Why I ruthlessly mock the hack & tactic-chasers

Below is a snippet of an interview that has had a profound impact on my business. Not just “how” to create emails, sales letters, marketing campaigns, etc. But also how to approach life overall. Maybe you’ll find it useful, too. Anywhere, first some context: It’s from part of an old interview Michael Senoff did with the late, great Jim Camp. Jim was known as the “world’s most feared negotiator.” And he routinely had multiple billion dollar negotiations going on for his clients at any given time, with the FBI admitting his methodology was the biggest revolution in negotiation they’d seen in 50-years, and all kinds of prestigious business schools making his material required reading at one time. He was also a fighter pilot in Vietnam, too. And one of the things he taught about negotiation (i.e., marketing, copywriting, persuasion — even if he didn’t use those terms) that he learned as a pilot: You’re always safe as long as you stay within a proven & reliable system. Here is how he told it in the interview: “What you really do, is you put systems in place to solve problems. For example, on day one of pilot training the instructor would say to you, you’ve just taken off, your engine’s quit, what are you going to do? A lot of people would say I’m going to try to find a place to land. No, you’re going to eject. Well, they’ve never done that. They don’t know what it looks like. They don’t have any confidence in it. So what happens? You study the ejection system in the airplane so that you see how it actually functions. Not only do you understand it, Mike, but you see it. They let you practice on dummied seats; they shoot you up a rail; they take you parasailing with a parachute. They do all these things to help you actually experience and see it. And they help you fail safely so you gain confidence.” So it is in all other disciplines. In fact, before my very first Wing Chun Kung Fu lesson in early 2015 — when I simply went over and talked to Sifu to decide if I even wanted to take lessons — I remember him saying: “When people know the system, they don’t ever worry about getting hit or attacked. It’s just not an issue or a problem. If anything, anyone trying to hit you is giving you a gift.” I didn’t completely understand that at the time. But after taking lessons for almost 7 years he’s absolutely right. I know if I should ever get attacked on the street by some unarmed goon trying to punch or swing at me, I’m “good” as long as I stay within the Wing Chun system. It’s amusing just watching videos on YouTube of brawls now. When you know a system of combat you realize how retarded people fight. In many cases the bigger & stronger the attacker, the more “holes” you see. And it’s from knowing a system. But, just as ejecting won’t save you if your plane spontaneously explodes, there are obviously situations where no fighting system is going to do you much good, either. You know, like someone pulling a gun and shooting someone through the eyeball. So there’s context here. But Jim Camp and Sifu and other wise men (like the great Dan Kennedy who used to say the same in his famous Peter Lowe talks) who tell you you’re always safe in a system are absolutely correct. More: I daresay it’s the same with my email marketing methodology too. For example: I use a system of email writing with every single email I pound out. (i.e., the info inside the book I give to new “Email Players” subscribers). And that system has always kept me “safe” as far as not worrying about all the nagging anxieties other even well-trained copywriters experience about deadlines, stress, frustration, overwhelm, so-called “writers block”, worrying if an email will be profitable or not, etc. None of that is a problem at all. And the reason it is not a problem is because I have worked out — over many years of study, application, trial & error, and hard grueling work — a system for writing emails in business. Which brings us full circle: When you have a system for doing something that’s reliable and repeatable, you don’t worry about whatever it is you have to do. The system keeps you safe. It keeps you on track. And it keeps you from making stupid mistakes those who don’t follow a system are almost certainly going to make because they don’t have such a system. Bottom line is: Whatever it is you are trying to learn seek out systems and not hacks, tactics, or tricks. Those hacks may be fun. They may even make you look cool in all the marketing groups. But they’ll eventually get you killed without a system. Which is, incidentally, why I mock hacks & tactic-chasers. They need to be. 
If for no other reason than those watching won’t follow their stupid ways. On that note: To learn my email writing system for your business use the link below. Do it before the deadline today and you can get the October issue. An issue that talks about this topic and many others in depth. Here’s some lovin’: [https∶//www.EmailPlayers.com]( Ben Settle This email was sent by Ben Settle as owner of Settle, LLC. Copyright © 2021 Settle, LLC. All Rights Reserved. No part of this email may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from Settle, LLC. Click here to [unsubscribe]( or change subscriber options Settle, LLC PO Box 1056 Gold Beach Oregon 97444 USA