June 2022

delay your gratification

more than high-end luxury items,
or extremely specific niche products,
or poorly reviewed, cheap commodities,

the hardest thing to sell, by and large is… prevention.

regardless of how problem (or solution) aware the prospect is, selling the cure has always been easier and more profitable than selling prevention, why?

  1. seeking instant gratification is a classic human animal trait if ever there was one
  2. temporal and reward uncertainty – am I really going to obtain pleasure (lose weight, get a raise) if I go through perceived pain (eat less, exercise, take on this project) in X time?

professionally? I’ve never been mad at impulse buyers in my life (especially the kind that don’t ask for refunds)
personally? I’ve been navigating my life based on this one aphorism I’ve learned from John Williamson:

short term pleasure = long term pain
short term pain = long term pleasure

when in doubt, always choose good fuel for your engine.

and if you ever find yourself in a position in which you have to sell prevention, whether to yourself or to others,

ask yourself this:
“what is the financial and emotional cost that I will pay if I let things continue the way they have and don’t change?”

then list out the consequences…

I’ll see you tomorrow.

today is day 181 of the year, there are 184 days remaining of 2022.

delay your gratification Read More »

you’re still on mute

I talk…
a bit too much,
(or a lot of bit, depending on who’s asking.)

from a very young age, the force and plentitude of sounds that would come rushing out of my mouth the second I’d barge home from school, would never cease to amaze my parents (and their, now sensitive, ear canals…)

fast forward 3 decades and, to this day, talking remains my main indulgence, a weakness I’ve consciously chosen to embrace.

much like a dieter who wishes to continue eating their favorite foods but is compelled to find a healthier alternative,
I too, had reached a compromise

I wouldn’t talk less,
but I’d talk better

I’d pay attention to cues,
I’d make it about them,
I’d educate and entertain…

but most importantly, I’d listen,
I’d become a storyteller;
and of the many labels sewed on me, this one’s my favorite.

it’s a life skill I’ve brought with me to work,

every time I write copy, I imagine taking the reader out on a walk…
we’d start with the promise of an easy, relaxing walk, surrounded by gorgeous scenery, to which most people agree to.

the more complex and boring my words grow into, the faster and more difficult the trail becomes.

with my mind’s eye, I visually draw an image of them having to duck under tree branches, sky’s pelting them with rain, a steep incline is visible in the distance…

and unless my avatar is a fan of Spartan races, they won’t last on my imaginary trail very long.

expecting the viewer to make an effort to understand your offer is one of biggest mistakes I see brands make…

storytellers have figured out how to keep an audience’s attention for hours, it’s not so much the length, but the clarity and resonance of your message that makes you heard.

in a world full of beautiful trails, make sure yours isn’t put on mute.

I’ll see you tomorrow.

today is day 180 of the year, there are 185 days remaining of 2022.

you’re still on mute Read More »

love, a contradiction

it is such a profoundly earthly desire to love and feel loved in return.

to love is to feel stronger and weaker all at once,
both hopeful and cynical,
lost and found.

it’s in this chaotic choreography of conflicts that I think lays the most beautiful type of love…
the kind that is deeply connected and protective of each other’s otherness,

free of manipulation and expectations,
free of noise and performance,
the kind of love that grounds you even when your world is shifting.

something that combines such maturity and naiveté is nothing short of human.

so hard and yet,
so easy.

I’ll see you tomorrow.

today is day 179 of the year, there are 186 days remaining of 2022.

love, a contradiction Read More »

talk salesy to me

“do what you have to, but don’t make it salesy”

salesy.

as someone that’s worked in marketing for over 10 years, this is a very familiar sound to my ears.

especially coming from new clients,
typically said with a very strong sense of (misplaced) righteousness.

we learn to navigate such comments because we know that what the client actually means to say is…

sell it, but don’t make it look like you’re trying.
sell it, but don’t be inauthentic.
sell it, but don’t do it too well.

and what they really, really, really mean to say is…

sell it, but don’t lie.
sell it, but don’t make me look bad.
sell it, but don’t be needy, pushy or bitchy.

ah! well that is a completely different word to salesy.

selling brings clients.
not new colors, not features, not fairy dust,
selling.

we sell, ALL the time.
most of the time we sell ourselves, our values and opinions.

and if you really do think, that your thing is going to be the thing that can move the needle for someone, it is then your moral obligation to sell.

I’ll see you tomorrow.

today is day 178 of the year, there are 187 days remaining of 2022.

talk salesy to me Read More »

“just” breathe

there are so many things our bodies do, that we take for granted…

until, of course, it’s no longer capable of doing the thing.

it’s even worse when the thing is integral to keeping us alive.

from the heart that conveniently pumps blood, to the skin that effortlessly protects our insides from the outsides.

anxiety literally took my breath away…

which sucked, because it’s something I’ve really enjoyed doing for as long as I can remember.

seemingly overnight, I had found myself in a world in which to breathe meant to be able to choke.

I’ve survived days unable to remove myself from the security of my bed, convinced that should I do so, I would forcibly collapse to the ground, from lack of oxygen…

…immediately followed by days in which I’d run multiple 10k’s as if I had forgotten that I could indeed, just walk.

a breath, never the same,

and never again taken for granted.

next time you breathe, take a deep one.

I’ll see you tomorrow.

today is day 177 of the year, there are 188 days remaining of 2022.

“just” breathe Read More »

You Inc.

congratulations! you’re in business!

you’ve been in business from the moment you’ve entered the job market.

in fact, I would argue that You Inc. opened to the public the second you were born.

from the moment life was gifted to you, you’ve been building and refining your experience, your personality, your skillset and ultimately, your client list.

whether you’re a student, an artist or an engineer, whether you’re self employed or working for someone else,

as long as you’re trading some thing for something else

you’re in business.

everyone making use of your experience, personality and skillset is your client.

patients? clients…
supervisors? clients…
students? clients…
bosses? clients

we’re all in business together.
we’re all buying each other’s services.

you’ve not quit and you’ve not been fired, you’re marketing your services somewhere else.

you’re not doing your masters, you’re bringing a new product to market.

you’re not an employee, you’re in business.

to have complete power over your financial security is freedom.

most of us are free, we’ve just decided to cage ourselves.

you don’t just have a job, you’re in business.

I’ll see you tomorrow.

today is day 176 of the year, there are 189 days remaining of 2022.

You Inc. Read More »

curiosity killed the cat

much to their parents dismay, between the ages of 2 and 5, kids ask, on average, 40000 questions.

but life has a way of breaking its promises to children and
teachers have to make sure kids know answers, not questions.

curiosity is an integral part of the human experience, yet the older we get, the more answers we’re expected to have. why?

well, the reason is comically simple…

not knowing is associated with lack of intelligence. the pretense is tiresome, but apparently necessary.

it also explains the rise in the amount of people suffering from the impostor’s syndrome.
the irony is, of course, that you can’t be an impostor in your own life.

I wish that you have nothing but questions about the world around you.

today is day 175 of the year, there are 190 days remaining of 2022.

curiosity killed the cat Read More »

what day is it

the average human lifespan is 80 years.

that’s 4174.29 weeks
that’s 29220 days

I keep a calendar that tells me the day of the year for three reasons:

  1. reminder to keep with my goals and deadlines
  2. motivation to make the most out of life
  3. gratitude to have lived thus far

the second we are born, the sand of time stops moving in our favor…

and it’s only when I realized that there is, indeed, a last time for everything, is when I started showing up for my own life.

it’s comforting to know nothing lasts forever, yet horrifying that nothings stays.

I hope this stays.

I’ll see you tomorrow

today is day 174 of the year, there are 191 days remaining of 2022.

what day is it Read More »

who writes blog posts anymore?

everyone, apparently…
the next logical question then becomes – who reads all of these blog posts?
well, that’s between site owners and their google analytics dashboard.

“blogging is dead” goes around as many times as the moon goes around the earth, it seems.
the 30 million bloggers in the US seem to have missed this memo…
I, however, received it, and aggressively chose to ignore it.

according to the internet, Mark Twain once said, “I didn’t have time to write you a short letter, so I wrote you a long one.”

these daily brain pickings are a selfish attempt to write something good enough to last after I die, in a short and focused format.
they’re part diary, part personal development, part business advice, I’ve no doubt you’ll find it of use…

I’ll see you tomorrow.

today is day 173 of the year, there are 192 days remaining of 2022.

who writes blog posts anymore? Read More »

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