Welcome to Issue 62 of A Good Reputation, a newsletter about how to tell a better story to build better brands. (Did someone send you? Subscribe here.) (Miss past issues? Read those here.)

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Hello Reader,

After 30 years in the same house—a record for both my mom and stepdad, who’ve bounced around from country to country and home to home since they were babies—my parents have made up their minds that it’s time to move.

While they have a lovely home at the top of a hill in a lovely neighborhood, situated at the edge of a perfectly lovely town, it’s no longer quite right.

It never was, really.

It was always too big, in a place that’s too boring for my brother or me to want to stay close. As a result, he moved to Virginia Beach, while I ended up in California. Neither—because of culture or cost—is a great fit for my aging parents. And staying put, for various reasons, isn’t an option either.

So the question isn’t whether they should go. That’s a must. The question they’re struggling to answer is where, exactly, do they go next?

It’s the question we all rub up against when the things we’ve built or the situations we’ve created no longer serve the needs we have—when a system that worked stops working, either because we’ve changed or the world around us has.

This isn’t just a life question. It’s a business question. A brand question. A storytelling question.

While confusing and hard to sort through in the moment, when telling a story—either about life, work, or the problem in need of solving—this is the precise turning point we look for.

Because change is what we’re all after once we’ve decided it’s time to invest in anything from anyone more than a needed commodity.

So if you want to influence people to buy into you and the story of change that you’re selling—whether it’s to be smarter, calmer, clearer, pettier, healthier, or richer—you have to help us answer the question of what comes next.

And it doesn't have to answer this question perfectly or permanently—just well enough to help us feel less lost or stuck than we do now.

A Good Framework

Unlike some other stories, brand stories pretty much all go like this:

Things were one way. But now they’re not. And the way forward, according to us, is this.

That story ultimately hinges on a premise you’ve developed about the way the world—as it relates to the problem you solve—is broken, and how you, through your unique approach, are out to fix it.

This isn’t necessarily your tagline or your messaging. It’s the belief underneath those things—the working theory that guides how you show up, what you say yes to, and what you push back against.

Another way to think of your premise is as a thesis. It’s your point of view on the problem you solve, and your unique perspective on how to solve it.

Every story you tell supports, highlights, or helps you further develop this premise.

And, importantly, a premise isn’t something you uncover once and carve in stone. It’s something you test, refine, and sometimes outgrow.

To develop it, you have to answer these three questions:

1. What is broken, outdated, or wrong in my industry or space as it relates to the problem I solve?
2. What do I believe to be true that’s overlooked? What experiences, evidence, and belief systems do I have to support this?
3. What is a different, better way to approach solving this problem?

​Brené Brown is an excellent example of someone who has developed a simple yet profound premise that captures the essence of her personal platform and brand. And that's the idea that "vulnerability is a strength."

Here’s how it fleshes out into a brand story:

See? The world was one way. But now it’s not. So this big thing is the way forward.

The shift in perspective is what makes it such a powerful premise. And it’s a simple ABT story structure that turns it into a compelling story—albeit a short one with a lot of room for development.

And this is where all of your content comes in.

All of your stories and posts and newsletters and speeches and workshops and frameworks. It's all your intellectual property supporting that premise and neat little brand story.

Like most of us, Brené didn’t start with a fully formed brand. She started with a question, followed the evidence, and let the story emerge.

A Good Takeaway

I'll be the first to admit that developing a premise that informs your brand story is one of the hardest things to do. It's so damn hard. I hired all sorts of experts, and all joined all sorts of communities to get clear on mine.

(And, to be perfectly honest, I'm still not entirely sure what it is—something about creating connection, not content.)

It's hard because it requires stripping everything you've ever experienced, come to understand, and believe down into a single powerful thought that captures the essence of what you do and how it’s different.

It also requires the courage to pick a direction before you’re 100% certain it’s the “right” one.

If you're still in the process of developing your premise to elegantly and succinctly answer the question of what comes next for your audience, then your next best step is to ask the next best question.

If things are no longer working in your field or industry or space or problem world:

• What’s getting in the way of things being better?
• What would the next best thing look like?
• What are all the options and risks?
• What have you bumped up against while looking for an answer?
• What’s a theory you have about what the answer might be?

These aren’t distractions from your brand story. They are your brand story—especially while you’re still figuring it out. These are the stories you tell as you seek clarity on your premise.

Again, it's perfectly okay for this to be a work in progress. That work in progress—that build in public thing—has always “worked” and continues to “work” to develop a following of loyal fans and buyers because you've brought them along for the ride and now they trust you.

My parents are currently in that murky place without a clear answer to that big question, so answering a series of those smaller, revealing questions is their next best step.

And even though they don't have a destination yet, they do have a clear sense of what no longer fits, what matters more now, and what they’re unwilling to compromise on. That’s enough to start moving.

In the meantime, as they work to figure it out, the biggest question I keep asking them—considering all the realities, risks, and constraints of their particular situation—is the same question I ask everyone trying to answer what comes next:

“Our world would be a better place if…”

What do you think the answer is for you?

A Few Good Resources

1. Can brands save democracy? This article sums up why everything is crumbling and why brands, including little ones, have both the power and responsibility to save what matters.
2. To truly change—like actually—we have to grieve our former selves.
3. Premise development, brand positioning, and sound strategy that'll help you answer the question of "what comes next?" in your business are the three things we'll be working on in Point Reyes on April 16th. (Only three 3 seats left!)

Hope you have a good one,
Renee