“Choose to be optimistic. It feels better.”
The First Sip
Attention Sunday Brewers!
This edition of the Sunday Brew is heavy on cheer!
(If you’re looking for doom and gloom, flip on the news.)
We’re going to give you a caffeinated dose of everything that’s right in the world, including…
The brand new study that shows people are doing better than ever…
Proof that happiness is more contagious than negativity…
And the story of a man who’s fixing up his community one rusty bolt at a time…
Eliot Middleton is a full-time restaurant owner and part-time mechanic.
But it’s the part-time gig that he performs in his rural South Carolina driveway that’s rallied thousands of people across the nation.
You see, Eliot isn’t just any trained mechanic…
He fixes up old clunkers in his spare time…and doesn’t charge a dime.
Then he gives them away for FREE to families in need.
Recipients of these fixed-up vehicles include single moms who need transportation to drop kids off at daycare…
Job seekers who need a vehicle in order to bring in a livable wage…
Elderly individuals who require a car for doctor’s appointments…
The list goes on…
In Eliot’s rural South Carolina community there is no public transportation.
There are no Ubers or taxis.
And because many people live miles away from supermarkets, shops, and doctor’s offices, a vehicle is a necessity.
Eliot has been quietly doing this for a while now, but it wasn’t until a featured story on the CBS Evening News that it became a nationwide ordeal.
“My phone started exploding from all over the place,” he said.
“Whatever glowing feeling is inside me, it just transferred from that TV screen and went inside them.”
To date, more than 800 cars have been donated AND over $125,000 has been raised to help Eliot pay for parts and find other helpers.
Eliot is overwhelmed by the response and says his faith in humanity has been restored.
When asked if he could have imagined a response like this when he first started, he said, “Never in this lifetime.”
The best part about stories like these is that they aren’t isolated.
How many other Eliots are out there doing their thing, but haven’t been featured on the news?
If you know of anyone doing GOOD in your corner of the world, I’d love to hear about it!
Just shoot me a quick reply to this message and let me know. 😀
1 Caffeinated Neurohack
A new study reveals the percentage of Americans who self-evaluate their lives to be “thriving” has reached 59.2%.
That’s the highest point ever in the 13 years of tracking data.
Just 3.4% of Americans are said to be “suffering.”
In other words, most people have a lot to be thankful for…
…and that’s GOOD news!
My question to you, is are you leveraging your good fortune to actively practice gratitude?
Because here’s the thing about gratitude:
The more you practice it, the better you feel.
And the better you feel, the more you’ll “thrive.”
Researchers have found that practicing gratitude has profound health benefits, including better sleep, more exercise, less physical pain, and lower blood pressure.
So my challenge to you this week is to develop a morning routine for practicing gratitude.
It’s something I do on a daily basis (and I find it to be one of the most meaningful parts of my day).
If you’re looking for some ideas on where to start, try the SAVERS Method.
This simple morning routine was popularized by author Hal Elrod and stands for:
- S – Silence
- A – Affirmations
- V – Visualization
- E – Exercise
- R – Reading
- S – Scribing
You don’t necessarily need to do them in order…
…but finding a way to incorporate each of these elements into your routine will do wonders for your physical and mental health.
☕ TL;DR: Practice gratitude in the morning and you’ll actually improve your chances of thriving. (You’ll also feel better.)
Marketing Psychology Quick Hit
Emotions serve as powerful fuel to the marketing flame 🔥
All you have to do is scroll through your social media feed or email inbox and you’ll find headlines full of emotional language and imagery.
This includes anger, frustration, jealousy, excitement, greed, etc.
But did you know that one type of emotion is more contagious than others?
Yep…
While all emotionally-charged content performs well, content that creates positive emotions performs better 🌻 🌞 😊
Content with positive messages not only get shared more, but they also lead to 1.75 more positive posts by followers.
In other words, the more you post positive content, the more your circle of influence is likely to do the same.
You’re actually making the world a better place one post at a time.
In the process, you’re elevating your image, increasing your exposure, and driving up engagement 💯
As an advisor, here are some ideas for consistently developing positive content:
- Write up a quick LinkedIn post once per week describing something you’re thankful for in your personal life.
- Send a weekly email where you discuss the positive things happening in your community.
- Start off every webinar or meeting with an acknowledgement of your gratitude for the individuals on the call.
Negativity might sell for cable news networks, but positivity is in vogue for the everyday advisor.
☕ TL;DR: Positive content is highly contagious….use it more frequently!
Weekly Industry Catch-Up
Jeff Bezos and a trio of other individuals made history with a recreational trip to space this past week 🌎 🚀
Back on earth, the Covid Delta variant continues to surge…
And the (spectator-less) Olympics started in Tokyo…
Here’s what else happened in the markets.
🔹 Hammers down. Perhaps in a sign of what’s to come, builders have pulled back as more homebuyers are being priced out of the market.
Building permits have dropped to their lowest levels since August, while mortgage applications on new home builds have fallen 24% year over year.
However, the sale of existing homes doesn’t show any signs of slowing.
🔹 Up, down, and all around. Wall Street took quite the rollercoaster ride this week. The S&P 500 initially plunged 2+% on Monday before steadily recovering throughout the week.
Stocks have struggled over the past several weeks as talks of inflation and a Covid resurgence dominate the airwaves.
Stocks like Chipotle, Starbucks, and Domino’s aren’t worried, though. They’re up BIG on positive reports.
What’s New in SHIFT Nation?
We conducted a survey of several hundred advisors on the number one challenge facing your practices. Here are the results 👇 👇 👇
Show up to Wednesday’s VAPH to get a full breakdown and analysis of what this means moving forward!
Take Care,
Jeremiah D. Desmarais
CEO, Advisorist
#1 in ROI-Driven Training for Advisors
P.S. Don’t forget to register for the LIVE masterclass I’m putting on with Tom Hegna this Thursday at 2pm ET.
