Unless you live in a cave, you might have heard about (or even seen) Will Smith slapping Chris Rock on stage live at the Oscars last night.

It’s one of those things you can’t not see or read about online.

The video on Youtube got something like 10 million views in 4 hours.

Being human, I was curious too. Only reason why I even know the Oscars were happening yesterday.

This teaches us a couple lessons on the power of media.

And on what it can do for your brand.

It’s worth knowing this stuff even when it comes to your “personal brand”, you, as a person and how you relate to the people in your life.

I won’t take a position as god only knows how many layers there are in this that we don’t know, but here are my 3 takeaways from what happened:

1) Set your narrative before others do it for you

Will Smith decided to take a stand and whether you consider it wrong or fair, it doesn’t matter. He’s probably paying the consequences as we speak with this going viral. What matters is that you are clear on what you do, who you do it for and that you separate yourself from the rest.

In your personal life this is about clarifying your values and respecting them. It’s about creating boundaries.

In business you could say it’s about values, but I think those are only a fluffy, airy excuse not to do the work of understanding your positioning. In business it’s about producing and being polarizing. Creating your story and sharing it with your audience.

Ok, number 2) Good world building can save your ass.

If you haven’t read some of my first emails (you can do it here), you know I talk about world building a lot. I learned this from email copywriter Ben Settle, but also from studying user experience design.

When you create your own world, with good copy, design, visual hierarchy and the right flow of information – across all media you own – and make it consistent throughout, that’s when you build an unshakeable foundation.

Even if you’d slapped (virtually) a competitor in the face in public or did something outrageous, your foundations wouldn’t budge.

When your brand is on the other hand a frail, weak presence, that’s when the slightest misstep can destroy you.

And lastly, 3) Always maintain an “opportunity mindset”.

In today’s hyper connected world, you can be 1 or 2 people away from the big connection that could skyrocket your chances of success.

Always keep it in mind and prioritize relationships over quick wins (if you have to choose). A lot of the times this means taking ownership, even when it seems you’re not at fault.

Taking responsibility for the customer not buying, taking responsibility for them not spreading the word, or for them asking for a refund. Or even taking responsibility for something as simple as them asking for something it’s clearly and obviously written in plain sight on your website.

Curate your relationships and people will remember you for it.

I’ll leave you with figuring out what Will Smith did wrong or right out of these 3 lessons.

In the meantime if you need help implementing this into your business, get in touch.

Cheers,

Chris