Your brand’s biggest threat? It might be you. In this episode of The Brand ON! Show, Brandon Coleman Jr tackles the brutal truth—personal pride and past success can quietly wreck your brand. From business owners clinging to bad logos because “family made it” to leaders too smug to pivot, Brandon exposes the ego traps that stall growth. Just because something worked before doesn’t mean it will work forever. If you’re too proud to hear the hard truth, your brand’s already in trouble. Tune in, drop the ego, and keep your Brand ON!
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Email: bcj@brandoncolemanjr.com
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Transcript (with chapter marks)
00:01:23 Personal Pride and Success
Brandon Coleman Jr: Personal pride and success get us all. It snares us all. There’s a thrill in claiming brand marketing or ad ideas, especially when they’re splashed across a public stage. It’s our brush with Hollywood, if you will.
00:02:48 Blinding You to the Obvious
Brandon Coleman Jr: Pride blinds you to the obvious. If it’s not unique, it’s not a brand. This pothole runs deeper, business owners. Maybe your daughter sketched your logo, or your son dreamed up your name, or your spouse coined the tagline. That’s called cocktail chatter.
00:03:19 Answering a Loaded Question
Brandon Coleman Jr: An oil field CEO, and that guy was worth millions, his daughter designed the logo… I took a breath and I said, sir, your baby’s ugly, and you need to change it. Now he laughed. He laughed. Threatened to fire me. Then hired me. And we crushed it together. Pride’s a pothole, but it’s navigable with honesty.
00:04:40 The Ego Rush
Brandon Coleman Jr: Number one’s called the ego rush. Chasing the spotlight. Pride’s a drug. Seeing your idea in lights is a hit. It’s not just vanity. It’s validation. You’re not a cog. You’re a creator.
00:05:43 The Ego Rush
Brandon Coleman Jr: Number two, the I did it bias over evaluating your own work. I have done that. Success breeds a bias. If it’s mine and it’s winning, it must be perfect. Psychologists call this the IKEA effect. You love what you build, flaws and all. God knows their stuff’s flaw.
00:07:09 The Sentimental Snare
Brandon Coleman Jr: Number three is family ties, the sentimental snare. When your brand’s a family affair, pride makes it stickier. Your kid’s doodle, your spouse’s brainstorm, it’s not just a logo or name, it’s love.
00:08:20 The Complacency Curse
Brandon Coleman Jr: The complacency curse… success is a pothole when it makes you smug. You’re profitable, busy, proud, loud. Why mess with it? Struggling leaders beg for new ideas. Successful ones shrug it off. If it ain’t broke, bye. But fine, it isn’t at its peak.
00:09:19 Winning The Wrong Game
Brandon Coleman Jr: Number five is misdefining success, the joy gap. Success isn’t just revenue, it’s joy. Are you thrilled to lead? Are your customers raving fans? Are they hooked on a seamless experience they can’t stop sharing? That’s the brand alignment jackpot. But pride skews the metric. If you’re smug about profits while your team dreads Mondays and clients grumble, you’re winning the wrong game.