We see advertisements everywhere. Whether we’re scrolling through social media, reading our favorite blogs, checking our email, online shopping, watching video content, or just surfing the web, we can’t escape them.
That’s because the advertising industry funnels a tremendous amount of energy into digital ads — over $160 billion in 2015.
Industry experts estimate that the average person is exposed to around 5,000 ads a day, which speaks volumes of the subconscious overload we experience to buy, buy, buy.
But what if every time you got a message to consume, you got a message to create instead?
That’s exactly the idea behind Intently, an innovative app that enables users to replace the ads they see on the internet with inspired content they choose.
I caught up with Intently founder, Micha Mikailian, on this week’s episode of Unconventional Life, “Hijacking Your Subconscious Mind For Maximum Productivity.”
Mikailian says the inspiration for Intently came from his frustration working in the ad industry. He ran a major ad agency for 12 years and was irritated by the deceptive and manipulative tactics businesses used to hook consumers.
Aware of how much time and attention internet users spent looking at ads, Mikailian reasoned the ad space could actually be repurposed for good.
With Intently, users can customize their internet experience with intentional messages aimed to inspire, motivate, and uplift them by downloading the Intently extension right to your browser.
“I saw this vision for Intently, I saw that my ads were now messages that were getting me prepped for my next meeting, and supporting me throughout my day and reminding me what my goals were,” Mikailian says.
Think of it like a digital vision board — except instead of putting it in your closet and forgetting about it, it follows you around the web so your goals stay fresh in mind. Wherever you would normally see an ad you will see your virtual vision board instead.
Studies confirm that actually seeing your goals can help you achieve them. One study demonstrated that people who keep images, photos or vision boards of their goals are twice as confident about achieving them than those who don’t — and 91% of those who are successful attribute it to having envisioned a plan to get there.
“It’s just priming your subconscious in terms of what you want to create in your life so by focusing on what you want to create and having an image of what that looks like you’re really setting yourself up naturally to take all the actions that are going to take you there,” Mikailian says.
For decades, advertisers have utilized a powerful technique called subliminal messaging, which targets the subconscious mind to motivate behavior without the subject’s awareness.
Being a veteran in the ad industry, Mikailian knew of this technique and decided to use it to actually benefit consumers. “I used the power of advertising — the same power of manipulation that advertisers use to get you to buy stuff — to reprogram a behavior in me, and in that moment it changed my experience of life,” Mikailian shares.Mikailian has used this reprogramming to transform the relationship with his mom, attract a great relationship partner, and shift recurring negative thought patterns.
Now, former ad consumers are empowered to design their own subliminal messages that will motivate behaviors they want. You’re in the driver’s seat to customize your browsing experience in a way that supports you.
If goal setting is important to you, you’ll first need to get clear on what exactly it is that you want. The more specific you are, the better. Instead of setting the goal of financial freedom, envision what you would do with the financial resources you want to have — what kind of lifestyle would you live? Would you travel, treat yourself to gourmet dinners, experience the city nightlife, or revamp your wardrobe and home?
Once you’re clear on your goal, the path to actualizing it involves affirming it in your mind through repetition. Write down your goal, assemble a collage of images and words that remind you of it, and stick it on your Intently to see it over and over again.
Can you imagine what might be possible for yourself if you were constantly reminded 5,000 times a day of the things you wanted to create, instead of the things that distract you?
Enjoyed this post? Sign up for my newsletter for powerful tools to create a life that inspires you.
