Tag: ego

J. Peterman’s Boring Ego

11:08am
Saint Paul

Remember the J. Peterman character from the Seinfeld TV series?

Last night I was watching Seinfeld (I could say that many times each week).

In this episode, J. Peterman—who sells clothing via catalog using romantic, emotional, visual copy—is taking Elaine out to dinner.

She is afraid of the tedium of listening to Peterman’s stories, so Elaine invites Jerry to join…

Continue reading “J. Peterman’s Boring Ego”

7 things you’ll learn in Dan Kennedy’s “The Ultimate Sales Letter”

10:20pm

Saint Paul

I was browsing my bookshelf the other night, looking for something to start.

(I have more unfinished books than I have fully-read books. Not every book is worth finishing, I’ve learned… though many I plan to return to… I think…)

Now, I noticed my slightly neglected Dan Kennedy section. Dan is a prolific and accomplished copywriter and businessman who has recently fallen ill.

I pulled down my worn copy of The Ultimate Sales Letter and Continue reading “7 things you’ll learn in Dan Kennedy’s “The Ultimate Sales Letter”“

Destructive Power of “Why”

Behold… the Destructive Power of Why!

615am

Saint Paul

Yesterday we discussed how we can increase support and investment in our ideas and plans.

Check it out if you haven’t seen it:

https://www.persuasionreadinglist.com/building-with-the-power-of-why/

Today we’re looking at the destructive power of the word Why: Continue reading “Destructive Power of “Why””

10 Things You’ll Learn from “Mistakes Were Made (but not by me)” by Tavris & Aronson

“Why do you hate so-and-so, so much?” And he had answered them, with his shameless impudence, “I’ll tell you. He has done me no harm. But I played him a dirty trick, and ever since I have hated him.”

–Dostoyevsky, “The Brothers Karamazov”

Can you justify such behavior? Image from Steve Martin's movie "The Jerk", 1979
Cat Juggling! Can you justify such behavior? Image from Steve Martin’s movie “The Jerk”, 1979

The human brain is excellent at keeping itself free of blame. We have a self-image that we’re a good person, and we also do things that harm others. The cognitive dissonance this causes can be uncomfortable… until we rewrite our memories or justify our actions. Continue reading “10 Things You’ll Learn from “Mistakes Were Made (but not by me)” by Tavris & Aronson”