MANIFESTO: Ignite the fire, move people, and gain brand fans

By the end of this exercise, you will gain more clarity about your brand value and how to tell its origin story, so you can activate more passion within your tribe – turning customers/clients, and even team members, into passionate advocates.

Instructions:

Carve out quiet time to answer these questions.

If it's easier for you, you can use this document to write your answers. In the top left corner, click on FILE > MAKE A COPY to create your own private copy and make edits directly. Your answers will be private to you.

YOUR IMPACT:

1) What positive transformation or change do you seek to make with your business/creation?

How will it make other people’s lives better? 

You don’t have to “change the world”. If it sounds too big, think of your niche, community, or any smaller segment of people instead.

YOUR ANSWER: 

2) What are some less obvious ways that your business impacts your customer’s life?

Think of other areas of their lives. 

For example, if you help them improve their health, you are also helping them improve their relationships, finance, self-esteem, etc.

YOUR ANSWER: 

3): Dig even deeper: How does it affect your customer’s loved ones and other connections?

How would this change impact their loved ones and connections (family, friends, employees, coworkers, etc)?

And how does it contribute to making the whole world a better place, even if by 1%?

YOUR ANSWER: 

YOUR VALUES

4) Think of 5 brands (organizations or people) that you admire. 

What do you admire about them? 

These are clues for qualities that you have and suppress within yourself.

YOUR ANSWER: 

5) What are some mainstream or common beliefs in your industry that you disagree with? Why do you disagree?

What are some things you want to do differently from (and better than) what is already mainstream? 

What, if anything, is “bizarre” about your ideas and perspectives?

YOUR ANSWER: 

6) What is something you do (or want to do) in the context of your business, not because of a profit motive, but because you believe it’s the right thing to do (or because you just enjoy it too much)? 

One way to think about this is: if your business was already wildly successful and profitable, what would you still do? What would you do more of?

For example, if your answer is: “I would create better packaging”, you might value beauty, luxury, refinement, surprising & delighting people, etc.

YOUR ANSWER: 

7) List your values

While thinking about the answers above, it’s likely that you have noticed some patterns or personal values. Try to summarize them in one or few words.

NOTE 1: Think of your most painful experiences or biggest lessons learned. It’s likely that your main values were acquired as a result of those lessons. 

For example, if you have been cheated or lied to, then you probably place a high value on honesty and integrity. If you’ve played small all your life but then you learned to trust yourself, then you probably care deeply about encouraging other people to do the same.

NOTE 2: This is always a good thing because we need empathy to lead the way— as long as they are experiences from which you have healed.

One way to know is to notice whether you feel the value is rooted in anger (towards yourself or someone else), or compassion (forgiveness, love, acceptance). 

If you’re still hurt by these experiences, it’s important to do the inner work first, before you lead the way to a better standard.

YOUR ANSWER: 

8) Action-Based Values

Now, start narrowing the list down. Eliminate values that don’t seem too important or relevant to you. Keep only values that you are willing to show through your actions every day.

YOUR ANSWER:  

9) Your Core Values

If you could only keep one value, which of the values is the most important one? 

YOUR ANSWER: 

10) Your ONE Value

Once you’ve made that choice, what are 3 aspects of this one core value that you clearly express through action in your business or work?

For example, if you value luxury, you have to also value high-standards, care, attention to detail, etc.

You cannot value “the end result”, without the willingness to value what it takes to achieve it.

YOUR ANSWER: 

YOUR VALUE STORY

Humans respond to stories. The final question in this exercise is about telling the story of how you arrived at your core value. This is how you create the deepest level of emotional impact.

12) What is a story from your personal life that explains how and why you arrived at your core values? 

OR: what is a story about someone else (e.g. a customer) that represents the core value you believe in?

This will enable you to tell a much better story of how and why your brand started. 

What elements should your brand story include? 

Use what is commonly known as The Hero's Journey- a story framework where the “Hero” goes through 3 main stages:

1) The Departure: The Hero is presented with a problem, challenge or crisis. The Hero reluctantly sets out on his journey.

2) The initiation: This is where the majority of the journey happens. The Hero meets a Guide who gives a plan and calls him to take action. Eventually the Hero faces those challenges and learns valuable lessons in the process.

3) The return: The Hero returns to his tribe and shares his lessons and gifts The Hero himself then becomes the Guide to other Heroes ready to face similar challenges.

The Hero can be you, or a client/customer, or someone else. If you tell your brand story using this Hero’s Journey framework, your values become evident through the actions that the Hero took to overcome the challenge.

YOUR ANSWER: 

1) The Departure: 

2) The initiation:

3) The return:

About: brands are ALIVE is a Transformational space for mindful & creative entrepreneurs and pathfinders who seek to build a brand of full self-expression, and a business of passion, purpose, and (more) profit.