Working Up

by Dwayne Phillips

We seem to believe that special things are for special people. And we all want to be a special person. We can employ this idea to surround ourselves with special people.

A few years ago I was at a high school track meet. There was this little girl at the concession stand. They sold cake at the concession stand; it was beautiful cake.

Guess what? The little girl wanted a piece of cake. I don’t think the little girl was hungry. I don’t think the little girl especially liked cake. Here is what I do think:

Cake was for special persons, and

the little girl wanted to be special.

I suppose advertisers have known this since the day after someone created advertising. Advertisers don’t convince people that they need the product being advertised. Advertisers convince people that special people have the product. If you have the product, you are a special person.

Who doesn’t want to be special?

A prime example of this for the 20th century was the deBeers people. They convinced the world that special women were given a diamond ring by their suitors. And what women didn’t want to be special in the eyes of at least one suitor.

Let’s take this out of advertising and into some real world application. People are around you and me. I have something to give, so I convince the people around me that special people have that something. Then I give it to them.

Now I am surrounded by special people.

I kind of like that idea – being surrounded by special people.