Brand Recognition: The Heartbreaker
Take a moment with me, and let’s talk marketing.
Stay with me. I assure you this relates to love.
Let’s go on a test drive of a new car. Walk up and see how deep and rich the color of the paint is. The clear coat is fresh, and the curves of the car are defined and even highlighted by the new paint.
Slide your hand along the handle of the driver’s side door and open it up. The smell of new car wraps itself around you and begs for you to take a seat.
As you sit, you feel the soft, supple leather caress your body. Slide your hands on the steering wheel. You wanna take this shit for a spin.
Now, the salesman starts his pitch:
“Yeah, this thing will do zero to sixty in five seconds. It gets 30 miles per gallon and has a deluxe racing package.
On the other hand, you should know some facts about the car. It has been in several accidents; it did run over and kill a man. It also won’t start quite often, so you’ll be shit out of luck if you’re trying to get anywhere.
It may or may not make you sick, as it’s had lots of dirty drivers before you and it hasn’t been sanitized, just detailed.
Oh yeah, and the interest rate on the financing is shit, and you’ll be paying a lot to maintain it, since it has no warranty.
But despite all the danger, unreliability, and cost, it’s gonna look soooooo great in your driveway!
Do we have a deal??”
I hope you’re completely turned off by this right now.
Why?
Because men and women do this all the time in relationships. They tell you exactly who they are, and expect you to sign up. Most of the time, they’re almost proud of it.
I’m great at recognizing jerks. Typically, I easily spot them because, just like a familiar logo, I see the “Made in the Land of Assholishness” tag.
Talking with a friend last night about Taio Cruz’s song “Break Your Heart”, I realized how often we all over look the blatant advertising of others.
I am not one to hide the fact that I have commitment issues. I don’t disguise it or sugarcoat it, and, most importantly, I’m working on it. I don’t find it to be my favorite character trait, nor have I ever, at any time, bragged about it to a man.
This song makes me crazy because it throws out the following message:
“I’m pretty much premeditating to do some mean, cold hearted shit to you, love you and leave you, and then nonchalantly move onto the next to repeat this process. In the end, I will continue to solidify my title as a heartbreaker.”
I’m bothered not by his honesty, but by the fact that he’s committing premeditated fuckery.
Coming from the side guilty of what I’ll call “Accidental Assholishness”, I know sometimes you don’t mean to be harmful, it just happens. And you don’t wear a badge of honor from it; you wear what is more like an orange safety vest, warning others to be cautious of what’s ahead.
When my friends meet this kinds of guys (and girls!!!), I’m always so frustrated that they keep talking to/dating/having sex with these assholes. Why? What on earth would make you sign that kind of contract??
It’s one thing to have someone who is working on becoming a better
person/lover/friend/boyfriend/girlfriend.
It’s something completely different for someone to unapologetically announce their premeditated fuckery and expect you to be on board.
Take what they say at face value and decide if you want what is being placed before you. And don’t dabble in “what if’s” or
take on a fixer-upper if it doesn’t seem ready and stable enough be fixed.
Maya Angelou once said, “The first time someone shows you who they are, believe them.”
Didja hear that?? Believe them.
