It all started with a simple Christmas gift mix-up, but it taught me one of the most valuable lessons I’ve ever learned about human psychology—a lesson that’s essential for anyone looking to sell a product or .
I was looking at houses, and my real estate agent, Clive, had a strange itinerary for me. “Why does he want to show me properties I’m not even interested in?” I asked my assistant. He was insistent that I see a variety of options, even ones that seemed like a bad fit. A few days later, I made an offer on the second of the three properties he showed me. This is a vital lesson for anyone with a or who is .
I used to have a love affair with a specific clothing brand. Seriously, you could find me dressed in their stuff from head to toe. My obsession started a few years back when I learned about the founder’s story—his vision, his insane attention to detail, and the creative wizardry he put into every piece. This brand wasn’t just about clothes; it was about one-of-a-kind designs for daily life, and yeah, they came with a premium price tag.
It sounds completely backward, but sometimes the best way to make customers want your product is to make their experience a little bit worse. As a marketing CEO, I saw this play out firsthand. I remember sitting in meetings with Coca-Cola executives who were stumped by the explosive growth of Red Bull. Sales of sugary drinks were tanking, but for some reason, the equally unhealthy, almost medicinal-tasting energy drink market was on fire. What was going on?
There’s a business principle that can make your brand’s message travel ten times further on a fraction of the budget, and it’s all about embracing the absurd. I learned this firsthand when I launched my first marketing company at twenty years old. It was a classic a story that grew way too fast for me to handle. Just a year in, I took a $300,000 investment from our biggest client.
Everyone understands that growth is important. It’s the force that transforms a simple idea into a business and a fledgling startup into a powerhouse. But knowing how to actually create that growth—and do it fast—is a different story. I want to share how I helped one promising more than double its revenue in just the first three months of a wild nine-month ride.