I need no more proof that we are victims of advertising then the envy I feel whenever I see people driving nice cars. 
I do not need a nice car, it won’t help me in any way. It won’t help with my goals or even my dreams…but the advertising does effect me. I do ‘see’ the prestige involved in owning a nice car every time I pull up beside one at a stop sign.
This is an example of nothing other than the power of advertising, and it’s just as strong in the food industry as it is in the car industry.
Now, you might expect me to get on my soap box and start telling you to accept responsibility for your current weight.
But, that wouldn’t be entirely fair of me.
Because before you can accept responsibility, you do need to recognize who the villain is.
And I believe we are being taken advantage of…every single day.
In fact, In every part of our lives, there are examples of how we are victims of food, health and weight loss advertising.
When I teach the ESE-U teleseminars I often talk about ‘image illusion’ and ‘goal hijacking’ as techniques used to persuade us to eat more and eat more often.
Advertising uses every trick in the book to try and convince you to eat more of their product. They even use ‘research’…or at least they use the WORD research.
(when you see the words “research says” it’s NOT research, it’s advertising.)
So my message today is a fairly simple one:
Every single extra pound of belly fat you have is a glaring example of the power of advertising.
AND
(And remember, almost everything in your life is advertising.)
Heck, this blog post and blog is advertising for both my book and even me personally.
In the end I am trying (as ethically and responsibly as possible) to persuade you to buy my book.
So be constantly aware of advertising, and be aware of your goals.
If the product or service seems to truly be able to move you closer to your goals, then it may be of benefit to you.
However, if the product or service is trying to change your goals, or make you want things you don’t need or that will not move you closer to your goals in anyway, you need fight against it and move on.
It will be a battle, and it will be a battle every single day…but it will also be highly rewarding when you start winning this battle on a daily basis.
BP
Tags: advertising, food advertising, luxury, obseity, overweight
Just out of curiosity, what car do you drive? Im not here to judge or anyhting like that at all. Just wondering
Sadly a 2000 Celica.
It’s been really good to me, almost 300,000 kilometers (closing in on 200,000 miles)
That sad part is that a two seater made sense when I was 22, but now with two kids…not the smartest choice of cars for right now.
B
I think I’ve got the whole “I know you’re trying to sell me something” down, but when I see an ad with a guy in it with a better body than mine, even when I’m feeling pretty confident in myself, it can demotivate me pretty quick.
Another great post.
That’s some powerful stuff right there! and I’ve certainly become an every day victims of the power of advertising. The only problem is to find out if whatever I fell for will benefit me or not.
And most of the time when i found out, I already bought or consumed the product…
@ Brad
Great post! At least you are honest with what you are doing as for as advertising yourself and your book. Everyone is advertising something and food is no different. Whether its for a job or simply a blog hoping to sell some products that you “know will work” for others.
@ Patrick
You and me both. There have been so many times I have tried something only to realize I got sucked in by advertising. I am a lot better now than I was a few years ago so I really make sure that there is going to be some benefit.
I appreciate the honesty. We all want to earn a good living and persuading others often is a part of it, isn’t it? However, every single one of us takes recommendations from others, all the time. I myself, ask for suggestions frequently from others, in many matters. It is how we learn and grow. If we believe and persuade from our true hearts, with the honest intention to help others, we have done no harm. The reason I visit your site and promote you to others is I believe that you have found this integrity.
To understand the degree of the persuasion that you are hearing and seeing is sometimes hard, as you say. The subtlety of all makes it very difficult to discern. We can never be beautiful enough or have enough things to bring value to our lives! I try to stay present to the effect of all things that bombard me every day. It is sometimes quite difficult! But I keep on! I do think it gets easier as I get older – I care less about what others think! (It’s all the ego and the image anyway!)
The belly fat is about health though, and quality of life. I should have taken your ESE-U. I’d love to learn more about your image illusion and goal hijacking.
A real eye-opener. I don’t know why we make it so hard….exercise, eat fruits, veggies and lean meat. Thanks!