Don't fool yourself.

Here’s a warning sign.
One to alert you to when you and your organization are fooling yourselves?
Simply listen closely for these erroneous statements.
“Our real problem is a perception problem.
People simply don’t understand our unique value.”
What is a “perception problem” anyway?
Isn’t “perception” knowledge gained by perceiving something?
And isn’t perceived value in the subjective eyes of the beholder?
So what’s the “real” problem?
I’ll tell you what it is.
Organizations want to change people’s perceptions in a flash.
And they’re discovering that they can’t.
In his book Story, the screenwriter Robert McKee distinguished fact from truth.
“What happens is fact, not truth.
Truth is what we think about what happens.”
Perception, people’s truth, is what drives their behavior.
But people don’t perceive in order to discover the facts, to construct reality.
They perceive in order to make personal meaning of their present circumstances.
By comparing them to their past experiences.
Ultimately, people perceive in order to make predictions, to manage the future.
A future that uniquely suits their needs and desires.
Plato wrote, “Knowledge is nothing but perception.”
If you want people to know about you and your brand and its value to them, stop fooling yourself.
Your facts will never be the same as their truth.
If you focus on the facts, you’ll believe that your mission should be to convey those facts.
It’s an illuson.
The truth rules.
Everything is subjective.
Every decision is driven by what is inside someone.
Memories, images, stories and feelings.
The key to successful influence is to forget the language of logic and arguments.
And become proficient at the language of perceptions and beliefs.