Everything That's Broken With The Narrative Field Guide

Now that I have several issues behind me, I've evaluated what's working and what needs to change. Here's what I found.

Hey there,

This issue is about practicing what I preach.

When I launched The Narrative Field Guide, my goal was pretty clear: to help your brand stand out from the status quo and win your category.

However, now that I have a few dozen issues behind me, I have gathered enough data on what’s working and what’s not. It’s been a lot like releasing v1 of a new product. I went into the endeavor with a mix of data and hypotheses on what would work. But once I released it into the wild, I found things that could be improved. Lots of them.

So today, I’d like to share my self-critique of my newsletter with you.

The main thing I tell my clients is that playing it safe is the riskiest strategy of all.

No one rallies behind a brand that:

• Sounds just like everyone else

• Fails to change the way you think

• Doesn’t stand for anything

I learned this early on from mentors like Christopher Lochhead, who taught me that brands without a “point of view” are headed nowhere.

Yet, looking back at my own content, I realized that I’m playing it too safe.

More specifically, my own point of view about how to build a dominant, profitable, and defensible business isn’t showing up in my content. It’s stuck inside my head.

Here’s the short version of my point of view that should come across:

• Creating a second-tier business is not a worthy pursuit.

• Great work can't happen unless a team is aligned.

• Companies have a moral obligation to be their best.

• People don't inherently recognize the value of great products.

• A lack of courage will hold you back more than outdated tactics.

• You can only be bold if you understand yourself first.

I’ve hit on some of those ideas from time to time, but my content did a weak job of getting these ideas across. It hasn’t had enough teeth to it. So my first order of business will be to refine my point of view so I can share it better.

But that’s not all that’s broken.

I sat down yesterday and catalogued everything else that needed fixing.

Here’s what I found.

1. The title itself is a problem. Some people are familiar with strategic narrative, but I’ve discovered that many are not. It’s insider language. I need something that speaks to the goal, not the method.

2. My scope is too limited. A strategic narrative is the foundation for building a great business, but there’s a lot more ground we need to cover. I’m fascinated by how areas like distribution strategy, R&D, messaging, and product intersect, but I’ve left these areas off the table.

3. Strategic narrative is actually hard to review from the outside. It’s an internal document, one I don’t have access to outside of my clients. I ended up evaluating external messaging instead – that’s useful, but it ended up consuming too much of my focus.

This doesn’t mean I’m scrapping the newsletter and starting over. Far from it.

But it does mean it’s time to work on v2. Here’s what you can expect to see soon:

• I’m working on a new name that better reflects the focus of this newsletter.

• I’ll be less focused on messaging specifically and spend more time exploring how different business disciplines come together to win a category.

• I’m going to drop the “narrative evaluation” issues (where I scored each brand’s messaging), as these seemed to perform the weakest.

• I’ll be introducing more content on the intangible ingredients of winning: team alignment, finding courage, and acting with conviction.

I’m still working on the details, and that’s where I need your help.

As I work on v2, I'd love to hear from you.

What aspects of building a dominant, profitable, and defensible business are you most interested in? What challenges are you facing in this pursuit? What topics would you most like me to explore?

Hit reply and let me know.

You can leave a comment on this post, too. Hearing your thoughts would mean so much to me.

(Bonus points if you want to suggest a new name!)

Remember: complacency is the first step to losing. I don’t let my clients become complacent, and I’m not going to let myself become so either.

Thanks for reading. Can’t wait to share what’s next with you.

Cheers,

John

P.S. I’ll continue to publish weekly as I work on v2, so please look out for new issues in your inbox.