Do away with fear
We love this inspiring quote from Rosa Parks:
“I have learned over the years that when one’s mind is made up, this diminishes fear. Knowing what must be done does away with fear.”
She may be most known for her action of refusing to move to the back of a bus in Alabama in 1955, but she had a lot of powerful opinions on fear and being brave. She is the epitome of how one person can play a pivotal role in change. She knew the importance, and need, for change and remained passionately committed to sharing what she experienced to inspire a new generation to carry on. Her quote effectively says that you need to be sure of what you want to do if you wish to be successful. You need to make up your mind, focus and persevere – that is the only way to conquer your fears.
Often bravery is born out of necessity. If you are forced to be brave, then you have no choice but to take that first bold step – to try and turn the negative into a positive. The inspiring story behind shoe brand, Saysh, is a prime example of this.
Founder Allyson Felix is a successful Olympic athlete who, after giving birth to her daughter in 2018, was faced with a 70% pay cut in her sponsorship with Nike. Her employer didn’t support her maternity in a way she could be proud of, so Allyson decided to take matters into her own hands. She channelled her frustrations into creating a new brand: Saysh. Their first official campaign gave a nod to her experiences by “reminding us to live in our greatness and fight for what we believe in”. Allyson says the brand represents hope, acceptance, and the power to create change.
Another brand who decided to disrupt an industry through bravery is Oatly. When Chief Creative Officer John Schoolcraft joined in 2012 it was a struggling, 30-year-old brand. Together with CEO Toni Petersson, John turned it into a global movement, focused on the development of a more sustainable, plant-based lifestyle. During their rebrand, they didn’t concentrate on money or sales, they instead focused on the brand’s values: health, sustainability, and transparency. They actually have an entire website dedicated to explaining what sets them apart from other companies.
“Most companies think that having a strong opinion means scaring away customers who think differently. We think it’s a good way to make some new friends.”
They’ve become an authentic, challenger brand, willing to toss traditional marketing rules out of the window. Having that solid brand vision and purpose allowed them to do away with their fear.
John gave three pieces of advice on transforming company culture:
Take action, don’t just talk about change. Demonstrating a new direction is more effective than words.
Remove fear from the culture. Make people feel safe and secure enough to make the right decisions for the company.
Inspire the people working there to think this time in their career is going to be the best period of their professional lives. No one is holding them back.
Oatly are proof that challenging the way things have always been done can lead to great success, as well as making a difference and inspiring others.
And it’s not only in business that we can be braver, but in love as well, as dating app Thursday have recently shown us. Founders Matthew McNeill and George Rawlings were frustrated with how the leading dating apps were used – the hours of scrolling and messaging before committing to dates, or worse, completely ghosting. They had an idea for what could be done to change things: a time limit for when you can access the app to match, message and meet potential dates… and they chose (you’ve guessed right) only on a Thursday.
They’ve evolved to host events in real life as well, such as weekly workout classes and meet-ups at bars, to meet singles instead of just dates. Knowing the mindset and expectations of their young, city audience, and having a clear point of view, has helped their brand grow authentically and effortlessly.
These brands all show us that knowing what must be done really does do away with fear. By having a focus or brand mission, or just an idea of how you’d like to change things, it can encourage you to make bold moves to achieve your goals.
HERE ARE OUR TOP 5 TIPS FOR BEING BRAVER WITH YOUR BRAND:
Whatever it is, do it with conviction and never apologise
F*** trends, do you
Create an ‘anything goes’ culture
Trust your instincts
Don’t be afraid of failure