Brains With Metaphorical Muscle Read More »
“The little dissatisfaction which every artist feels at the completion of a work forms the germ of a new work.” – Berthold Auerbach, Born Feb. 28, 1812. Yeah, you’re not alone. But you’re not getting younger and time is wasting. Quit trying to craft perfection. Publish imperfect work now. Fix later MAYBE. But even better:
Perfectionism Is Just the Pretentious Kind of Procrastination Read More »
“Each work has its own space, which should neither be conceived as a sort of cage nor regarded as extending to infinity.” – Marino Marini, Born Feb. 27, 1901. Marino here was a sculptor. And like carving stone, copywriting is an art constrained by certain limitations. For the sculptor, there is an outer limit to
The Constrained Shape of Effective Persuasion Is… Read More »
“Gifts make slaves.” – Levi Strauss, Born Feb. 26, 1829. Cialdini stated this in a less harsh way. He calls it the Law of Reciprocity. When you receive a distinct item of value from someone else, you are compelled to grant them something in return. We feel that we owe them. That we are indebted
How to Mentally Enslave People With One Stupid Trick – It’s Irresistible! Lol, Sorta. Read More »
“The possession of a book becomes a substitute for reading it.” – Anthony Burgess, Born Feb. 25, 1917. I know a lot of smart people that sell training, or information, and they get very upset about people not taking that information or training and using it as intended. If that’s you, you would do well
How To Make Buyers Happy to Purchase Things They May Never Ever Use Read More »
“Circumstances are the rulers of the weak; they are but the instruments of the wise.” – Samuel Lover, Born Feb. 24, 1797. Now, I can flip this one or two ways. The obvious way is to make this inspiration for you, dear reader. Don’t let your circumstances become excuses that shackle you to the wall
When Life Gives You Lemons, You Can Do Better Than Lemonade Read More »
“People ask me all the time, ‘How can I become a successful entrepreneur?’ And I have to be honest: It’s one of my least favorite questions, because if you’re waiting for someone else’s advice to become an entrepreneur, chances are you’re not one.” – Michael Dell, Born Feb. 23, 1956. Now, many of my friends
Do You Really Want To Do This? If You Don’t Know, the Answer Is No By Default. Read More »
“The two enemies of human happiness are pain and boredom.” – Arthur Schopenhauer, Born Feb. 22, 1788. It may seem like a shitty thing, to sit around plotting ways to make people unhappy with their current existence. But that is what we do for a living. We don’t describe products and services. That’s ditch work.
“The piano is a monster that screams when you touch its teeth.” – Andres Segovia, Born Feb. 21, 1893. What’s funny is that Andres was a guitarist. So he was describing why he hates he piano and doesn’t play it. But we are sick fuck writer masochists. And our keyboards are beasts that scream when
Want to Write Well? Feed the Beast Your Fingers First. Read More »
