Be Unexpected

yelling formal man watching news on laptop

The world today, in particular online, is predictable in so many ways. There are tried and tested approaches which are deployed almost everywhere, from the layout of a website to marketing engagements. It is not uncommon to receive an email “from the CEO” a few minutes after signing up for an online service. Deep down, we all know these emails are automated, despite including our name and some basic details about us, which we gave to the service a few minutes earlier. In many ways, email outreach has become the “I am a prince in a foreign country who needs you to send $20 today”.

What if each customer you had sign up received a hand-written email directly from you? What if you replaced “automation” with a system, and had an actual human performing a task instead of a robot?

Be unexpected.


This post is inspired by Derek Sivers, in particular season 1 of his podcast, which includes this gem about human intervention and this reminder to surprise and delight those around you.

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