our sponsor – third drive media
All of my marketing is done by this team.
Reach out if you’re a business owner, expert, or consultant looking to create and execute marketing around your brand.
To become a sponsor of XE and reach 12k subscribers with your product or service. Learn more here.
you’re too good to sound that boring
Who doesn’t love Bruce Springsteen? Let’s be honest: most people do, and if you don’t… something’s a little off.
A couple of weeks ago my wife, Deb, and I saw the much-anticipated biopic. It was wonderful and skipped the usual obscurity-to-fame story most movies tell. Instead, it focused on that strange period after early stardom and before world fame.
If you’re reading this, you’re probably an established pro who wants to be more known and trusted in what you do. Here’s how going against the grain made Bruce Springsteen The Boss—and how that same mindset builds your brand.
Spoiler alert: skip this part if you don’t want story details.
Bruce had five albums out, a solid career, and money finally coming in. The label expected a massive breakthrough next. He rented a house to write. Depressed and restless, he started writing songs that sounded less like rock and more like folk.
He demoed them on a four-track cassette recorder with a basic reverb unit. Just vocals, harmonica, and guitar. Sparse, raw, honest.
I lit up at that part because that’s exactly what I used to record my first demos.
The obvious next step: take those demos to the studio, blow them up with the band, watch the charts light up, and let the money roll in.
Only Bruce wasn’t feeling it. The studio sound wasn’t true to the songs. He insisted on releasing the home cassette recordings. At the time, that was unheard of—home recordings weren’t “real” records.
The label thought he’d lost it. Then Bruce made it worse: no photo on the cover, no tour, no singles. Still, they trusted the artist. Nebraska came out as is.
To top it off, “Born in the U.S.A.” was already finished and ready to explode—but Bruce held it back.
Result: Nebraska hit No. 3 in the U.S. charts. No photo, no single, no tour.
Here’s the point. The content you create is how people discover you and decide if they trust you. There are all kinds of growth strategies out there, but none of them matter if you’re not authentic. People can sense when something’s off. They just can.
Authentic is scary because you feel more vulnerable and exposed to criticism. What we don’t see is that most people read honesty as courage. When I coach my clients, I help them find more of themselves in the way they write or talk on camera—more unedited, honest, even a little quirky. The stuff that feels risky is usually the most magnetic.
Authenticity takes self-awareness, vulnerability, and passion. Those things feel dangerous. But they’re what make you the voice your people have been waiting to hear.
How to get there
1. Don’t outsource your voice. Never have AI write for you. Use it for research, grammar, or notes—but your conviction is the magic.
2. Create prolifically. Put out 2–3 pieces a week. Quantity builds mastery faster than perfectionism ever will.
3. Pick one main platform. Get confident there before expanding. Depth first, then reach.
4. Dig deep. Pull from your expertise and lived experience. Don’t be afraid to hold a countercultural opinion if it’s true.
5. Find a sounding board. Someone you trust to reflect back your best ideas—and call you out when you’re playing it too safe.
Bruce trusted the tape; you can trust your deepest passion as an expert.
In the Wednesday issue for paid subscribers, I’ll share a roadmap to taking your content from dabbling with it to a source of authority.
next steps to build your brand and business
Here are two ways to go deeper with Xponential:
1. Join the Xponential Program
Build your personal brand concept and business model in 9 weeks. Designed for experts ready to grow influence, income, and impact.
2. Sign up for the next Passion to Profit Lab
A limited-seat online workshop on personal brand building. Reply with INTERESTED and we’ll add you to the waitlist—you’ll be first to know when registration opens.