This is why you’re like Picasso…

As you get good at something, you embrace more complex options (Notion over Apple Notes, leading meetings, etc).

As you get really good at things you make things simpler again (back to Notes, avoiding meetings, etc).

Reembrace simplicity.

The amateur does not know what to do.

The master knows what not to do.

-James Clear

The master has hiked Picasso’s Hill

As you improve at something, you journey along a curve. You’ve probably seen the memes. I’m sure it’s got some fancy name like "The Complexity Curve of Mastery."

But it looks like a hill. So I’m calling it Picasso’s Hill

Why?

Because dude can draw and paint his ass off. But he got to his signature style by returning to simplicity. Check out Picasso’s Bulls if you want to see this in action.

So about that hill…

When you first start, you’re on the simple end of the curve. 

As you progress you climb the curve to complexity.

Then you hit a point in your progress where you head back down the hill to simplicity.

But this doesn’t mean you’re back where you started. You hiked over a hill.

As James Clear puts it:

The amateur does not know what to do.

The master knows what not to do.

So keep it simple, stupid

JK, you’re not stupid 💜

Stay curious.

Here’s another New Year’s resolution for curious marketers:

DEFER TO DATA

Why guess when you can test?

The benefit of working in a digital world is rapid data collection. Digital is fast and flexible, use that to your advantage. 

We don’t have to rely on opinions or gut feelings.

I have sat in so many meetings where taglines or ad creative or button color is discussed. Meetings filled with “I thinks” and “I likes”. 

Don’t think and feel. Launch & learn.

• The algorithms want more pieces of robot food to learn on.
• People like different things.
• Our brands aren’t just one color and one phrase and one picture.

What I’m saying is:

Yes, I’m being a bit extreme. Our experience and our expertise is what makes us valuable. But we don’t have to settle on one thing.

Narrow down to a few options that represent your brand well and just put them out there. Let your audience decide.

We don’t need to rely on our opinions and gut feelings, we can find out what our customers actually like, which is way better. 

Our opinions don’t matter. Our audience’s opinions matter.

Toss on the lab coat and start cranking out robot food.

& Stay curious.

2024 Resolution: Defer To Data

Why guess when you can test?

We don’t need to rely on our opinions and gut feelings, we can find out what our customers actually like, which is way better.

Toss on that lab coat and start cranking out robot food.

LinkedIn has always been one of the more expensive “social” ad platforms, and it doesn’t look like that is changing anytime soon.

LinkedIn ad prices have soared due to a surge in demand reportedly driven by the advertiser boycott of X.

Reports are 30% increases, but a 20% ROI.

The Professional Network can definitely work for advertisers, just comes with some sticker shock for those used to other digital options.

Is this all just Elon helping out old PayPal Mafia buddy Reid?

2024 Resolution: Kill Your Ego

The work we do as marketers isn’t about us.

As soon as a brand becomes public—with customers and fans—it belongs to them.

So free yourself this year and leave your ego in 2023.

Here’s a New Year’s resolution for curious marketers:

KILL YOUR EGO

The marketing spectrum goes from creator/influencer to agency cog. All ego to no ego. 

As an influencer, you are the product. You are the marketing. You are the message. All you, all the time. 

On the opposite end, you are facilitating other people's products, messages and stories, which means there is no place for you in the telling

But no matter where you are on the spectrum, killing your ego will bring your work to life. 

If you are the brand, it's like you’re playing a character. Creating space so your sense of self worth and individuality aren’t at the whim of the internet masses. 

If you work in support of A Brand™, it’s...also like you're playing a character. You adapt the brand persona and let your personal opinions fall by the wayside. 

Because no matter where you fall on the spectrum, it’s not about you.

It’s about the customer and their story. 

The story they tell themselves and how that story can (or can't) adapt to incorporate your brand. The more work that takes, the less likely they are to become a fan.

Or even a customer. 

So, marketing resolution for 2024: Kill Your Ego

The work we do as marketers isn’t about us. Even as influencers and creators, it isn’t about us.  

As soon as a brand becomes public—with customers and fans—it belongs to them. 

We pour our opinions, tastes, and beliefs into the creation of a brand, but as soon as we launch we enter a state of co-creation.

So free yourself this year and leave your ego in 2023. 

& Stay curious.

On Algorithms

The algorithms always know when I’m having a back flare-up, because I tell them
…
And I will reinforce those suggestions and results by interacting with them (and a dismissal is an interaction, always).

Search engines, algorithmic recommendation engines, advertisers - they are able to serve up “relevant” things about us because their designers and engineers built them to (or in same cases, failed to build them not to) deliver certain outputs in response to certain kinds of prompts and signals, explicit and implicit