The FALSE Messiah Scandal
The modern day snake oil is fast-tracked fame & overnight success… and we’re all fucking buying it.
The modern day snake oil is fast-tracked fame & overnight success… and we’re all fucking buying it.
In this modern age, your ‘status’ now establishes your STATUS.
“Follow me.”
“Support my Patreon.”
“Subscribe for the answers.”
We all wait with baited breath for the secret, so that we can action it for ourselves… Then the gut-punch comes.
You’ve been tricked into following a false messiah. A god-like figure of business/success/creativity or influence who appears to have all the answers… but they give you none.
Have you ever sat back and thought about how vague the ‘real secrets’ really are? .
eg. Just visualise. Broaden your mind. Accept God into your heart. Exercise twice per day. Get 8 hours of sleep per night.
All failures are attributed to YOUR lack of commitment and all successes are used to support such nonsense.
Success gurus are like politicians. Securing your vote and then skilfully dodging the questions you want answered.
“At the end of this video I’m going to give you the secrets, so stay tuned long enough for me to mid-roll ads and get paid for your views”
<<10 minutes later>> **Drum roll please**
“Okay guys, just be yourself. Be authentic. Live your best life. Make sure to like & subscribe.”
You have been cheated and it’s time to fight back against the false messiah scandal.
THE PROBLEM — IT’S EASIER THAN EVER TO FAKE SUCCESS & SELL IT.
Followers = power.
From the dawn of human civilisation, the people getting listened to/watched were the ones with something of value to say.
Supporters and followers give you power. That position of power draws a bigger audience, more easily.
Or at least, that’s how it used to work before the internet.
With a desperation for connection and trepidation that you may miss something, it’s often easier to use ‘social proof’ as your only proof.
This means that followers can be fooled and that substance & subscribers no longer have a correlation.
Technology has given everyone an equally loud voice, but does everyone deserve it? That’s an important philosophical question. So instead let’s tackle an easier one…
HOW DO YOU SPOT A FALSE MESSIAH?
The career of just being popular is now the most desirable path out of a banal life. So the hottest product to sell, is the method to get there.
Package it up with a shiny red bow and it’ll be the easiest sale you make all day. No refunds, returns or take-sy-back-sies.
Here are a few red flags to look out for:
The delayed spilling of beans (figuratively) — This is a favourite of the False Messiah. They’ll ask you to keep watching for 1, 2, 3, or even 10 minutes to see something they’ve “never shared with anyone before”. The reveal is never impressive, always vague and leaves you shouting “THANK YOU CAPTAIN OBVIOUS.”
The stripper’s instagram — Full of inspirational jargon and love, the False Messiah preaches what they don’t practice. Understand that in some instances, it’s more for the validation and likes than it is to actually inspire you. False positivity is worse when it’s used to wrap up a humble brag. eg. “Just hear hanging out in NYC after some exciting meetings and eating sushi at a restaurant that Kayne tweeted about. Shit’s lit. Remember people — live, laugh & love. You can do anything you want if you dream a dream and then pursue that dream. #blessed.”
Overt, unexplained displays of wealth — If you asked me the fastest way to build a following for a personal brand on social media I’d say materialism. Simply show us some expensive watches, clothes, houses & holidays via social media and we’re on the hook. Like a moth to the flame. But did those things come from the source they’re selling? Was it unlocking their inner mogul via 6 steps that did it? Their morning routine? Or was it the two jobs they’ve been working that did it?
Don’t buy into easy, so easily.
“There’s a sucker born every minute.” — P.T. Barnum
It’s a shame that for as long as there are gullible people, there will be plenty willing to exploit them for profit.
You just have to be quick.
Oversaturation dilutes opportunity.
Read that again. Oversaturation dilutes opportunity.
The first person to sell Beanie Babies on eBay makes a killing. By the time everyone knows his ‘secret’ the market is now saturated and it’ll be harder and harder for anyone else to replicate his/her success.
The same goes for any scheme or niche.
So what will happen to all of these online get-rich-quick schemes?
It reminds me of that scene in ‘There’s something about Mary’ — 7 minute abs!
One guy sells the secret in 7 minutes.
The next guy it’s in 6.
The next one has uncovered the secret to get it done in 5 minutes.
This next hidden gem lets you do it in 4.
It’s never ending.
It’s in the False Messiah’s financial interest to come up with a new method to sell you.
“Try this new secret to make money while you sleep.”
“Buy my book for the REAL actionable steps that nobody is telling you.”
However, the oversaturation of False Messiahs and their products will eventually spread the demand so thin, nobody will be able to make a living from it.
For that reason… False Messiahs will be the death of themselves.
DO YOU EVEN NEED AN AUDIENCE? MOST PEOPLE DON’T
Social media has tricked us all into believing we have something of value to say. We should all have the right to say whatever we want, freedom of speech, but not everyone needs an audience.
Some people mis-use an audience and post photos of their Sunday Roast on Facebook that’s drowning in gravy and looks like milky dog shit over food in various shades of beige.
Or Celebrity spotting in their local town but with the worst quality photo EVER.
It’s worth asking yourself before you cultivate an audience. “What do I eventually want to offer these people? What value can I give them?”
YOU CAN’T BUY SUCCESS — IT HAS TO BE EARNED
It used to be aspirational to see someone doing well from afar and want to replicate their success. However, hard work isn’t sexy. You know what is? An odd number of simple steps or juicy, insider secrets… That’s why we all fall for it.
Fast-tracked fame is easy. Stick a wine-bottle in your fanny on air and say hello to a book deal.
Give a homeless guy a McDonald’s meal deal and film him feeding some to his dog. Hello 30million views!
But is that success? Does fame have to be mixed with talent to be respected?
What if I told you the ones I’ve personally seen make it have one secret. (Just pay me $9.99 a month to learn it.) Just kidding. I’ll tell you now… It’s consistency.
Consistency of vision. Consistency of effort. Consistency or hard work.
Try having a humble 5 year plan, instead of an overzealous 1 year plan with plenty of short-cuts.
If you want it to last. You have to EARN it… and it won’t come quickly.
Geraint Clarke
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