Midway through my second cup of yak butter tea, I joined a temple full of Buddhist monks for morning meditation, and realized, even at 14,000ft—language, religion, and culture – all potential barriers – are simply overcome when we place our focus on human connection.
Whether it’s through hand gestures or a simple smile, profound human connection is nearly always possible. Because it’s what we all want. Which is why all of the best stories and branding efforts have one thing in common—meaningful connections with strangers.
Yes, connecting with people you don’t know feels vulnerable and risky. Especially if you’re an introvert like me. It does require overcoming fears and putting yourself out there both as a person and a brand.
Introduce welcomed interruptions
Day 1 of cycling could not have gone any worse. My partner broke his derailleur, which meant he only had access to a few gears. He also broke two bike chains, and his knee completely gave out on him. This was all our first day of biking on a 60 day trip.
While my partner fixed his second broken chain, we were approached by a group of curious apple farmers who offered to help. They invited us in for tea, which turned into three days at their apple farm. The generosity of these farmers was overwhelming. They didn’t have a bed for us, so two teenage boys insisted we stay in their bed while they slept on the floor. When we were about to leave, they refused any form of payment for the accommodations, whisky, or meals shared.
I nearly passed on their initial offer, because after a nightmare start to our expedition, taking a break on day 2 felt like sealing our unfortunate fate. But by doing so, we would have missed out on one of my favorite parts of the entire story. Including a dance party with 40 dudes and gallons of whisky. This party ended at 3:00 am sharp with us all sitting cross legged on a cool cement floor, enjoying a warm meal together. Our stomachs and hearts were full.
An experience we nearly missed out on because it wasn’t in our original plan. What I know now, is that the unplanned and unexpected is where magic lies in any good story. Because if your audience knows what’s coming next – you are dead in the water.
As brand leaders, creatives and creators, we are in the interruption business. Once you make peace with that, you can begin to think about how you can interrupt your audience in a positive and memorable way – one that may even surprise them.
Are you currently interrupting your customers with something you would want to be interrupted by? If the answer is no, please stop.
Instead, think about how you can position your product or service as a solution to an emotional struggle your customer currently has. My favorite version looks like offering something of overwhelming value they didn’t expect. Like a dance party in the Himalayas with 40 apple farmers and 8 gallons of whisky.
Be ruthless about having a single focus
Key monastery is an 11th century monastery that carefully wraps itself around a steep rock outcropping near the Tibetan border. Over 200 traditionally dressed monks reside within its sacred walls. Upon arrival, we were invited to join them for morning meditation the following day – an honor I will not soon forget.
That evening we learned about timeless meditation practices through a traveling yoga instructor over more exceptionally gamy yak milk tea. Monks receiving supernatural powers through meditation are commonplace at Key Monastery. Stories like a monk living in a cave for a full year by himself, only leaving his cold cliff dwelling once a year to stock up on supplies, and physically heal local villagers. My personal favorite story was about a monk who unlocked the ability to fly after decades of meditation and devotion.
Meditation and branding are similar in that they both seek focus and attempt to cut through the noise. The most productive and successful version of both is single focus.
Something we suck at. I’m not sure we’ve ever struggled with focus more than we do now, and it appears to only be getting worse. Which is not great news if your job is to catch and keep people’s focus long enough for them to buy something.
It’s common knowledge now that multitasking is not possible. Multitasking just means you are doing two things poorly at the same time, because humans can only focus on one thing at a time. Which means, if that one piece of content someone is focusing on doesn’t land quickly, they are immediately off to the next text, email, photo, social message, dog, LinkedIn like, ad, streaming service, post, article, or cat video.
Our communications need to be highly focused and precise, with one very clear and compelling message that solves a problem. Anything other than that is only adding more noise to our already dizzying atmosphere. In a world overwhelmingly distracted, brands with a single focus and simple yet compelling stories will have a super power not all that less impressive than flying.
Risk is required for real growth
Taking risks is risky, which is why most people (and brands) often avoid them. But without risk there is no growth. If all you’re doing is repeating the same messages over and over again you will eventually become invisible, then irrelevant.
If this article were about a trip we took to Phoenix or Dallas, would it have piqued your interest? Nope. Because those are places people are expected to travel. By traveling in the direction your audience expects you to go, you will eventually be rendered to the shadows. In any story, if your audience expects your next move – they’re gone.
It goes without saying that your risks may not work out like you had hoped or planned, but at least you’re trying. As the saying goes, “Mistakes are proof you’re trying.”
How can you incorporate stories your audience doesn’t expect in future messaging? Because that is the best way to shake us out of our perpetual daze. In what way can you mix in different perspectives, unexpected stories, support social causes, or add fresh plot twists to your messaging?
Google is very aware of how important it is to carve out time and money to take risks. They call it 20% time where at least 20% of employees’ time is spent exploring risky ideas that have no guarantee of success, but may result in growth. Taking risks is how you ensure your brand is around in another 10 years (which is statistically unlikely).
I’m not saying you need to stop what’s currently working for you. But if you only rely on what’s currently working, and avoid taking risks, you will follow in the footsteps of Blockbuster, Weezer, and J.C. Penny.
To connect with strangers in a meaningful way, you need to get uncomfortable and seek out the unexpected. Because no good story or anything memorable ever comes from expectation or comfort.
Cover image source: Nikhil