It’s Not You. It’s Not Your Product. You’re Just Not Connected. | Books By Tony Mudd

I was always told that to succeed in business, you just needed to solve a problem.

“Create something people need,” they said.“Fill a gap in the market.”“Help people improve their lives.”

But what if that’s not the whole truth? What if the problem isn’t your product, your pitch, or your purpose — what if the real problem is that you’re simply not connected to what people want?

Here’s the hard truth: People don’t buy what they need. They buy what they want. They buy what makes them feel good, not what makes sense.

If people only bought what they needed, there would be no credit card debt, no impulse purchases, no fast food at midnight, no closets filled with barely-worn clothes. America wouldn’t have $1 trillion in credit card debt. But that’s not how we operate. We are emotional buyers, not logical ones.

Need is Boring. Want is Emotional.

You can create the most thoughtful, practical, problem-solving product in the world. But if it doesn’t touch someone’s emotions, it won’t move.

Think about this for a second. No one wakes up thinking, “I really need to manage my time better today — let me go buy a productivity planner.” They wake up feeling overwhelmed, out of control, distracted, and tired of spinning their wheels. So what do they buy? A planner with beautiful packaging, a motivational quote, a video ad that makes them feel like their life is about to change.

They’re not buying paper. They’re buying hope. They’re buying relief. They’re buying the feeling of getting their life together — even if they don’t stick with it.

People Buy to Escape, Not Just to Solve

Humans have been hardwired for thousands of years to seek safety and comfort. But now that most of our basic needs — food, water, shelter — are generally met, we seek escape.

• We buy for entertainment.
• We buy to avoid boredom.
• We buy to numb pain.
• We buy to feel something — anything.

That’s why someone can scroll for hours on TikTok, spend $12 on coffee, buy sneakers they don’t need, or subscribe to five streaming services at once. It’s not because they need more things. It’s because they want to feel something different. That’s the emotional currency of the modern marketplace: Distraction. Identity. Comfort. Escape.

So when you build a product, ask yourself:

• Does this make people feel seen?
• Does this help people avoid something uncomfortable?
• Does this make them feel powerful, cooler, more interesting, more in control?

Why the “Needs-Based” Business Model Is Fading

You’ve heard the saying: “If you create a product people need, the market will come.” But that’s only true in survival economies — not modern consumer ones. Here in today’s world? Our needs are covered — and boring. We have food delivery. We have free tap water. We have homes with air conditioning. We have dollar stores with necessities on every corner.

But what’s thriving in the marketplace right now?

• Instagram filters that make people look better
• Energy drinks that promise performance
• Monthly subscription boxes for pets
• Virtual reality games
• Influencer merch

These aren’t needs. These are wants dressed in experience, emotion, and identity. That’s the difference.

So… What Should You Do as a Creator?

If your product isn’t selling, don’t immediately assume it’s bad. It might be beautiful, well-crafted, helpful, and even life-changing. But if people aren’t connecting with it, it’s likely because it’s not positioned around their desires.

To survive in business today, your offer needs to be:

• Simple: Easy to explain, easy to understand
• Accessible: Low cost or low risk to try
• Emotionally Charged: It must feel like something they want right now
• Behavior-Based: It should match what people are already doing — not try to change them too much

That’s why social media is king. It gives people what they want in small, addictive doses. It feeds their boredom. It entertains them. It gives them a break from real life. Social media didn’t win because we needed it. It won because it gave us escape.

Build Something People Want to Spend Time With

Here’s the final truth I’ll leave you with, people don’t spend money on what they need. They spend time, energy, attention, and dollars on what makes them feel something. So if you want to build something that wins?

Build a product that:

• Distracts people from their problems
• Makes peolpe feel powerful, connected, or valuable
• Feels like a reward, not another responsibility
• Brings pleasure, curiosity, or confidence

Be the thing they choose over boredom. Be the product they brag about, not just tolerate. And most of all — stop thinking your product isn’t good enough. It may not be the product. It may not be you. You just haven’t connected it to what people want yet.

And once you do? Everything can change.

For more information, please feel free to visit my podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERmN7l9BsRw

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