The Most Important Meal of the Day
If you read the subject line above, you're probably thinking...
Breakfast!
But why do we all know that?
And is it actually true?
See more below 👇
And thanks, as always, for reading.
Breakfast or Baloney?
"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day."
I'm sure you've heard or read that line more than once. Maybe dozens or even hundreds of time.
Must be true, right?
Well, hold the bacon 🥓 and let's look at it a little more closely.
First of all, if breakfast is the most important meal of the day, what's important about it?
Important for what, exactly?
Seems kinda vague for something we seem to collectively assume is true.
But where did this whole idea come from?
Turns out this started in 1944.
That's the year that the General Foods company decided they wanted to sell more of their Grape Nuts breakfast cereal. 🥣
During this marketing campaign, grocery stores handed out pamphlets and radio ads declared, you guessed it, that
"Nutrition experts say breakfast is the most important meal of the day.”
And that, my friends, is the birth of the marketing idea that became accepted as the gospel truth.
For more on the history of breakfast, you might enjoy this:
How Breakfast Became a Thing — priceonomics.com Do you think breakfast is the most important meal of the day? Then you fell for an ad campaign designed in 1944 to sell more cereal.
I don't have a strong opinion on the importance of breakfast, but I do find it interesting that this accepted truth around breakfast was born out of a cereal marketing and ad campaign.
Food for thought...
Especially as you consider how marketing and ads drive so much of our daily lives these days.
For instance, who is Facebook's customer?
It's not you or me.
Facebook's customers are the people and companies that pay to advertise on their platform.
In fact, many people argue that as users of Facebook, you and I are actually Facebook's "product."
The same could be said of Google, TV, the news media, radio, and more.
This includes things like CNBC or your preferred financial "news" source.
You're not the customer.
You're the consumer.
The customers are the precious metals exchanges, the financial product manufacturers, the insurance companies, and other, often large, companies who pay big bucks to advertise to you.
I'd encourage you to just turn off the financial news.
In fact, you should probably just turn off all the news.
You'll likely see your blood pressure normalize and you won't be mysteriously compelled to believe or buy or become bullish on something based entirely on some companies marketing budget.
As the Sergeant from Hill Street Blues always said,
Level Up Your Life
I love a good question.
One that makes you stop and really examine something.
One that stays with you for hours or even days after you hear it.
I believe a good question is more powerful than a good answer.
Answers usually mark the end of the thought process while questions usually kickstart our thinking.
With this in mind, here's an article on questions and how they can help you take your life up a notch:
Thought Provoking Questions to Take Your Life to the Next Level — tomaslau.com There’s always another level, and good questions can help you get there.
Reader Survey
I'd love it if you could do me a quick favor and click the link immediately below and answer my 1-question reader survey:
Wealthcare for Women Weekly Email Letter 1 Question Reader Survey — docs.google.com
It will take you less than a minute, and I want to hear from you about how I can make this weekly email letter more helpful and informative.
For you.
So click that link above and share your thoughts.
Thank you!
Until next Wednesday,
Russ
Postscript: No indie songs or links today. Just want to wish you a wonderful Wednesday and a great rest of your week. And if you want to say hi, just hit reply. Always love to hear from you...