It’s rare that I see advertisements. I have ad blocking on everything I own, if I go to a movie I try to go late to avoid previews and ads, and if I watch TV it is downloaded with the ads stripped or through Netflix. I still see some ads, of course, but not all that often.
When I do see them, they often jump out at me, especially TV ads.
“Ford, America’s best-selling car,” I heard the TV say.
What? The line shocked me so much that I wrote it down to write about later. That’s a selling point? I kept thinking about it. The fact that a car is a best-selling car is actually a downside to me.
America’s most reliable car? Great! Most fuel efficient? Awesome! Most versatile? I’m interested. Best selling, though?
It made me realize just how much people care what other people think of them. The point made by the ad is that no one will think you’re an idiot for buying a Ford. And it’s so important that no one think that you are an idiot that you should care about that more than reliability, value, or utility. Wow.
For an entire evening I kept thinking about that little slogan. Logically I know people care what strangers think about them, and I know I do as well to some extent, but the ad really struck a nerve. I can get behind buying a pink car because it’s some reflection of you and you want people to think some way about you. I’m sure I subconsciously did that to some extent with my car. But buying the bestselling car just to avoid being judged for your car choice? That’s a whole new ballgame.
My two cars are a Bentley and a Dodge minivan. In my mind they are equally cool, for entirely different reasons. I think I was more excited the first week I got the minivan than when I got the Bentley. I really love my minivan.
For many people, I think a minivan is probably the best car choice they could make. It can hold seven people or a stack of 4×8 sheets of plywood. It gets great gas mileage. It’s pretty comfortable. You can even throw a blow up mattress in the back and sleep in it. Despite being large-ish, it’s really easy and pleasant to drive.
Almost no one in my age range would buy one, because their peers would judge them for it. It’s not the best-selling car in America, at least not for people without children, so buying one opens you up to judgment and jokes.
If you’re buying a Ford because it’s a great car that fits your needs, that’s awesome. I’ve rented some and I like them a lot, especially the F150, which I thought was amazing. But if you’re buying a car or anything else because it’s what everyone else is buying, you are making a mistake.
In a way I feel like a huge portion of my posts are about the importance of making your own decisions. That’s both because it’s a critical part of a good life, but also because it’s never the default. If you aren’t actively on guard against influence, you will get carried away by the stream. Buy a Ford if you want, but not because it’s the best-selling car in America.
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Photo is Shibuya crossing in Tokyo
Thank you to everyone who bought Forever Nomad and an even bigger thank you to everyone who gave it a great review. Besides being extremely gratifying, good reviews help my sales tremendously.
I will be announcing my next event soon, probably next week!
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