As usual, the main idea in this post is more or less technically accurate. Successful influence and persuasion doesn’t have much to do with whether words are technically accurate, and has a lot more to do with what the words make the viewer focus on and how the words make the viewer feel.
A preferred phrase of mine: the best propaganda wears a clever mask. One target audience of our master persuader is intelligent men who process the world around them in a rational way. Many process these words, see the technical accuracy, and conclude that this post gives them value.
If you are here, you are probably already aware of the deficits of this line of thinking. If not, click the link to read more about The You Who is Not your Thoughts, and why it has a stronger impact on your decisions than The You Who is your Thoughts. This is helpful background information for the rest of the article.
If I were excessively charitable, I could say that this post is good because of the valid message contained in the second half of the post, which, to paraphrase, says: luck is not in your control, so go do your thing. Many read this post and think that teaching this message is the effect of the post. “Wow! So helpful!”
If it did do that, it would be helpful. But you, my reader, are here, so you suspect (or even already know) that the post does something different. In particular, if you fully understand the implications of “The You Who is Not Your Thoughts”, you know that, to a meaningful degree, the post does the exact opposite.
Alright, answer from memory before you look. How many times does this post use the word “skill?” (or any synonym) How many times does this post use the word “luck?” Now, go check.
A useful line to keep in mind with this master persuader: one of his strongest skills is writing a post where the reader consciously thinks the post teaches him how to do a thing and the post strongly pushes him to do the opposite of that thing.
What did we say is the reason why a logic-focused reader thinks this post helps him get farther in life? Because it teaches him a concept about focusing away from luck. What does this post actually do? It goes full speed ahead with no holds barred so that the reader focuses on luck as much as possible!
It uses the word four times: an infinite proportion more times than it talks about any word synonymous with skill (divide by zero…). It uses the phrase “huge luck” and the phrase “tons of luck.” When a reader thinks of an attribute as having large size, the reader’s subconscious perceives that attribute as more important.
This post even personifies luck as an individual (“Lady Luck”). Personification and visualization greatly magnify the attention to and perceived impact of a thing in a viewer’s subconscious.
While I was writing this, I thought about how much this post focuses readers on luck and how little it focuses you on skill. I was struck by inspiration and ran to X:
If you study this carefully, you see that many aspects of this post are a mirror of the original post. Now, instead of four mentions of luck and none of skill, they are flipped. Instead of “huge luck” and “tons of luck,” we have “tremendous skill” and “big skills.” Instead of personifying luck as Lady Luck, we have the personification of skill as Skill Demon.
Demon is an interesting word to use there. I went with what felt right. I’m an artist. I can’t really fully explain why “demon” works there, but I think it has something to do with relentless drive and masculine energy. It makes you think of “Speed Demon.” “Lady Luck” brings connotations of leaning back and feeling. “Skill Demon” brings connotations of leaning forward and pressing. I wanted that masculine energy in my post.1 Let’s wrap up our big-picture analysis of the original post.
If you understand the you who is not your thoughts, you know, for a fact, that the actual effect of this post is to make it so the reader obsesses over luck. Drawing attention to it multiple times, associating it with size, and personifying it are all steps that make the reader’s subconscious and subliminal neural connections conclude it’s a very big deal, and modulate the mindset of the reader accordingly.
The mindset that will help you is one where you focus on building the skills with which you achieve your goals. That’s because this is a mindset where you focus on what you can control. There’s no sense spending too much time thinking about other things. You have a better chance of success when your mindset is oriented towards focusing on ideas that help you solve your daily problems, because concentrating on your daily tasks is a doable and actionable process to build your future victories.
The effect of this post on the “You Who is Not Your Thoughts,” which is much more powerful than the You who is Your Thoughts, is to do the exact opposite of what the rational mind thinks it does. Many intelligent readers finish this and walk away thinking they have just been put on the right track with a valuable insight into effective mindset. In reality, the post set them on a course for the exact opposite mindset, which is an unhelpful and unproductive mindset. The best propaganda hides in plain sight.
These words are a stumbling block on my road to triumph. I only read words by the master persuader because I write extended analysis of them and turn myself back on the right track with effective counter-propaganda. By doing it openly, I provide the same service to all of you who read me as well. My DMs reliably inform me that many of you appreciate the effort.
Behind the paywall I will go over more details of this post. Also, this post vaguely hints at an idea about good mindset that is actually very insightful. People who already understand this insightful idea will see the glimmers of that idea in our master persuader’s post and be impressed by the fact that our master persuader understands it.
Unfortunately, the master persuader buries that idea in so much subliminal messaging pointing readers in the opposite direction that younger readers are unlikely to recognize that valuable idea. So, behind the paywall, I will describe a more productive way to understand this idea. It is a version that drives me to victory.