Mind business
Brands are putting the mind at the center of the conversation
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👋 Hello brand enthusiast, how are you doing today?
Today I would like to reflect on the concept of Mind business, those brands ‘‘feeding the mind’’ as a brand mission.
What is a mind business?
For me, it's all about those companies that aim to elevate human consciousness. I've discovered several of them, such as the Proctor Gallagher Institute, Gaia, Mindvalley, TUT, The School of Life, Zig Ziglar legacy and many more personal brands* in that league.
You cannot brand a mind business without placing the mind at the forefront. A business that prioritizes the mind serves as an interface for acknowledgement, relief and understanding. Such businesses can offer tools such as wisdom, life experience, and mental health techniques, but the ultimate solution they provide is transformation.
✦ Science backing mind businesses
Some of these brands adopt a scientific approach to providing solutions and tools. While not all brands do so, the leading ones emphasize on the relationship between the brain and the mind. They bridge the gap by illustrating how both components function and how they have influence over many of our behaviours.
Being backed by science, using experts, studies, and other research brings into the conversation what is tangible and what is not. Science cannot fully explain transformation, but it can be a witness and provide analytical elements for study.
✦ How do you brand a mind business?
A personality or a body of ‘‘personalities’’, these brands are led by people. Their stories of rebirth, redefinition of SELF and transformations are the spirit of the brand. The values, mindset and character lay the component of their Branding voice, visual power and magnetic resonance. One of their lead magnets is the result of such a transformation.
Branding = asking questions from within → better questions to the outside.
✦ The power of personal branding - the power of personality
They are led by thought leaders who embark on the journey and become the ambassadors of ideas and philosophies to elevate the human next door.
The is no formula, each story will craft a sur-mesure branding. Nevertheless, an engaging marketing strategy is essential to effectively deliver the message: It has to be accessible and reach you where you are.
With an increasing amount of new voices tapping into these human interrogations, there are more and more people in the mind business. It is a good thing! As we are billions of people, the aligned voice that will resonate with each one of us may arise as well. The personality factor is a trigger because not everybody will resonate with a mind business, I like to believe that the content makes the triage. The art of speaking your message with authenticity, dedication and purpose is one of the key ingredients of the branding of such brands.
They captivate their audience and become teachers and mentors. We come to love their story, their personality, and as a result, the tools they provide to help us achieve our best selves.
🔦 Bonus: a list of Mind businesses to look into and learn from:
Vanessa Van Edwards, Jay Shetty, Impact Theory, Mastermind, The Honest guys, Agape, José Silva, Mentorshow, Lisa Nichols, Anthony O’Neal, Wamala Wellness, The School of Greatness, Sadghuru-inner engineering, Abraham-Hicks, The secret
💡 Branding spotlight: Mindvalley
✦ A Brand that breaths transformation of the mind
I have been a follower and student of Mindvalley for years. In 2021, I pushed through and completed a series of pivotal classes that helped me break through a glass ceiling. My experience with Mindvalley is a long-term journey. I have witnessed firsthand the brand's core focus on spiritual awakening, thanks to its founder Vishen Lakhiani. In addition to his own transformation and the development of an alternative educational system, he brings the wisdom of many teachers and leaders to the stage.
✦ The power of unlocking inner wisdom
Mindvalley is more than just a school; it's a community with a shared vision of cultivating a healthier human for a renewed collective consciousness. The brand's vision is not solely focused on individual transformation but rather as a part of the equation, like a domino effect. One awakened human inspires and motivates another to awaken. The target is a collective of individuals who are aware and ready to embark on a journey on the path of SELF.
But how does one turn such a bold idea of elevating humanity into an ecosystem of education? While I am unsure of the artistry behind its creation, what I observe is that Mindvalley has a series of foundational principles that reveal branding as an expression.
💡What makes their branding so powerful?
🌗 A contrasting catalyst. A drastic context that pushes oneself into a gear of change. There is no other way, you must think and act in new ways. You must birth a new You.
🚀 That quest puts the founder on a path of leadership. Learn by doing lead by expressing. Many thought leaders have that pattern of stumbling upon their purpose after being lost, broken, distanced or estranged from who they are. They speak and reveal confidence that becomes the fuel of their idea, project, company, and community.
📚Wisdom has immense value. The human experience is abundant in transformations and self-growth. So why not use that pool of wisdom as a resource for many? By gathering these minds and collectively crafting tools to awaken, reveal and activate, we engage in a balancing process.
Wisdom has the power to transform individuals, societies, and our vision of what human society could be. Can wisdom be a branding trait and DNA? Many motivational speakers use wisdom as their catalyst, and life experiences have built brands and propelled branding forward. Wisdom attracts wisdom.🙋🏻♀️🙋🏽♂️👩🏻💻People and tech. We are living in an era where information is consumed quickly. Mindvalley provides a space and platform that is designed to educate, entertain, and inspire proactive change. Like many other mind businesses in the education and self-improvement space, Mindvalley uses technology to adapt to the rapid pace of information consumption. The content provided by Mindvalley can be consumed in various ways, and as a leading ed-tech, they have invested in a specific application that provides access to their programs and community. However, even for free users, there is a substantial amount of free content available that can start the process of self-reflection and personal growth.
🌟Can real transformation be digital? One of the assets of Mindvalley as an ecosystem is its ability to create a consistent brand experience in various locations, much like a nomadic culture that carries its traditions and customs with it (for instance, the Afest festivals are organized in multiple cities). However, a question that often arises is whether this consistency can be maintained without the presence of the founder. Maybe the transformation stories of students and teachers can become the self-sustaining trigger that nourishes the spirit of Mindvalley as a whole. Growing into a self-sustaining movement that can exist independently while still preserving its core values and spirit.
🎯A personality leadership. Vishen Lakhiani, the founder of Mindvalley, is also a personal brand that embodies the magnetic leadership of Mindvalley alongside other leaders. His personal brand is growing aside from Mindvalley, but they both complement and feed each other. His books serve as an engaging tool to educate about the mindset and the key values that Mindvalley holds dear as a beacon of growth.
💬 A community and a mindset. When I was searching for events in Paris, I discovered that Mindvalley was more than just a digital ecosystem. It was a mindset. The live events seemed to be particularly special, and I was intrigued. I learned that there were small groups of people within the Mindvalley community who would gather to discuss themes inspired by the programs. I realized that each country or city could develop and grow its own identity within Mindvalley.
⟶You can do only free events or paid programs and still benefit from the mindset and spirit. A culture of wellness, and growth accessing a superpower thanks to self-awakening.
📈 A visual identity. They could decide to completely transform their visual identity, and it wouldn't bother me as long as the collective wisdom and spirit remain intact.
⟶ What I first identified is the Mindvalley wings logo, which effectively expresses the quest for freedom. The visual treatments use violet shades, light painting effects, gradients, sound, and visual transitions to convey a sense of enlightenment. The teachers are the focus and are elevated, with engaging pictures and videos that give them ownership of their space.
⟶ Each program has its own identity suited to the theme and teacher, yet they all belong to the Mindvalley family. The branding creates easily recognizable systems while allowing refreshing sub-identities to exist.
⟶ Specialize in non-specializing? Themes are limitless, they can bring in as many teachers as they want, as long they align with the main values of Mindvalley.
⟶ The branding extends to space and architecture. Mindvalley HQ in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, was named one of the coolest offices in the entire world (transparency, colours, light effects, community gathering, heights and more).
Speak to your Brand. You and your brand: one is the revealer of the other.
Cool links to click on
🤩 A creative branding celebration (ilovecreatives is a creative ecosystem: one of the coolest visual identities and brand vision I have seen for creatives. Epic! playful education)
Creative branding (put your hands into the material and experience joy)
Lloyds Bank (I have loved their campaigns for years: the horse, the language, the storytelling. They will have a special issue one day)
Hims and hers (a coup de maître: a company with an inclusive brand mission for both men and women. One of the next brand spotlights in the letter)
Parallel (is a stunning UI & UX, that type is Love)
🎈 Fun brand(ING) prompt / 006
How does your mind feed your Brand?
🔮 Your inner food also transpires to your branding and storytelling.
Can you recognize how your thoughts and mindset can be a beacon of possibility for your branding?
Video, words, illustration, animation… you choose. Short and sweet.
What is a brand revealer? A revealer of SELF
I hope you enjoyed the read of the week. If yes, please share it with peers, friends and family. Sharing is loving.
Yours creatively,
Keva.