Creators must deeply believe in what they’re manifesting in order for others to believe.

Everything that makes a cup of Starbucks coffee worth five dollars is somehow tied to the creativity and beliefs of the Starbucks organization.

What Schrager did when he developed the lifestyle hotel was apply his creativity—through design, story- telling, and programming—to shift the customer’s perspective and produce significant value. After all, many lifestyle hotels are just underperforming hotel assets that have been repositioned using these creative elements.

in the Age of Ideas, regular people are able to harness the power of perception in the same way celebrities and big companies have for years. Whether on LinkedIn, Facebook, Ins- tagram, or personal blogs, you can influence your value by affect- ing how people perceive you. And the same way an entrepreneur can change the value of a building or event by changing people’s perception of it, you too can change people’s perception of you through authentic storytelling.

So, what is it that Rubin does? How has he helped artists make their best music for nearly forty years across such disparate genres and styles? The secret seems to be rooted in self-discovery. As Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks put it, the legendary pro- ducer “has the ability and the patience to let music be discovered, not manufactured.” In other words, to use our terminology, Rubin understands that magic needs to come from within.

Shortcuts don’t work because by nature they show you don’t really care about the customer’s needs more than your own. Manipulating a customer into action is no different from manipulating a friend to get your way. True emotional generosity combines action and intention to create lasting connection.