Celebrated Libertarian communicator, Michael Cloud, shared this in a recent issue of The Advocates for Self-Government’s newsletter, Liberator Online.
We are flooded with information every day. We want and need only a tiny fraction of it.
Most is useless, boring, and trivial to us.
Most of us are tired and frustrated with the overwhelming, never-ending flood of information.
So we find ways to filter and block what we’re exposed to.
This is what you’re up against as a libertarian communicator.
How do you get your libertarian message through? How do you get a receptive hearing?
By rising to the 30 Second Challenge.
Imagine that the person you want to talk with challenges you with this:
“You have 30 seconds to tell me why I want to hear about libertarianism.”
Do you have a powerful, persuasive answer to his challenge?
Or imagine he tells you:
“You have 30 seconds to whet my appetite to hear more about libertarianism.”
Can you do it?
Have you thought about how to do it?
You are up against the 30 Second Challenge every day. If you fail it, your listeners will quickly tune you out.
And they will never hear what you have to say about liberty.
Want some examples? Want to see a few ways of winning their attention in 30 seconds?
The secret to winning your listener’s interest in 30 seconds?
Use provocative 30-second teasers.
Consider these teaser samples.
- If there were a simple, reliable way to reduce drug gang membership and violence by over two-thirds, reduce the cost of the drug war by over $100 billion a year, and generate over $50 billion a year in private sector income and investments, would you want to hear about it?
- Would you be interested in knowing about a simple, dependable way to bring in $1 trillion this year for our sluggish economy? All of it private sector money, at zero cost to taxpayers?
- Would you be interested in a provable way to cut your medical care costs by 20% or 30% or even 50% this year, cut your health care insurance bills by 20% to 40%, and cut your prescription drug costs as much as 50% — while protecting or improving health care quality and service? At zero cost to taxpayers?
- I’m wondering if you’d like to hear about a simple, verifiable way to unleash small businesses all across America to dramatically increase revenue and create 2 million to 6 million new private sector jobs in the next 12 months.
I could tell you my test results on each of these teasers. But I want you to see for yourself.
Try out any one of these 4 samples on 5 to 10 friends, acquaintances, or co-workers who you have NEVER discussed libertarianism with.
Many of them will spontaneously ask you, “What is it?” or “How do you do that?”
Whether they do or don’t, ask the person, “On a scale of 1 to 10 — with 1 being totally uninterested and 10 being absolutely, positively want to know — how would you rate your level of interest right now?”
Thirty seconds ago, they weren’t even thinking about the issues. Now, many of them are interested on a scale of 8, 9, or 10.
Why?
Teasers are to interest and curiosity, what appetizers are to hunger and thirst.
They tantalize and tempt us.
Teasers ignite or inflame our desire.
They are designed to stimulate interest, NOT satisfy it.
Teasers are structured to arouse or increase curiosity, NOT quench it.
They tell us what they offer, but do NOT tell us how they’ll provide it.
That increases our desire to know. It makes people more receptive and responsive.
Teaser guidelines:
- Offer concrete, specific benefits. Provable or verifiable benefits.
- Offer big, exciting benefits.
- Offer immediate or really-soon benefits.
- Be able to document or demonstrate that the benefits are probable or possible.
Learn, develop, and use 30-second libertarian teasers – and you will find that person after person will open their hearts and minds and ask you: “What is it?” or “Really? How do you do that?”
Curious about the documentation for the sample teasers in this column?
- What would happen if we legally “marry” marijuana and alcohol, if we legally require that marijuana and alcohol laws, regulations, enforcement, penalties, and policies be exactly the same? As a first step. (See The Great Libertarian Offer by Harry Browne. And visit the Marijuana Policy Project website.)
- U.S. corporations are parking over $1 trillion in profits overseas — rather than paying a 35% corporate tax on the earnings. What if the federal government declared a tax amnesty or tax reduction to, say, 10% or 5% for all such earnings brought into the U.S in the next 6 months? A $1 trillion private sector stimulus…
- See my 2009 essay “6 Simple Ways to Dramatically cut costs of Medical Care — at Zero Cost to Taxpayers!“
- 4. Many years ago, Jack Kemp proposed “Enterprise Zones” — where federal, state, and local mandates, regulations, and restrictions would be radically reduced or removed — for blighted or impoverished areas in America. What if we take the “Enterprise Zone” concept — and apply it to all small businesses in America? Small businesses generate 60% to 80% of the new private sector jobs in America. Imagine what they could do and would do — if we let this Army of Atlasses shrug off the government burdens!
Are you ready to go out and try it?
