Primary trigger makes you survive
What can happen within 9s? It’s almost the time for Usain Bolt to finish 100m race. It’s almost the time for the hero and heroine to fall in love in a romantic film. It’s almost the time for a person or a brand to, even not completely, die in your heart.
Sally Hogshead, an author and the CEO of Fascinate Inc as well, told us in her widely spread TED Talk illustrating the power of fascinating others that among tons of competitors out there on a dating websites, you only have 9 seconds to impress your potential match who’s quickly and impatiently going through your profile. OMG, only 9s to survive. So no way of being mediocre, or you’ll the dinosaur after 9s. Then she suggested that you should stay true to yourself, identify and amplify your innate primary trigger, and more importantly, take her Fascination test online.
As a student with psychology background, I was personally interested in her test and I spent 30 something bucks to take it online. Just unlike the tests I got to know in my personality psychology class, like MGBT and Big-Five Model, Sally’s test approaches the mental world from a new while interesting perspective. What’s the primary trigger of yourself, or what’s the main strength you’re born with. The test results told me that my first and second triggers are “Passion” and “Innovation”, namely People and Idea should be the two pillars I build my career and life upon. A-huh, that’s exactly me. Telling jokes, coming up with ideas and interacting with people just work for me, it takes me few effort and I do it well. That’s exactly Sally’s point, if you obsess the “Innovation” trigger, try to show your sense of humor in 9s. If you’re born with Power, then your charisma.
Embrace your own identity, your visceral triggers, is the strategy to make you survive, not only in 9s. It’s the same for a brand. If you’re McDonald, don't go too far away from your identity saying “we offer the healthiest salad”. “I’m lovin it”, that’s the word works.
Feb, 2015