Take Back Your Brain!

In part one of this series, I showed you how to manipulate Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to decide how to best frame a message to motivate yourself. In part two we selected a slogan, took photos, and developed a creative concept. This week we’ll create the ads for your campaign and set up an automatic system for delivering them to yourself.

If you’ve not done so already, I suggest reviewing steps one through seven in Target your hierarchy of needs - part 1 and Target your hierarchy of needs - part 2 before continuing with the rest of this project, below.

8. Combine your images and slogan to make the ads.

Once you’ve developed your creative concept in step 7 there are many ways to create ads with your slogan and pictures. The method or methods you choose will depend on which tools you have available, the level of technology you are comfortable with, and the amount of time you want to devote to the project. All of the following articles provide instructions for making ads that combine both pictures and text:

• Make a motivational poster at Big Huge Labs - An easy online tool that quickly produces very slick results.
• How to build a motivational poster ad campaign - Use the poster builder above at Big Huge Labs to create several related ads.
• Advertise to your friends and family with custom postage stamps - another easy online tool.
• Change the picture on your cell phone screen - Do the photo shoot in step 6 with your mobile phone to implement this one.
• Write a headline for your cell phone ad - Edit the custom text greeting on your phone to add your slogan to the above ad.
• Put yourself in the picture with Photoshop - A bit technical, but a great way to go if you know Photoshop or another image editor because you can create any ad you can imagine.
• Put yourself in the picture with glue - On the other hand, this arts and crafts project only requires the ability to operate scissors and a glue stick.
• Hipster PDA version - Use the Photoshop or glue methods above to create custom cards for your faithful hPDA.

Use one of the tools above to make an ad or a series of ads based on the creative concept you developed in step seven. In some of them you’ll need to decide how big to make your ad and whether to orient it in “portrait” or “landscape” format. Those decisions will depend on your choice of delivery methods, below.

This is the time to pull out the stops and be artistic if you are. Try cropping your photos in interesting ways, or using different fonts for your slogan. Experiment with different colors and layouts, and notice how they affect the way the ad makes you feel. Have fun and try to make ads that you really like.

On the other hand, if you don’t have an artistic bone in your body that’s OK too. I think much of the effectiveness of these ads occurs because you focus so intently on your goals while you make them, so even artistically challenged ads will help you your dreams come true.

9. Deliver your ads automatically.

The final step is to make sure you’re exposed to the ads you have made on a very regular basis. It’s important to set up your delivery method so that no further action is ever necessary on your part in order for you to see the ads frequently. Keep in mind what you’re up against! The average American is exposed to several thousand ads a day without taking any initiative at all to get those messages. TBYB also has readers in Europe and Australia, and I’m guessing the mental ecology is not much better in those areas. You want your ads to be like that too - frequent and automatic.

We’ve discussed many methods for automating delivery in previous articles, ranging from low-tech locations like your bathroom mirror and refrigerator to screensavers and widgets on your computer. All of them work really well.

• How to rotate picture ads with the Vista Sidebar Slide Show - If you’re running Windows Vista, this method is dead simple. Just drag the files for your ads into the Slide Show’s folder.
• How to rotate picture ads with the Google Photos gadget - Takes a little set-up, but it’s a very slick method that works well on XP.
• Rotate your ads with a screensaver slideshow - Just about any computer can do this. Save the finished files for your ads into the folder your screensaver slideshow displays.
• How to customize your computer background - One of the very easiest display methods, changing the wallpaper on your computer’s background to display one of your ads. Again, any computer can do it.
• Hipster PDA version - If you made custom cards for your Hipster PDA in step 8 above, just put them in your deck!
• Extreme makeover - refrigerator edition - For old school glue stick fans (and who isn’t?), slap that baby up on the refrigerator. Or bathroom mirror. Or bulletin board. Or locker…

That’s it!

Sure, it took a little effort to get your campaign set up, but it was kind of fun wasn’t it?

Now that your delivery system is automated just let it run for awhile. Set and forget, and let your unconscious take over. How long should you run an ad campaign? Until you’re tired of it; usually at least a few weeks. During that time you’ll be exposed to your message several times every day. Each exposure will reinforce the idea that performing your target behavior is directly associated with fulfilling unmet needs that you really care about, because they reside at the level of Maslow’s hierarchy that is most motivating for you!

Related articles

• Target your hierarchy of needs - part 1
• Target your hierarchy of needs - part 2