“Everybody wants to be a part of something bigger than themselves.” 

–Spike Jones

 As a new fan of Brains on Fire and their terrific blog, I experienced how BOF taps into the human desire to belong to something bigger than oneself. I received a thank you in snail mail for recommending them on Twitter (“1st company I’d contact if I ever needed job: Brains on Fire, helping organizations build movements. Check it out.”) The thank you consisted of what looked like a business card with simply a url and a code. Going to the url (youareoneofus.com–brilliant!) brings up a visual of a “treasure chest” and a request to put in the code. Once the code is input, the visitor hears an unlocking of the chest, sees a visual of gold coins in the chest, and enters into “Brains on Fire Underground.” Eventually, this leads to a series of pages where I pick out a gift for myself.

The story doesn’t end there. I pick out a t-shirt, with a BOF-designed logo, “Fascinate, Inspire, Reward, Engage.” (FIRE, get it?) Several days later, a cardboard box arrives with my free t-shirt inside. What catches my eye is not the t-shirt, but the box. On the inside of the cardboard, employees of BOF had signed it with a nickname or their initials or a mantra. It was as if to say, “You matter enough for us to personalize the package.” What a remarkable example of how to create a “true fan” and that sense of belonging.

In this third and final part of my interview with Spike, you’ll learn why effective movements have a barrier for entry, how to empower your kindred spirits, and the beauty of the words, “I am a <blank>.”  A wonderful quote from Spike that sums up the BOF philosophy:

“We’d much rather have 5,000 deeply passionate people who are participating than half a million that sign up and never come back. If we go for quality first, they’re the ones who will be protective of the movement.”

In other words, focus on the kindred spirits who will own the movement.

This final portion of our interview is less than 8 minutes long. My thanks to Spike for taking the time to share his wisdom and for the entire BOF crew for being so clear about who they are and what they stand for. It’s compelling.

In addition to the Tequila Shots book, you’ll want to check out BOF’s manifesto, Lessons Learned in Igniting Word of Mouth Movements. It’s chock full of insights on creating a movement, word of mouth or otherwise.

To contact Spike: spike [at] brainsonfire.com or find him on Twitter (@brainsonfire), LinkedIn, and Facebook.