PLEASE DON'T BELIEVE IN YOURSELF

Please.

Don't start believing in yourself now.

We've got money invested in the person you currently think you are.

I need you insecure.

Not completely insecure. That would be too obvious.

I need you functional enough to work.

Confident enough to post.

Independent enough to earn.

But uncertain enough to keep asking me what you should do with yourself.

That's perfect.

Because if you don't believe you're attractive, I can sell you attractive.

If you don't believe you're successful, I can sell you successful.

If you don't believe you're interesting, I can sell you interesting.

If you don't believe you're doing enough, I can sell you productivity.

If you don't believe you're living right, I can sell you somebody else's lifestyle.

And if I can convince you that everybody else knows something you don't?

Oh, that's beautiful.

Now I don't even have to sell you anything yet.

I have your attention.

We'll monetize that first.

DON'T THINK YET.

Open the comments.

Somebody will tell you what happened.

Somebody will tell you who's wrong.

Somebody will tell you who's right.

Somebody will tell you whether you should be offended.

Somebody will tell you what everybody is wearing.

Somebody will tell you what everybody is buying.

Somebody will tell you what everybody supposedly believes.

Why waste all that time thinking for yourself?

Thinking takes time.

Thinking requires silence.

Thinking might cause you to question what we're selling.

We can't have that.

I'd much rather you spend three hours investigating somebody else's relationship than thirty minutes investigating your own finances.

I'd rather you know who's beefing than know what interest is costing you.

I'd rather you recognize every influencer on your screen before you recognize the difference between owning an asset and consuming one.

I'd rather you watch wealth than learn how money moves.

Because once you start asking how money moves, eventually you're going to ask:

Where is mine going?

And then we might have a problem.

PLEASE DON'T LEARN THE BOARD.

You know financial markets exist, right?

Businesses exist.

Stocks exist.

Bonds exist.

Interest exists.

Ownership exists.

Real estate exists.

Intellectual property exists.

Taxes exist.

Credit exists.

Compounding exists.

Entire systems are operating around you every day whether you understand them or not.

You don't have to become a trader.

You don't have to become an investor tomorrow.

Hell, you don't even have to have money yet.

Just don't learn too much about how the machinery works.

Because I like you better fascinated by the people benefiting from the machinery.

Watch them.

Follow them.

Argue about them.

Buy what they're wearing.

Repeat what they're saying.

Debate how much money they have.

Just don't spend too much time asking how ownership works.

That's different.

And while you're watching?

We'll keep moving.

HOW DO YOU HAVE TIME?

That's actually the one question I hope you never ask yourself.

How do you have time to know everything about everybody except yourself?

How do you have time to investigate somebody's breakup but not investigate an investment?

How do you know somebody's entire controversy but don't know what compound interest means?

How do you know what everybody online thinks before you've even decided what you think?

Please don't answer that.

Scroll.

There's probably something new by now.

I DON'T NEED YOUR MONEY FIRST.

That's what people misunderstand about me.

They think I'm always trying to get into their wallet.

Not necessarily.

Your wallet comes later.

First, I need your attention.

Because attention gives me opportunities.

If I have your attention long enough, I can introduce the insecurity.

If I can introduce the insecurity, I can introduce the solution.

And wouldn't you know it?

I happen to sell the solution.

You weren't ugly until somebody gave you something to compare yourself to.

You weren't behind until somebody showed you where they said you should be.

You didn't need the upgrade until somebody made what you already owned feel old.

You weren't unsuccessful until success was packaged, edited, photographed and placed directly in your hand twelve hours a day.

Comparison created the discomfort.

Discomfort created the demand.

And demand?

Well.

That's business.

PLEASE KEEP ASKING US WHO YOU ARE.

We'll answer.

We've got categories.

Aesthetics.

Trends.

Communities.

Products.

Personalities.

Subscriptions.

Courses.

Clothes.

Cars.

Opinions.

Even rebellion comes in packages now.

Pick one.

We'll gladly help you construct an identity.

Just understand something:

A person who doesn't know who they are is an incredible customer.

Because every few months, they can become somebody else.

And every somebody else needs new shit.

WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T GET COMFORTABLE BEING WRONG.

That's dangerous.

Because real confidence isn't believing you're always right.

Real confidence is believing you're capable of discovering when you're wrong.

And a person who can say,

"I don't know. Let me find out."

is becoming difficult to manipulate.

Now they're checking sources.

Now they're comparing information.

Now they're asking who benefits.

Now they're asking what's missing.

Now they're wondering why everybody suddenly started talking about the exact same thing.

Now they're noticing when fear is being sold.

Now they're noticing when insecurity is being manufactured.

Now they're noticing when somebody needs them emotionally activated before they'll open their wallet.

That's a terrible customer.

AND PLEASE DON'T MAKE YOUR OWN PATH.

That might be the worst thing you could do.

Because making your own path means occasionally walking somewhere we didn't point you.

It means learning something that isn't trending.

Building something nobody applauds yet.

Saving when everybody is showing off.

Studying while everybody is watching.

Creating while everybody is commenting.

Owning while everybody is consuming.

And sometimes standing completely alone with a decision and saying:

I chose this.

Do you understand how inconvenient that person is?

They're harder to pressure.

Harder to rush.

Harder to impress.

Harder to embarrass.

Harder to sell an identity to.

Not impossible.

But harder.

And harder costs money.

So please.

Stay insecure.

Keep checking whether everybody approves.

Keep asking strangers if you're enough.

Keep letting somebody else decide what deserves your attention.

Keep studying personalities instead of systems.

Keep consuming everybody else's path until you forget you were supposed to make one.

We'll be here.

There's an entire economy prepared to meet you at every insecurity you refuse to examine.

And don't worry.

When the insecurity changes,

we'll have something new to sell you.

But if one day you shut the noise off long enough to ask

Who profits from me believing I am not enough?

we might lose a customer.

And you?

You might finally meet yourself.