The Four Agreements applied to nonprofit branding
The Four Agreements, by Don Miguel Ruiz, is one of my all-time favorite self-help books. Brilliant in its simplicity, it offers timeless perspective on how to live better and suffer less. While I doubt Ruiz was thinking much about branding when he wrote this existential classic, his four principals are as startlingly relevant to living a fulfilling life as they are for building and maintaining a strong, relevant, modern brand. I thought it would be fun to unpack the parallels between the two, one agreement at a time.
The Four Agreements
Whether applying the Four Agreements to life or brand development, the agreements are:
Agreement 1. Be impeccable with your word
Agreement 2. Never take it personally
Agreement 3. Don’t make assumptions
Agreement 4. Always try your best
How being impeccable with your word applies to brand building.
Let’s unpack why the first agreement is so important to brand building.
Words are extremely powerful. They are what we put out into the world. Used either impeccably or carelessly, they shape the way we understand the world and one another. The language we choose can be packed with unintended bias, and so often, phrases we commonly hear are riddled with it. Organizations tackling our most important social and environmental issues therefore have a special responsibility to choose language impeccably when framing their work. Not just for the purpose of attracting followers and funders, but for dismantling the systems of dominance, oppression, and racism at the root of so much pain and injustice.
In recent years, with more organizations earnestly learning about how to create diverse, equitable and inclusive cultures, I’ve noticed many – not all -beginning to also change the way they message. I applaud organizations working to be more impeccable with their word when for example describing the populations they exist to assist. When we lead with empathy vs. sympathy we are much more likely to create connection. How we therefore talk about community issues and the people most directly impacted by them makes a world of difference in how we all ultimately understand those issues, one another, and ourselves.
Another of my favorite writers, Bréne Brown, writes in, Atlas Of The Heart, “that sympathy is the near enemy of empathy: It looks the same, but there’s no sense of connection. Just the opposite, in fact—sympathy draws a clear line between the person suffering and ourselves. In other words, sympathy is feeling bad for someone, but being unable (or unwilling) to relate to that person.”
With that in mind, think about the difference between describing a person as unhoused or as experiencing homelessness, versus labeling them as homeless. Or the difference between labeling a teen as impoverished versus as someone growing up with economic disadvantages. If it’s not obvious, one names the problem a person is facing while the other brandishes the person with the problem they are suffering. While experiences do shape us, they sure as hell don’t define us. Labeling and categorizing diminishes and de-humanizes. And while most reading this might agree we wouldn’t want to do that, this form of less than impeccable messaging is still widely used and overlooked across the communications of many a nonprofit.
No matter the size or type of organization, these 3 practices can help our word become more impeccable:
1. Before publishing your next newsletter or website, assume you have blind spots and ask for feedback on how what you wrote reads to others. In your request, emphasize you’re humbly asking for a call out on any unintended bias and be sure you’re consulting those who share some of the experiences you’re addressing to weigh in.
2. Ask yourself, if you were among the audience of people you’re referencing and you were to read what you just wrote, how would you feel? A sense of belonging? Uplifted knowing that others believe in and value you? Or a twinge of stigma and shame?
3. Read up! Learn about how language is evolving and most importantly why. Don’t opt out with, “I can’t seem to say anything right without offending someone. I give up”. You might not get it right all of the time, but do your best. More on that when we talk about Agreement #4!
Roche Brand Advisors helps purpose-led organizations go further by communicating more strategically and intentionally. If your organization’s messaging could use some attention, please give us a shout!
@ ThinkRoche.com