"The Tale of Despereaux" is a story about a mouse who never learned to be afraid.
That's a problem, you see, because mice are supposed to be fearful. Call it a social-cultural self-defense mechanism, perhaps the idea being that scared mice can better avoid danger, the point is, Despereaux was anything but.
Because of this, from the moment of his birth, Despereaux's natural disposition in life is viewed as strange, insubordinate, and most of all, a threat.
"His eyes are open," his mother says apprehensively, as she looks at her new baby boy for the first time.
"He isn't cowering…" she trembles. "He's looking right at us."
The fear in her voice is palpable.
"Don't worry," the tribal shaman / doctor / elder says with hopeful confidence, "he'll learn to cower. They all do in time."
But he doesn't. And not for lack of trying.
Fast forward to middle school…
The other school children had recently passed their cowering test with flying colors. Despereaux, on the other hand, failed the test.
(he thought the drawing of the carving knife was "beautiful," not scary, to the chagrin of his teacher)
"Despereaux, why do you think you're in school?" the headmaster asks the young mouse.
"To learn," Despereaux replies.
"To learn what?"
"To learn how to be a mouse, sir."
"That is correct. And you can't be a mouse if you don't learn to be afraid," the headmaster instructs.
"Oh Despereaux, there are so many wonderful things in life to be afraid of if you just learn how scary they are."
Realizing that Despereaux still isn't quite getting it, and that the school system by itself can't seem to inculcate the type of fear they're hoping for, the headmaster gets his family involved.
Despereaux has an older brother ("as timid as the day is long" according to his father), and so the headmaster recommends Despereaux's older brother act as a guide and mentor in the way of fearfulness.
"Sometimes, they just need to see the older ones do it," the headmaster explains. "No one starts out afraid."
Unfortunately, the plan backfires.
Instead of embracing the fears of his brother (or family, teacher, headmaster, fellow students, and society at large), Despereaux just...keeps doing his thing.
And he ends up doing something that is absolutely forbidden in mouse utopia:
Despereaux interacts with a human being (without a mask or hand sanitizer).
His father, scared about what the Mouse Council would do to him if they found out what happened, hands his son over to the council for trial.
"Destiny is a funny thing," the narrator says, "we go out to meet it, and we don't always know that we are."
So Despereaux goes before the council, and they list out his infractions:
"Refused training as a mouse.
Refused to respect the will and guidance of elder mice.
Repeatedly engaged in bold and un-meek behavior.
Triggered, willfully, not less than 17 moustraps.
Had personal contact with…with…with a human being."
The mob gasps.
"Despereaux Tilling," the eldest elder says in his final declaration, "our laws are here to protect us and our way of life. And when one of our citizens strays from that way of life, he becomes a threat to us all."
The elder proceeds to banish Despereaux to the dungeons of Dor "from which no mouse and no light has ever escaped."
And so Despereaux is remanded to Hovis, the blind threadmaster, who is to lower him down into the pit.
They have one last conversation before the descent.
"So you're the brave one?" Hovis asks.
"I guess," Despereaux says sincerely.
"It's good, it'll carry well down there. Wear it proudly. It's no shame."
He fastens the rope around Despereaux's waste.
"Courage, right?" Hovis asks.
"And truth. And Honor," Despereaux replies.
"Good," Hovis says right before sending him into the darkness...
"But especially courage."
Right now, many people around the world are experiencing darkness.
Doesn't take more than a few seconds of thumbing through Instagram or walking through your local urban downtown to see it:
Despair.
Their posture gives it away.
And when you recognize it, you know what it means:
An everpresent reminder that everyone around you thinks they could die at any moment.
Listen, I get it.
Death is scary. Experiencing a life or death event is physically and mentally draining. It takes everything out of you. Likewise, being in a situation where death feels ever-present can be its own mental burden. Over time, it's exhausting.
And that's true whether you're worried about your own life or someone else's.
Before every security mission I ran in downtown Bagdhad...before every time I stepped in the boxing ring...before every time I jumped out of the helicopter…I recognized the fragility of it all. That in a moment it could be gone.
At moments like this, it can feel like there are only two paths one can take:
Either headstrong ignorance, blindly ignoring threats while you piledrive your way through life…
...or in headless panic, desperately believing everything your told.
Both are pretty terrible options if you ask me.
That's because both are reactions to fear.
And because of that, they miss the real threat.
The real threat is that thing that is ever-present in the story of "The Tale of Despereaux," and it's the same thing you may spot in your own life if you look hard enough...
The real threat is:
To live a life that's less than you're worth.
To throw in the towel before it's too soon...to bury your talents in the ground instead of building something worthwhile......to give up on the altruistic dream of a better life for your family, your community, and yourself, because someone taught you all the wonderful things to be scared about.
So I recommend a third option…the same option Despereaux chose before he even knew he had; the one that seemingly caused his banishment, but in reality, is what ensured he would get through to the end, in spite of the darkness:
Have courage.
Have the courage to draw your own map. (but before you ask someone for help drawing your map for you, remember the wise words of everyone's favorite high school Moral Philosophy and History teacher, Jean Rasczak: "Figuring things out for yourself is the only freedom anyone really has. Use that freedom.")
Have the courage to become antifragile. Start small. Start one day at a time. Grow through trust.
Have the courage to stay on the path. If it's not your concern, it's not your concern. Stay. On. The. Path.
But most of all: have courage.
Because where fear grows, darkness spreads.
And we need a few more lights in this world.
Tom "lighting it up" Morkes
P.s. In spite of what others would distract you into believing, tough times are the best times to get working on yourself, your home, your family, and your work. That includes writing. And that's why I think there's never been a better time to invest in your writing and sharing your ideas with the world. First, because there's no barrier to entry…so if you can read this, you can publish great ideas yourself. #winnerwinnerchickendinner Plus, I think writing is the best way to draw your own map, become antifragile, and will help you stay on the path even when there's an avalanche of shiny pennies coming your way, hoping to block your path. Case in point, If i didn't start this blog and newsletter 7+ years ago I don't know where I'd be right now. Probably play acting 12 Monkeys like my life depended on it. Luckily, I invested in myself and my writing many, many moons ago, and now my ideas have helped thousands of people around the world… Your ideas could do the same. So if you have a book in you (or at least a blog post) that you can't wait to share, but you'd like a path, a plan, and a community to support you along your path, check out the brand new Write Publish Profit 3.0 from Infostack. Over $4,600+ worth of tools and resources for only $49. I've shared this deal 3 years in a row, and this year it's better than it's ever been (and over 95% new, with some winning return contributors, like ProWritingAid, AuthorCats, and more). Click here to check it out. And speaking of Write Publish Profit 3.0 -> did you know "The Tale of Despereaux" was written by Kate DiCamillo, a 2004 Newbery Medal Winner, and that Kate had this to say about one of the books inside Write Publish Profit 3.0: "Revision Power is a writing book like no other . . . joyful, exuberant, witty, and wise. It manages to be many things at once: a celebration of language, an examination of its mysteries, and an invitation for writers of every ilk to pick up their pens and join the party. Wonderful." Click here to get your copy of Write Publish Profit 3.0 which includes a copy of "Revision Power" the book endorsed by "The Tale of Despereaux" author Kate DiCamillo. And that's how you make a blog post come full circle. 💯🐲⚡
David McKnight is the founder of McKnight Image Lab and the author of The Zen Executive Presence. He is an image consultant and professional coach who specializes in helping ambitious and busy professionals craft and leverage their personal image and brand to generate wealth, success and confidence.
In today’s broadcast, David and I discuss where style and leadership intersect and how to leverage your appearance and presence to get promotions, grow your business, and be more confident in social settings.
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Podcast audio editing and show note production by Nives Kurjak. Click here to get 10% off your podcast production for life.
Daniel Scrivner is the CEO of Flow, project management software that brings together your tasks, projects, timelines, and conversations, and integrates with your favorite tools, to help you achieve more. Previously, Daniel was the Head of Design at Digit and Square. He's worked for some of the most respected brands in the world including Apple, Nike, Disney, and Target.
In today’s broadcast, Daniel and I discuss how someone who worked at Apple and Square was able to take his accrued knowledge into different spaces, including leadership and C level roles. We dive into many topics ranging from design to creative thinking in general.
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Podcast audio editing and show note production by Nives Kurjak. Click here to get 10% off your podcast production for life.
Nathan Hirsch is a serial entrepreneur and expert in remote hiring and e-commerce. He is the founder and CEO of FreeeUp.com and the co-founder and COO of Portlight. Nathan is an expert at building efficient systems and processes, sales strategies, and business management.
In today’s broadcast, Nathan Hirsch takes us behind-the-scenes of his acquisition and investment journey and he shares his bootstrap strategies to grow his business into a multimillion-dollar business in a little less than 4 years.
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Podcast audio editing and show note production by Nives Kurjak. Click here to get 10% off your podcast production for life.
Jovana Miljanovic was born and raised in Serbia. She built a brick and mortar style business where she ran in-person workshops from scratch and then pivoted to helping people around the world through her virtual education platform. Now Jovana helps women start and scale their businesses online, and she hosts her own podcast, the Jovana Miljanovic Podcast on YouTube.
In this broadcast, Jovana Miljanovic walks us through how to build your business in 2020 from scratch, regardless of the constantly shifting economic and social landscape that we’re all in. She also shares why you need to prioritize doing things that make you uncomfortable (in business and life) and how to stick to your goals for an extended period of time.
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Did you enjoy today's broadcast of In The Trenches? Please click here to leave an honest rating and review on iTunes. Your review helps me spread the word of this podcast, which allows me to line up amazing guests and continue to produce this podcast ad-free. Thanks so much in advance for your support.
Podcast audio editing and show note production by Nives Kurjak. Click here to get 10% off your podcast production for life.
Today’s panelists are Megan Reamer is the co-founder and CEO of Jackson’s Honest, a healthy foods company. Jackson’s Honest makes potato chips, tortilla chips and grain free puffs all cooked in organic coconut oil. Patrick Vlaskovits is an entrepreneur and 2 time New York Times bestselling author. His writing has been featured in the Harvard Business Review and the Wall Street Journal, and he speaks at technology conferences worldwide. And our third panelist is Bret Boyd is the CEO of Knoema, a software platform for data access and discovery. At Knoema, Bret and his team build tools to help public and private-sector organizations make better decisions with data.
During today’s episode, I’m interviewing not one, but three exceptional CEOs. This episode is a bit different than my other podcasts, because we recorded it live in front of a audience of hundreds of executives, so the style and format is slightly different than usual.
Here's the video recording of the live episode if you prefer to see my sky blue eyes while I impart wisdom into your brain like a boss:
The audience Q&A is from 42:40 - 57:00.
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Did you enjoy today's broadcast of In The Trenches? Please click here to leave an honest rating and review on iTunes. Your review helps me spread the word of this podcast, which allows me to line up amazing guests and continue to produce this podcast ad-free. Thanks so much in advance for your support.
"The True Believer" is a book about mass movements that also happens to be a very useful blueprint for your marketing.
Written by Eric Hoffer and originally published in 1951, "The True Believer" makes a convincing case for the existence of "mass movements" - what they are, how they work, how they form, and their destructive capability, etc.
I can't speak to its applicability in a political capacity, but viewed through a behavioral psychology lens - e.g. why people do what they do - this book provides some useful insights into effective marketing. Specifically:
From this lens, "The True Believer" is a useful handbook for the modern marketer to better understand what motivates people to take action.
Below, I have extracted what I consider the most compelling marketing ideas from "The True Believer," and how you can apply these insights to your own marketing and sales efforts.
Obviously, my ideas are my own and not necessarily what the author intended. With that disclaimer out of the way, enjoy:
For even more insights into The True Believe and how it can improve your marketing, watch my video breakdown, where I analyze each marketing lesson in-depth:
And if you're more of a reader, here's a brief overview of the 7 marketing lessons from "The True Believer."
Obviously, the video goes way more in depth, but this should give you a good overview if you're in a hurry.
(sidenote: please leave a comment and share this article...I know, a strange interruption to the flow...but seriously, would love to hear from you, and sharing makes the world a better place. Thanks in advance!)
"There is in us a tendency to locate the shaping forces of our existence outside ourselves. Success and failure are unavoidably related in our minds with the state of things around us. Hence it is that people with a sense of fulfillment think it a good world and would like to conserve it as it is, while the frustrated favor radical change.”
Hoffer, Eric. The True Believer (Perennial Classics) (p. 6). HarperCollins e-books. Kindle Edition
If you're marketing to people who are content, to people who like the world as it is and want to keep it the same, you're fighting a losing battle.
That's because a marketers role is not to change minds, but to influence the buying decision by creating and relieving tension (see Tip #4. "Demonstrate Irresistible Power" for more on this).
Your customers, and those who are about to buy from you, are frustrated.
They are seeking change and your promise of a solution is worth their investment.
They buy from you because you're helping them go from frustrated to content, and not the other way around.
But the only way this works is if you start from the right place:
Market to the frustrated, because they are the ones ready and willing to make a change (by buying your product, investing in your solution, etc).
"Our frustration is greater when we have much and want more than when we have nothing and want some. We are less dissatisfied when we lack many things than when we seem to lack but one thing."
Hoffer, Eric. The True Believer (Perennial Classics) (pp. 29-30). HarperCollins e-books. Kindle Edition
"The Invisible Gorilla" is a study (and book by the same name) on visual perception.
You may have heard of this study because it did make the rounds on the internets at one point, but in summary:
A group of people were asked to watch this video and count how many times the basketball was passed between the passers in white shirts:
The majority of people undergoing this experiment counted the correct number of passes.
Only half saw the gorilla.
This is an experiment about "selective attention."
The gist of it is this: if you focus on something, you may miss information in the periphery.
But when you play it through, it becomes much more significant than this:
We humans can only see the things we're looking for. The rest is invisible to us.
There are a million problems we need solved.
A million jobs we need done, things to change or improve for the better.
But humans act hierarchically.
When you're dehydrated and dying of thirst, water is all you care about. Anything that is not water (or leading you to water) is either not seen or processed and quickly discarded. Water, therefore, is all you see.
But as we meet our basic hierarchy of needs (food, water, shelter)…then what?
What is the most pressing, most urgent problem your customer has right now?
There might be 100 problems...what takes priority number 1?
Focus on this.
While it may seem counter-intuitive, effective marketing requires amplifying the single, most aggravating pain of the customer, rather than trying to inflame all their various problems (because your customers literally can't see those problems until they've taken care of that which is most pressing).
"Where power is not joined with faith in the future, it is used mainly to ward off the new and preserve the status quo. On the other hand, extravagant hope, even when not backed by actual power, is likely to generate a most reckless daring…Those who would transform a nation or the world cannot do so by breeding and captaining discontent or by demonstrating the reasonableness and desirability of the intended changes or by coercing people into a new way of life. They must know how to kindle and fan an extravagant hope."
Hoffer, Eric. The True Believer (Perennial Classics) (p. 9). HarperCollins e-books. Kindle Edition
Hope.
Certainty of a better future.
This is what gets people to move, to engage, and to make difficult changes.
Are you painting the picture of the better future, the BEST future, for your clients and customers?
Are you kindling and fanning a sense of extravagant hope for the future? Not only that your customers and clients CAN have what they want, but that they WILL have what they want?
Not just "maybe," but with certainty?
Here's the thing:
People will only believe you if you believe in yourself, if you're confident in the value you bring, and if you're certain of the results that will be achieved when someone invests in your solution.
So the first challenge is internal: do you believe in what you do?
Once you get to "yes" the next step is simple: tell the truth about what you do and why you do it.
No need to embellish or hyperbolize; just call it like you see it. Your passion and certainty will naturally seep into your message, which in turn will attract the right customers to you.
"For men to plunge headlong into an undertaking of vast change, they must be intensely discontented yet not destitute, and they must have the feeling that by the possession of some potent doctrine, infallible leader or some new technique they have access to a source of irresistible power."
Hoffer, Eric. The True Believer (Perennial Classics) (p. 11). HarperCollins e-books. Kindle Edition
Seth Godin in "This is Marketing" says that marketers create and relieve tension.
They do this by contrasting what is with what could be. Once this tension is created, the only way to relieve it is by bridging the gap between the two points, which is exactly what your solution should do.
Here's how to create tension:
Step 1. Transcribe the potentially negative future into the present, with words and ideas that your readers, customers, and clients believe and understand.
Step 2. Tell the story of what COULD be, if a change were made…a specific change...an obvious change...a change that needs to be made now.
Step 3. Provide the painless path forward to bridge the gap, which should be by investing in your solution (aka: buy this and the best possible future is yours).
The most effective way to get from step 2 to step 3 is by demonstrating that you (and only you) possess the solution to their problems.
Or, as Hoffer puts it, that you have some "irresistible power" that only your customers can tap into.
To figure out your irresistible power, ask yourself:
"Hatred is the most accessible and comprehensive of all unifying agents. It pulls and whirls the individual away from his own self, makes him oblivious of his weal and future, frees him of jealousies and self-seeking. He becomes an anonymous particle quivering with a craving to fuse and coalesce with his like into one flaming mass."
Hoffer, Eric. The True Believer (Perennial Classics) (p. 91). HarperCollins e-books. Kindle Edition
Okay, so a little on the extreme side, but there is a lesson here:
Hate - extreme dislike or distaste - is a powerful motivator.
By establishing a common enemy, you can unite your customers, fans, and followers.
The quintessential marketing example of this is the Mac vs. PC ads of the early 2000's.
For reference, here's every single ad Apple ran in that series:
As you can see, identifying a common enemy doesn't require you to be angry or aggressive. It can be fun and lighthearted, while still allowing you to draw a line in the sand to unify your base (or tribe, or peeps, or gang, or whatever you want to call it).
And this is the primary benefit of creating a common enemy:
It helps people connect with others who are like them because they both "get it," which in turn builds community and brand loyalty.
And that is a very powerful, unifying force.
"Imitation is often a shortcut to a solution. We copy when we lack the inclination, the ability or the time to work out an independent solution. People in a hurry will imitate more readily than people at leisure. Hustling thus tends to produce uniformity. And in the deliberate fusing of individuals into a compact group, incessant action will play a considerable role."
Hoffer, Eric. The True Believer (Perennial Classics) (p. 103). HarperCollins e-books. Kindle Edition
Couple thoughts on this one:
First, people imitate others because we're designed that way. While the author writes this with seeming disdain, there's nothing wrong with imitation itself. It is, in fact, how humans learn.
That's especially true if you're a coach, consultant, author, or educator - anyone packaging and selling information.
The most transformational programs often have some degree of modeling or imitation built in. That's because we learn by doing, and when you are doing something different from what you've done before, it helps to have a reference point (or even better: a guide who can show you the way).
Second thought:
If you're trying to grow a community or catalyze a group into action, get them to take small action, consistently.
These could be actions for them to take to implement your solution (e.g. post your homework to lesson 1 in the forum), or they could be actions to help spread the word to others (whether it's sharing an article, writing a review, referring a new potential customer or client, etc.).
Keeping your students, customers, clients, fans, or followers engaged with meaningful activity that moves them toward their goals is an effective way to build comradery and group cohesion.
"The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new; nor can it keep people persuaded once they have ceased to believe. It penetrates only into minds already open, and rather than instill opinion it articulates and justifies opinions already present in the minds of its recipients. The gifted propagandist brings to a boil ideas and passions already simmering in the minds of his hearers. He echoes their innermost feelings. Where opinion is not coerced, people can be made to believe only in what they already 'know.'"
Hoffer, Eric. The True Believer (Perennial Classics) (p. 105). HarperCollins e-books. Kindle Edition
Propaganda reference aside, the truth is that the most persuasive marketing is that which supports and reinforces beliefs, not that which seeks to destroy and overwrite them.
The effective marketer focuses on the person who already knows he has a problem, because if he knows he has a problem, then he'll have a reason "why."
And you can use this "why" to amplify and relieve tension (see Tip #2. "Aggravate One Pain" above for more on this).
I call this marketing to people who get the joke.
When you market to people who get the joke, you don't have to waste time trying to make a case for why someone should listen to you.
They're already listening.
These are the people who will understand the pain you're describing, which builds trust (you're speaking their language).
And they're the people who are most likely to act because they understand their situation and they know it can be improved. This increases the likelihood of a purchase, because its much simpler to reinforce an existing belief and then lead into your offer, then it is to convince someone that what they believe is wrong (then, somehow, get them to buy your solution).
Finally, marketing to people who get the joke makes it much easier to write sales copy, to effectively showcase features and their benefits, and to introduce case studies and testimonials in a meaningful way.
And all of this taken together means more sales.
So those are my 7 marketing insights gleaned from "The True Believer."
Which marketing lesson was most surprising or useful to you? Share below!
Steve Glaveski's mission is to unlock the latent potential of organisations and people to create more impact for humanity and lead more fulfilling lives. He is CEO and Co-Founder of Collective Campus, a corporate innovation and startup accelerator based in Melbourne, Australia with clients across the world. Steve is also the author of the current Wiley book, Employee to Entrepreneur, which is available in bookstores around the world, and previously self-published two books, including an Amazon bestseller. Steve co-founded Lemonade Stand - a children's entrepreneurship program, hosts the Apple Podcast charting Future Squared, is a founding investor in Konkrete, a blockchain-enabled share registry and is a contributor to Harvard Business Review.
Today I’m chatting with Steve Glaveski to talk about entrepreneurship and doing work that matters. My big takeaway from this conversation is that there is no cure all. There is no technique, no strategy, tactic, hack or trick that will make you a successful entrepreneur. The only path to success is hard work and doing that work each and every day. In today’s conversation you’re going to hear things that maybe you’ve heard before, but my hope is that this conversation will help cement this mindset and further cultivate the critical aspects of entrepreneurship within your mind and heart.
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Abby Walker is the CEO of Vivian Lou Inc., a single-product company with multi-million dollar annual sales dedicated to helping women look and feel better in high heels. She started her company as a “hobby” business (while being a full-time working mom) after picking up the phone and asking one simple question. Abby has also written her book Strap On a Pair to inspire fellow middle-aged, middle-management, middle-class moms to take the first step—or the next step—toward finding their something more.
Today, I’m sitting down with Abby Walker, who is the founder of Vivian Lou. Vivian Louis a shoe company that focuses on creating insoles for high heels so that high heels are more comfortable to wear. During our conversation, Abby shares some of the fortuitous events that took place in order for her to get her business idea off the ground. The crazy part about Abby’s story is that she started off as a blogger and she didn’t create the actual insoles herself. She found them through a recommendation on a forum, but then connected with the creator of the insoles to strike a deal. Leading her to being an exclusive seller for the product worldwide and growing her business to over four million dollars in roughly four years without any employees.
My biggest takeaway from this conversation is that there are a lot of ways to think about a problem and solve a problem. Problem solving is not binary and we explore Abby’s decision making process so that she can grow and scale her business.
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Shawn Askinosie left a successful career as a criminal defense lawyer to start a bean to bar chocolate factory and never looked back. Askinosie Chocolate is a small batch, award winning chocolate factory located in Springfield, Missouri, sourcing 100% of their beans directly from farmers around the world. Recently named by Forbes "One of the 25 Best Small Companies in America", Askinosie Chocolate has also been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, on Bloomberg, MSNBC and numerous other national and international media outlets.
During today’s conversation, Shawn gives us a look behind the scenes of his business, how he started it from trial lawyer to chocolatier, and the ups and downs of what that process was like. We also discuss meaningful work and what Shawn the drive and passion to continue to do what he does even though it can be really really difficult. One of my major takeaways from today’s conversation is Shawn’s approach to business and his idea of reverse scale. We explore whether or not we can build a profitable business that aligns with our ethics and our morals and if that can be profitable for you.
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Did you enjoy today's broadcast of In The Trenches? Please click here to leave an honest rating and review on iTunes. Your review helps me spread the word of this podcast, which allows me to line up amazing guests and continue to produce this podcast ad-free. Thanks so much in advance for your support.