Hey, guys, it's Jonathan.
Thank you so much for joining me for another good life project, Riff.
Today's riff is entitled the myth of working for free.
So after years of paying to wear your favorite shoes, they're now paying you to be seen in them.
After years of speaking for free and paying to travel, they're now paying you to speak.
After years of ordering your favorite drink, they're now paying you to drink it.
After years of buying your favorite jewels, they're paying you to wear them.
After years of writing for free, they're now paying you to contribute.
I'm fascinated by this transition.
I call it the brand hand moment.
It's that point where the value of your brand and contribution becomes so self evident or clearly expressed that it gives you enough power and leverage to start getting paid cold, hard cash for the very thing that you were paying cold, hard cash to do the day before.
I've often wondered, what is it that happens in that moment?
So sometimes you can peg this shift to a specific happening.
You write a book that becomes a massive bestseller.
You win some kind of industry award or accolade that anoints your arrival into the land of brand hand.
Or you give a talk or post a video that explodes online.
You build a company, a venture, or an event that defines a moment and becomes a phenomenon.
I call this booming your way into brand hand.
And sometimes it can be that.
But other times it's a much slower, more grueling and gradual evolutionary process.