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That's R-U-B-R-I-K.com. In a crude laboratory in the basement of his home. It is three AM on a cold- Friends, listen up. If I really wanted to manipulate you into buying my stuff, I'd probably say something like this. "Yo.
Hey, legend. Just three spots left in my elite seven-figure client incubator where I personally show you how to get rich AF using a method I learned in a cave in Bali after a thirty-six hour fast. But act fast 'cause the price doubles in just fourteen minutes, unless you click now. And in that case, I'll throw in a free digital PDF and a soul hug. Here's what my last client said, you know, 'I made eight, eighty K in eight days with just eight emails.'"
I mean, this sounds ridiculous, but you know this game. You've seen it a thousand times, and deep down you know it's . So what's the reason people still fall for this stuff? It's because it does work in the short term. Yes, these hacks can spike sales, but they also spike mistrust.
You might win the transaction, but you lose the relationship. It's like selling a protein shake that tastes amazing but secretly wreaks havoc on your gut. And for any of my lifter friends out there, you completely know what that means. The customer might come back once, but eventually they'll realize they're being sold, not served. And when that happens, you're not just out a buyer, you're out every referral, every testimonial, every future upsell, and every ounce of long-term trust.
The cost of short-term tactics is long-term credibility. So why does this stuff actually work? Because if you're selling coaching, consulting, even if you're hawking insurance policies, really anything with real stakes. So why is it that smart, passionate business owners, especially creatives, keep falling for these surface level hacks? Well, there's two big reasons.
One is desperation. When sales dry up and the bills are due, you'll try anything. Scarcity messes with your nervous system. Your brain screams, "Fix it fast," and that's when the gimmicks start to feel like strategy. Two, an unwillingness to get rich slow.
Building real trust, publishing consistently, telling the truth, refining your offer, this stuff takes time. And in a world built on dopamine hits and fake overnight success stories, long-term thinking feels painfully slow, so we look for shortcuts. But here's the trap. Shortcuts almost always lead you into a circle, and you end up right back where you started, burned out, frustrated, and wondering why people don't trust you. Now, speaking of fearless entrepreneurs, a lot of you know this about me, but I'm a massive reader.
Read every morning. I genuinely believe that the right books can unlock the secrets to mastering the universe, but not in a woo-woo way, in a these are the mental models that the top one percent actually use kind of way. And that's why I put something together that I honestly wish that I had ten years ago. It's a curated reading list better than an MBA and way cheaper because it's free. It's called The One Hundred Must-Read Books for Fearless Entrepreneurs and Leaders.
These aren't fluffy titles. These are the mindset, leadership, money, performance books that have actually leveled me up in my career. Everyone's always asking me, "Hey, what's the next book I should read?" I put this resource together, and I made it free because I wanted to not have to keep answering that question, and I didn't wanna have to keep trying to give people super strategic targeted answers. So regardless if you're listening on the podcast or watching on YouTube, right below in the description, there's a link, books.ryanhanley.com.
Click it. Enter email. Boom. You will get this self-guided curriculum to reshape how you operate. Now let's get back- The holidays are here, and that means it's the most wonderful time of the year to save with Rakuten.
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That's R-A-K-U-T-E-N. Terms and conditions apply. Back to this baller episode. All right, look. If any of that hit a little too close to home, good.
That means you're self-aware, and your self-awareness is the first step to building something real because when you strip away the gimmicks and you get clear on what actually connects with another human, that's when business stops feeling like a grind and it starts feeling like momentum. So let's cut through the noise here. Let's cut through the BS. Let's find the signal. Let's talk about what actually works.
Here is what actually moves people. Number one, story selling. Make them feel the future. Al Chemosi once said, "The best marketing doesn't feel like marketing, it feels like understanding That's exactly what stories do. They bypass skepticism, they create emotional resonance, and they let your past clients, your past experiences sell your future clients.
People don't wanna be pitched. They wanna feel seen. They wanna feel heard. When you tell a story that mirrors their struggle and show how someone, whether it's you or a client just like them, got an outcome they want, their brain says, "That's me." Josh Braun, sales strategist, nailed it.
People don't buy when they understand you. They buy when they feel you understand them. And just quick example, instead of saying something like, "My framework helps coaches scale," say, "Emily was stuck at 3,000 a month, burning out from 14-hour days when we helped her package her offer in a way that felt more aligned with her value structure. The first month, 11K. No launches, no fake urgency, just real value."
Doesn't that just make you wanna buy some shit from me? Maybe not. Number two, and this is my personal favorite, it's the assumptive close. Sell the after, not the ask. This isn't being pushy.
It's powerful. The assumptive close moves the conversation past the decision and into the results. Hormozi calls it playing the tape forward. In psychology, this is called future pacing. You help them imagine the outcome, not just the offer.
In truth, you don't even really wanna talk about the offer. You just wanna talk about what their life is gonna be like after they purchase from you. People don't buy products, they buy certainty. Marcus Sheridan says buyers wanna feel like they're already made the right decision before they ever buy. That's what future pacing gives them.
And a quick example here. Don't say, "Are you ready to move forward?" Instead, use, "Once our tool is bringing in leads, do you want to handle them or have us automate them for you?" You've skipped the anxiety of the decision and taken them into action. Number three, and this is another personal favorite, the empathetic authority close.
Let them sell themselves. This is the most powerful close, in my opinion. It's also the hardest to pull off because it doesn't feel like closing at all. Josh Braun calls it being a buyer's coach. You don't convince, you guide, you ask, you listen.
When someone feels heard, their defenses drop. When they voice the problem in their own words, they own the solution. And when they connect the dots, you don't need to pressure them. You just show them the path. Marcus Sheridan says, "If we-- If you teach them better than anyone else, they'll buy from you even if you're not the cheapest."
And this methodology is all about the open-ended question. What have you tried to solve this already? What happens if nothing changes by next quarter? How would your day-to-day shift if this was off your plate? Then say, "Here's what I'd recommend based on what you shared.
If it feels aligned, let's roll." This is how you build long-term trust, not just to get a yes, but to get loyal clients who refer, renew, and rave about you. So yeah, I could try to manipulate you into buying something right now, but I'd rather just earn your trust. And if you're building something real, something that actually helps people, then you know it's not about pressure, it's about perspective. And in the spirit of building trust, guys, just take 10 seconds and download a copy of 100 Must Read Books for Fearless Entrepreneurs and Leaders.
Scroll down or go to books.ryanhanley.com. I promise you may learn something. This is the way, my friends. In a crude laboratory in the basement of his home. It is 3:00 AM in the confines of his lab.
Happy holidays. Want to give your host a gift? Consider subscribing, rating, and reviewing the show this holiday season. It really helps the show grow. From all of us at Believe, have a merry Christmas, everyone, and a happy holiday.
If you like the show, please take a moment to rate, review, and subscribe. It really does help the show to grow. Thank you for listening.
