“If you have one good idea, people will lend you twenty.” – Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach, Born Sep. 13, 1830. One of the best things about operating via conversations with your audience is that you almost never need to be creative. Plant a seed, and people will grow it into a crop of their their troubles. …
How to Never Have to Come Up With Your Own Ideas of Stuff to Sell Read More »
“The river flows at its own sweet will, but the flood is bound in the two banks. If it were not thus bound, its freedom would be wasted.” – Vinoba Bhave, Born Sep. 11, 1895. You’re creative. You’re smart. You’re talented. You’re skilled. So what? Who cares? What does that DO for anyone? You or …
How to Limit Yourself to Turn “Too Many Good Ideas” Into Actual Output Read More »
“You can’t tell any kind of a story without having some kind of a theme, something to say between the lines.” – Robert Wise, Born Sep. 10, 1914. “Storytelling” has been a buzzword in marketing for a few years now. I’ve taught two courses myself, focused on using story to sell. But this is something …
How to Tell Stories That Sell (Without Going All Blah Blah Blah) Read More »
“But the power of science lies in open publication, which, with the rise of the Internet, is no longer constrained by the price of paper.” – Michael Shermer, Born Sep. 8, 1954. This technological fact of publication has changed the face of advertising, too. No more paying for printing prep. No more collating. No more …
Modern Tech Makes Many of Your Perceived Limits Into Bullshittery Read More »
“Recalling a memory is not like playing a tape recorder. It’s a creative process.” – Susumu Tonegawa, Born Sep. 6, 1939. This little secret Susumu shared above is one reason why persuading and influencing people like we do can be so dangerous. See, when you recall a memory, you’re not accessing a permanent record. You …
Your Memories Are Imaginary (And Easily Altered With This One Trick…) Read More »
“As people are walking all the time, in the same spot, a path appears.” – John Locke, Born Aug. 29, 1632. People are not that different. We all think we are unique snowflakes, but humanity is a blizzard. While there are always exceptions, we are built the same way, and we have similar lives. Routine. …
When People Are Driving in Circles, They’ll Pay a Toll to Take Your Exit Read More »
“Human beings love stories because they safely show us beginnings, middles and ends.” – A. S. Byatt, Born Aug. 24, 1936. The key part of this quote is the word “safely”. What we allow people to do with persuasive communication is a bit of virtual reality. A bit of lucid dreaming. We allow people to …
Stories Allow Us Safe Exploration Of Dangerous Futures Read More »
“If you don’t write stories you love, you’ll never make it. If you don’t write stories that other people love, you’ll never make it.” – Ray Bradbury, Born Aug. 22, 1920. Your best work is going to occur in that intersection or overlap where the subject you are passionate and enthusiastic about is the same …
“A wide screen just makes a bad film twice as bad.” – Samuel Goldwyn, Born Aug. 17, 1882. Are you getting too caught up in the details of your project? The little things. Tripping over word selection. Alliterative names. Logo design. Etc. If you are even thinking about that stuff before the core …
The Emperor Doesn’t Need New Clothes if He Is Buff and Badass Read More »
“Anything that isn’t opposed by about 40 percent of humanity is either an evil business or so unimportant that it simply doesn’t matter.” – Russell Baker, Born Aug, 14, 1925. Whenever you’re formulating a product, or even just trying to market an existing product, it’s important to think about who will oppose it. If the …
The Law of Rejection (Works Almost As Well, TBH) Read More »
