The opposite of a truth doesn’t make it false.
In fact, two contradictory things can be true at the same time.
Here’s an example.
Bill Belichick, the 8x Super Bowl champion and the second-winningest coach of all time, is a first-ballot Hall of Famer, no doubt about it.
Belichick being left off the first ballot is proof the world is functioning as expected—predictably and reliably.
Any journalist expressing confusion or incredulity about it now is lying to themselves and their readers.
They know.
Bill knows.
Everyone knows.
To avoid profanity, I’ll simply say this: Belichick has been a colossal jerk to journalists covering his teams for the past 25 years.
And who votes on Hall of Fame inductees?
A committee made up of journalists.
Journalists have a job to do:
Cover the team.
Share interesting stories.
Connect fans to the game.
And what did Belichick give them?
The grumpy lobster boat captain.
Constant dismissiveness.
The RBF punctuated by the occasional snarl.
The infamous “We’re onto Cincinnati” non-answers.
Belichick treated journalists with disdain—made them feel small and insignificant—and then acts surprised when they exact a measure of revenge?
C’mon.
This is how the world works because this is how humans work.
It’s reciprocity.
What you put out into the world is what you get back.
Go to every press conference with a pair of metaphorical middle fingers blazing and you should anticipate having to wait a year to get into the Hall of Fame.
Is it petty?
Yes.
Is it surprising?
No.
It’s the prick tax.
No likability = a liability.
Peter Kaufman, Chairman and CEO of Glenair, has pointed out that mirrored reciprocation shows up everywhere:
In physics, it’s known as Newton’s Third Law: Every action has an equal and opposite reaction.
In biology, you can test the difference between stroking a cat or picking it up by its tail.
In human nature, you can test the difference between smiling or snarling when you step into an elevator.
You get back what you put into the world.
Sales legend Zig Ziglar simplified it: “You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help enough other people get what they want.”
And if you’re in LBM sales, understanding reciprocity is a must because it explains why some firms have been losing major accounts post-COVID.
Builders have told me, quietly, that as power has shifted back to them, they’ve never forgotten how they were treated when sellers had all the leverage. The sales reps who treated customers like transactions instead of people are paying for it now.
They’re learning something Belichick may be learning too:
How you treat people matters.
Especially when you have power over them.
That’s why the simplest sales principle is still the truest:
Help people achieve the outcomes they want.
Make them feel respected.
Deliver value first.
That’s not marketing.
That’s the way the world works.
People don’t forget how you made them feel.
They just wait until it’s their turn to vote.
Thanks for reading.
I’ll see you back here next Thursday.
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