#so the likelihood of them just beating their asses and killing them is a non zero chance

[flightlesskiwi]

I don’t think the Rat Grinders are irredeemable or whatever but I DO think a lot of people are putting the onus on Brennan specifically to redeem them or “write them a redemption arc”, like yes it is a show and there has to be character narratives especially for foils to your PCs, but ttrpgs are fundamentally a /collaborative/ storytelling medium, the thing about DnD is that the players have to invest in the NPCs, they have to give them the time and space to redeem themselves through interacting with them, the reason we see characters like Aelwyn and Ragh get a redemption arc & change and develop is because the Bad Kids went out of their way to talk to them (In Aelwyn’s case Adaine had to commit to redeeming her sister on multiple occaisions). Lets not forget there have been other teen villains, like Penelope, Dayne and Biz who the Bad Kids just straight up killed in combat, who didn’t get redeemed. Do I think it’s fully possible that the Rat Grinders can experience redemption/forgiveness and it would be narratively satisfying? Absolutely! But, imo, a lot of the narrative thrust behind wether a character gets redemption is in the hands of the players, and it would be a little bit unsatisfying if being freed from their rage crystals immediately gave them all full personality transplants (like removing all of Kipperlily’s anger and ambition for example)

[vegetacide]

Whump●tober - Isolation

Veg-notables:  ::crawls out from under a rock..clears throat as if nothing happened::  

Little late getting this one out due to...life...food...irritating biological need to sleep.. All that fun stuff.  

@gumnut-logic  - KOALA!!! 

Thunderheads, you guys are a riot.  I love reading your reactions to the crazy sh!t I’m putting these guys through.  I can almost feel the laser beams pointing at my forehead.. Tee he he.. Can defo feel the assault’mallows.. ::bounces one of  @gumnut-logic head::

Obligatory whumptober stuff: @whumptober2019 @la-vie-en-whump

Blanket warning:  stuff happens..  O.o; 

Characters:  Scott, Gordon/Penny, Colonel Casey 

Whumptober - TaG’verse

Previous post can be found HERE

7. Isolation

Enjoy…

oOo

Gordon scowled at the transparent 3-D rendering of his Godmother and resisted the compulsion to swear. Foul language wouldn’t get him anywhere with the formidable woman except disapproval from all those sitting within ear shot and a disconnected call. 

“Look,”  Gordon beseeched. “We need Scott back here.  Things aren’t looking good.”

“I understand the urgency,”  The commanding voice of the Colonel softened. “But this is out of my hands. He nearly beat a man to death and we can’t just ignore that.”

“Colonel,” Gordon voice raised as he pushed up from his chair, winced at a twinge in his back.  Fucking plastic torture device. A look from the attending at the nurses station had him gritting his teeth with frustration  “That so called man, has landed my brother in the ICU with a tube shoved down his throat to keep him alive.  At least Scott left that piece of shit still breathing. Which is more than I can say for Virgil. One of ours is rapping on death’s door. You’ll have to excuse us if we don’d give a royal flying fuck what the GDF wants right now.”  

The colonel visage soured as anger sparked in her gaze.  “No organization is an island, Gordon.”  

Gordon eye twitched,  well technically iR’s home base was an island…if the day hadn’t been so ‘arse over teakettle’ as Penny had occasion to say,  he would comment on that little tidbit.  Right now though, it wouldn't get them anywhere

“There are rules in place that have to be adhered to.” She went on. ”Laws, international ones put in place by the World Union that are not kindly suggestions no matter who the individual is or what the cause. He crossed, unauthorized into Canadian airspace without their foreknowledge or direct invitation and attacked someone on their soil. A dual citizen at that.  Yes, it was with provocation but it doesn’t excuse his actions or the handful of laws that he decided didn’t apply to him.”

“Really, with everything we have done? The lives we’ve saved? This is the response we’re gonna to get?”  His voice took on a pleading edge and he looked away.  “Aunty Val,  Virgil is dying.”

The authoritative posture dropped away from his Aunt with the utterance of those three words.. The sternness and anger evaporating to be replaced with the woman they had spent so much time with as children.  “Gordy,”  Her voice underlaid with a fount of  emotions. “I am doing everything I can. This is coming down from the top brass and the odds are stacked.”

Gordon’s expression must have revealed something the seasoned GDF colonel didn’t like because she sighed and gave a brief nod.  “I’ll call in a few markers. Shake some tree and see what falls out.

“Thank you,”  And his gratitude was real. His eyes held hers a moment before skittering away. A hand reaching up to dash away at his face before turning back. 

“I can’t promise anything.  If you have any options on your side I suggest you try them.” Her brow rose pointedly and it took Gordon a moment to understand what she meant.

As realization dawned, he tipped his head in a nod.  “I understand.  Thank you.”  

8-8-8

Scott's pensive stare drilled holes in cold grey, unadorned walls of the interrogation room.  He'd lost track of how long ago he'd been accompanied into this friendly little corner of GDF territory and shifted his weight on the hard, metal chair. Enough time for his legs to go numb from disuse.

The bright overhead panel lighting was unforgiving as it drove a spike through his brain when he rolled his head on his protesting neck. The tension unrelenting with the stark, searing luminescence frying his retinas. 

‘Note to self,’ he thought wearily. ‘Lights suck.’  

He wanted to yell and scream at the GDF to let him out but he knew it was pointless.  He was well aware of how this worked. Making a person 'sweat it out' was an old tactic. One he went through counter intelligence training for back in his military days.  A brief in-counter but one that was necessary prior to a rather sketchy mission that had a very small success rate. 

Let the suspect sit and stew so you could use their mental exhaustion against them.  Throw them off balance.  Then when they reached the point of critical mass, grill them hard.   

His stare shifted to the two way glass.  He wouldn't give them the satisfaction of seeing himself crack.  He was too proud for that.  And his energies were best used elsewhere on other things.  Like getting back to his family...to Virgil.  

The image of the prone figure that flashed through his mind pulled Scott up short and he schooled his features. If he let himself go down that rabbit hole again he was done for.

It was his own actions that put him here and he would have to live with it. It didn’t stop him from yearning to be elsewhere.  Being cut off and not knowing how his family was fairing was slowly killing him but he’d made the decision,  against the colonel’s direct order not to intervene in their ongoing investigation.  

He hadn’t had a choice though.  As Virgil’s status got worse.. as he’d had to watch his family suffer along side...as he’d seen the look of despair pass over his sister, heard the sudden catch in her voice...his decision had been made.  

His family wouldn’t lose anyone else. Attend another funeral, bury another Tracy.   Not if he had anything to say about it.

Time had been short and a plan had been hastily thrown together.  One that avoided putting anyone else in harm's way bar himself.  

Now, thanks to him, the GDF had an illegal bio-weapon manufacturer under lock and key. The makings of a firm case against a criminal organization they hadn’t even known existed and a pocket ace up their sleeve to help them locate everyone involved… once he regained consciousness.  

And Scott had the intel he had hoped would help his brother.  Along with some he wished he didn’t.  

Closing his eyes against the unforgiving light,  he rubbed the bridge of his nose.  Irked as the cuffs that were secured to the metal table, which in turn was bolted to the floor, pulled at his wrist and forced  him lean forward to accomplish the task.

Doubt clouded his mind, made him second guess his every move. Question how things could have been differently and if they had been, would it have made a difference?  Would Virgil be safe? Or would it have just happened to one of his other siblings.   

He didn’t know.  

What he did know was that a greedy individual had panicked when things had gotten too hot. An unsanctioned, hidden bio-engineering lab had been rigged and to cover his ass when the top of the whole thing was about to be blown wide open, this scum had calmly flicked a switch.

No care given to human life.  To his brother’s life. 

A gas filled lab had been remotely unlocked to the smoldering remains just inches outside the door and his brother’s life was now dangling over a precipice with no way back.

Clenched fist came down hard on the metal table just as the interrogation room door opened.

8-8-8

 Gordon braced his hands on his knees and arched his back in the small hope that the crazy knot of muscles would loosen up.  He knew the likelihood of that happening was next to non existent without a muscle relaxant, heating pads and his bed but it was worth a try.

The hand that started rubbing slow circles from the base of his spine up to his shoulders made elicited a grunt of appreciation.  

“Thanks.”

“Darling, you need to get some sleep.” Penny’s voice was filled with worry and he looked over his shoulder at her.

She was perfect. In every aspect of the word.  From her finely boned, aristocratic face, to her intricately twisted champagne blonde halo of hair.  To the slender curves that held so much strength, right down to her Louis Vuitton clad feet.  Every inch of her was perfect and Gordon was goner from the moment he laid eyes on her.  

He didn’t deserve her and would never be able to even touch her regalness and intelligence but for some completely ridiculous reason she loved him.

And right now, he would forever be in her debt.  

“I’ll get some shut eye once Scott gets here until then it’s not going to happen.”

Penelope knew a set mind when she met one and she nodded her understanding.  “In any event, let me get you something.  You are a twisted knot of muscles and I can imagine it is dreadfully comfortable.”

Gordon’s lip tweaked up a bit in a soft smile and he shook his head.  “I’m okay, Penny. I need to wait to hear back from my contact at W.A.S.P.  They owe me one but I’m not sure it’s going to be enough.  If I take something now I’m going to be a useless pile of mush on the floor.”

“Well, that would certainly be something to see.” 

“I’m sure it would.  The hospital staff would be able to mop me up into a bucket.”

Penny lightly nudged his shoulder with her own and her hand continued its circuitous route over his seizing back. 

Gordon dragged in a breath as her ministrations melted some of the tightness, his head lolling forward in the quiet din of their private waiting room. He was flagging in a bad way and he knew he needed to get back up to his feet if he wanted to stay this side of dream land.  Besides the last thing his back needed was for him to fall asleep in one of these God forsaken chairs.  

Giving his head a shake to dislodge the cobwebs he caught the time on the old school analog wall clock..  He wanted to see his Virg but Kayo was in with him.  The idea of interrupting that intimacy was not something that he found very appealing. He would give her five more minutes  than he would offer her a break.  

Calculating if he had enough time to grab a coffee from the little shop the next floor down he patted his pocked down for spare credits. 

He was about to turn to Penny to see if she wanted anything when a sudden disturbance in the hallway had his head coming up sharply.   Frowning, he forced his back to unbend and pushed to his feet.  

Stepping out into the corridor, he was met with pandemonium as hospital staff raced passed.  The alarm blaring somewhere down by the nurses station made his heart skip a beat but it was  his sagging sister being escorted from a very busy and familiar room that had his lungs refusing to work.   

“Oh god...no…”

oOo

Next post can be found HERE

The Master List of prompts can be found HERE

[manicr]

DD3-6

TRIGGERING CONTENT (suicide, panic)

Dex is crumbling, his nightmares and psychological distress builds with the upside down imagery and the lifeline of his tapes. Though we got a glimpse of his weapons safe, and DAMN if it’s not packed to the brim with non-regulation arms. The throwing-stars are prominent, one of Bullseye’s favorite toys.

Bach’s cello sonatas and Fisk, damn, i just love that music and it suits Fisk so well. He’s making his prison into a fortress. And Dex is walking right into it, thinking that he has a snowballs chance in Hell. His borderline personality disorder, the distress it amps up, and the psychopathic traits, the need to hurt, in a vicious cycle. He’s so close to breaking when trying to lie to Fisk, his rage and pain making him just a quivering mess. 

SAY SOMETHING. Oh, babe, you’re opening the door to him. Dex is scared and Fisk is doing the Speech at him. “Stay back” him cringing back, and Fisk throwing the reality of his stalking Julie in his face, the potential of his violent needs and the projected similarity between them. And Fisk’s plan goes forward, luring him in and making the feds push him out into Fisk’s open, waiting arms. Dex is crumbling, his world is crumbling. His job was his support system, without it his routine will break. A “paid vacation” and being laid off is Hell for a person who needs routine, structure and few changes. The way he keeps on disassociating throughout the episode. He can’t stay connected to reality.

Most mental illnesses/conditions require order to contain. My own included and I’m so surprised that he didn’t crack the moment they told him. Him begging Nadeem and the moment he understands that that’ll give him nothing he disassociates and that rage/pain builds with the sense of isolation. Black and white thinking kicks in. “You see how alone you are?” Everything in me is screaming that he’s a suicide risk. He’s so hurt. And the parallel to Matt, the story Maggie tells of Matt shunning everyone at the orphanage after one failure to be there. Nadeem won’t win him back now unless he pulls a miracle out of his ass.

Dex teary-eyed staring at Julie’s picture, the knife in it, the chaos of his tidy existence. And damn, I called it. Fuck shit, I called it. Saved by a phone call. fuckfuuuuuuuuuck.  Saved by Fisk. He timed that shit so damn perfectly, stalking Dex to catch him before he did anything drastic. A car is waiting. Just steering him. And putting him into the suit like he is right now.

For all the hilarity of office supply murder and assault, Dex is completely off his rocker now. Suicidal, angry, and needing a release from all the pain. It’s a very different story than the comic counterpart, there the masquerading is gleeful and turns disassociative and unstable, here he starts there. Meeting Matt/DD, the tension and the instant connection. 

Close-combat Matt bare-knuckle beats him, but the first breath of space and Dex is deadly. Around corners (that baseball!), through surfaces, bouncing off items and making them explode and move (the snowglobe and the pen!) and fuck he’s glorious. And for all likelihood, Dex is feeling the first bit of relief he’d felt all day.  Leaving Karen alive speaks as much to Fisk’s plan, as I think Dex’s recent rejection by Julie. “It was Daredevil.” Fisk wins the battle. 

As a final note, I’m just gonna make it clear that it’s NOT Dex’s BPD that made him kill. His BPD made him fall victim to Fisk’s manipulation. It made him easy to manipulate, it made him easy to hurt. It’s his choices and his need for violence that made him kill. Most mentally ill people, even of the so-called scary mental disorders, don’t turn violent. They’re more frequently the victim. Dex’s fate is a tragedy, but in the end he decided to kill. He’s still culpable. But Fisk is also culpable. He manipulated an unstable man and took all stability he had from him. He took a suicidal angry man and gave him a weapon and a target for that pain.  

[pronetopronoia]

Album Debut: In Memorandum TRIGGER WARNING (for the reader)

Fuckin’ YO! 

“I met a rapper and he shared with me his new album and then killed himself.” 

Truth BOMB for the less familiar with literature: This is just a personality I made up in order to write this album right now. That is how writing works. I am not pursuing a rap career. I’m not being paid for this so I can do whatever the fuck I want because it’s my own personal blog. 

Consider this blog my own personal open mic, hence the trigger warning for you.

Here’s where first I, then the made-up rapper personality, ramble on and on and over-hype ourselves up prior to the actual lyrics:

A “bit” about me:

First of all, to that game, have you ever/already? My answer is probably.

The University of Iowa Cinema and Comparative Literature programs are pretty good. They are now two different programs, when I went there back before ISIS was even a thing, they were one combined program. I switched to that from Pre-Med. 

LOL - no, seriously, that is what the online system was called to register for classes that kicked in at some point. 

I switched to that major from Pre-Med so I could get fucking wasted more with “the cool kids”. And also be in Marching Band instead of rowing on the Crew Team. I would rather hang out with dorks than single lesbians. Sorry. Unless they are sex-deprived dorks then I can’t even with that. Also the drumline guys were hot and man were they were mean to me, haha! 

“Jesus fucking christ, Lauren, everyone deserves love and affection!” 

Yeah, I’m not saying that, but if they are annoying and pushy as an adult then they aren’t getting it from me so best move along. Do you want something else? Other friends? Cool, I have referrals! Money? Sorry, fresh out. Do you need a job? I can point you in a direction based on your career path. Do you want to scam me? Let’s see what you got. Are you a child-molester either metaphorically or actually and that is why you are bugging me? There is sadly an enormous network of people into that (both metaphorically and actually) so you need to go insert yourself into that network. If you need the key I probably have it somewhere. Do you need a babysitter? How annoying is your kid, does their cuteness balance out their annoyingness?

Also:

D’s do get degrees. 

That’s a figure of speech that means a number of things, but basically be hot and if you’re not you better be fucking funny. Because if you take the party route, regardless, you are going to need to be smart and also fucking super creative because you are gonna get into some jams!  

Rambling Album Notes from the Rapper (take a seat, it’s a long one, he wrote this after some Angel Dust so buckle up, ugggghhhhhh, when can we get this at Best Buy?): 

This album was really therapeutic for me to work through. I just really went through some hard times previously and I actually wrote a math album a number of years ago but never released it because I forgot and then also didn’t want to deal with math people. This album goes out to all the folks I have encouraged previously. You’re welcome. Also thank you for the encouragement. I’m a writer, comedian, English professor, and business person. Those are solitary-ish jobs. I fucking love it. I love working because I am a workaholic. Also non-practicing alcoholic but it is summer now so let’s see what happens! I also work out a lot because I am fat to my own standards and always will be, we all have insecurities. I guess I’m just really into productive self-abuse. Like a cutter but not for attention (sorry, suicide is not funny) but like beat myself up and then stuff is produced. Also, notes: I beat myself up enough so I don’t need anyone else to do it so if you enjoy conflict byeeeeeee byeeeeeeeeeee!  

Oh god the next album will be White Collar Crime! Just kidding! Or am I? If it’s super on the down-low straight fucking stealing money directly from the U.S. Government’s war fund or acquiring foreign money to fucking fan out amongst subtle peacekeepers I will find the paperwork to do it. I am already at a financial stalemate with them that you would not believe and I have nothing to lose. 

Also, I got an advanced degree in Screenwriting but if you just whip one out it devalues it and probably lessens the likelihood that you’ll appeal to a major label. I mean studio. Major labels are shit shows though, as you’re aware. Luckily there’s local ones like Cartouche Records. Also, I formed a local entertainment corporation, like, actually legally and with the government, of whom I plan to find a way to rob, hence the corporation. So if you are a screenwriter, get writing! I also have a sole proprietorship that currently publishes books. I can do albums too, on CD, and it’s not the most cost effective or smart, but you can do whatever you fucking want. Maybe I’ll put out this album to fucking test out the system. This experiment that started my publishing company was pretty fun and I pitched it to a really amazing other indie publisher who may or may not give it  consideration once other projects currently on deck are seen through which is how you properly run a fucking independent publishing company. 

Oh god the government is involved, FUCK. Yeah I need to acquire both some working capitol, assets, and debt in order to get some fucking fodder for my prospectus to appeal to a competent underwriter (GOOD FUCKING LUUUUUUCCCCKKKKK) to facilitate an initial public offering. What’s that? Oh, it’s my exit strategy. 

Oh god is this another cry for help/suicide thing? Yeah, no, refer to last post. I want to just fucking metaphorically disappear to smoke blunts and chug 40′s with metaphorical 2 Pac and fucking Biggie (if he’s lost some weight by now). How can you say that?! Jesus! Also probably just have money to travel around solo on a whim sounds pretty fucking amazing to me. 

Also, is writing a prospectus fun? For me it is! 

Also, AGAIN, working a corporate job is awesome, I enjoy the perks and dislike  the sexual harassment and politics. So fuck everyone, I just made my own corporation. LOL! You’re so cray! Haven't you had enough abuse? Nope! I bring it on myself and love it! I have years of even more stress ahead thank you Jesus! Oh, Jesus is me because I fucking am the one behind it and doing the work. You can “crucify” me all you want because you won’t have to even deal with me like ever! 

Ok, here’s the hot trax:

Track 1: Suicide Bomb (not a comedy reference)

Lyrics: Something, something, something about getting off your fucking phone and not following your own self-determined set of prompts 

Track 2: Someone for Everyone

Lyrics: Something, something, something about there’s plenty of fish in the sea but if you’re really fucked up and hate yourself I bet you feel totally alone, no sweat, I am sure I know the perfect match for you so if you are really hard-up I can send them your way if I have not already done so. I am absolutely not the person for you though so please scurry along! 

Track 3: Write a Screenplay

Lyrics: My parents were fucking lazy and retarded in their youth and if they had been offered the opportunity to participate in a government experiment they absolutely would especially if it would ensure their entrance into the entertainment industry at some point

Track 4: Test Tube Baby or Clone?

Lyrics: Oh god life is so hard for a test tube baby but your parents created you to do their work, you are the KEY! Or wait, do you have a clone out there somewhere, they are going to annoy you so just introduce them to everyone possible and then sneak out the back

Track 5: R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Lyrics: If you sense someone cannot handle conflict but you insist on initiating it with them, you need to learn about boundaries. If someone asks you to stop doing something or to stop contacting them, then respect that and leave them the fuck alone.

Track 6: Drugzzzzz

Lyrics: Don’t do them! If you want them I can get them for you though maybe, I’m a rapper! Also, not that hard to get so maybe the price will go down? That’d be nice. But then if they are legal, like, that would be good for the economy and government, so wait, which is better? If this interests you then get off your ass and pursue politics yourself and get a law passed. Or become a drug dealer. Go to law school. Fucking pick a thing and pursue it. By thing I don’t mean living or metaphorically dead creature. 

Track 7: Naps

Lyrics: Yo Imma take a nap! 

Track 8: Nap, Then Beers, Then Sun, then BBQ

Eight is always the best track, is that still a thing? Anyway, ending on this, keep having a nice weekend, this weather is awesome! 

[iamtomandrews]

Sales Funnel Lessons From Genghis Khan's "Tripwire"

There's a first time for everything.

And today, I believe you are reading something historic.

"What?" I hear you ask.

The first time someone has ever written something on sales funnels that features Genghis Khan.

WTF?!

Let me explain...

I love reading. And unlike most entrepreneurs who obsess over business books, I'm more into fiction.

Don't get me wrong, business books can be awesome. But I prefer reading one book ten times as opposed to ten books one time. If you treat a business book like a course instead of a book, where you make notes and really study the content, then you'll get a ton more value from them.

Right, back to fiction.

The reason I love it is simple: It's an escape.

From what?

My head.

See, my head's a weird place to be. The best way I can describe it is this:

Imagine being in a busy, crammed room, packed with people barging into you all the time, talking loudly all around you, and just generally not giving you any space to breathe.

Welcome to "Tom's World".

I mean, I just can't switch off. There's always something whirring around in my head. I struggle to watch a movie without pausing it 3 times because my mind's wondered off.

Yet reading's different.

It gets me out of my head for a bit.

Anyway, one of my favorite authors is Conn Iggulden. He writes historial fiction, where he takes a major character from history and "fictionizes" (great word) his life to make it more interesting, whilst keeping in the real events so it's mostly accurate.

Brilliant author.

I've recently finished his "Emperor" series about Julius Caesar.

And now I'm onto "Conqueror", about Genghis Khan.

The first book's about his childhood. Kinda lays the foundation for what's to come.

Right now, I'm on the second book. And as I was reading, it reminded me of sales funnels and "tripwires".

For the record, let me quickly explain what sales funnels and tripwires are.

A sales funnel is basically where entrepreneurs and marketers take people from being a "cold" prospect (top of the funnel), all the way to being a "rabid fan" who buys the high-ticket stuff (bottom of the funnel).

Here;s an example, just to make it clearer:

Let's say you own a supplement business where you help people with heart problems.

At the top of the funnel, you might offer a free report called "Is your doctor slowly killing you? The 5 "facts" doctors tell you which are actually eating away your health".

To get this free report, they need to optin to your email list. They're now into your sales funnel.

Then you might offer them a "tripwire" product.

What the hell is a tripwire? Isn't it some form of trap?

Not in this sense, no.

Instead, it's a simple way of turning non-buyers into buyers as soon as possible.

Why would you wanna do this?

Because buyers, no matter how little they pay you in their first purchase, are more likely to buy from you again.

In other words, Jimmy, who's already given you £7 for a bottle of fish oil capsules, is gonna be WAY more likely than Paul to buy your £97 heart-health bundle, because Paul has never bought from you before.

He's still on your "non-buyers" list. He doesn't trust you as much yet as a previous buyer does.

And that's why tripwires are often low priced. (£7-£37 tends to be the standard rate.)

Anyway, for the record, you're more than likely gonna lose money at this stage. The money you get from your tripwire probably isn't gonna be enough to cover your costs.

But that's where your sales funnel comes into play. You can make huge money from all the "Jimmy's" out there, on the back-end.

So now you might offer a few up-sells.

And with each higher-priced product, you're taking Jimmy further and further down the funnel...

Until he buys your high-ticket stuff.

Which, in this case, might be a week-long health retreat in the Bahamas, where you get access to the best heart health experts, yoga classes for relaxation, personal training sessions tailored to you, a world class chef, and whatever other goodies you might offer.

You get the idea.

Now then, let's get back to Genghis Khan shall we?

As I said, a scene in this book reminded me of the whole "tripwire" and sales funnel thing.

Here's why:

By now, Genghis had got all the Mongol tribes together as one army. And he's marched across the dessert to go and attack the Chinese, who the Mongols hate.

But as they reached the edge of the Chinese land, they had a problem.

You see, the Chinese had built a big-ass wall for this exact reason - to keep out invaders.

And Genghis was stumped.

He'd never seen anything like it.

Was this the end for the Mongols?

Well, they certainly didn't have long. They'd marched across the desert for 12 days straight. Water was running out.

They were as close to death as Anakin Skywalker was at the end of Revenge of The Sith.

But Genghis had an idea.

He knew that if he sent his whole army in to attack the wall, they'd get picked off by archers firing arrows down at them.

Would've been stupid.

It would be like an entrepreneur going all in and offering his £20,000 seminar to cold traffic.

Like I say, stupid.

So instead, Genghis used his own "tripwire" strategy to lure out the Chinese defenders.

How?

By sending in just 1,000 of his men to attack the wall. (He had like 20 thousand in total.)

Now, listen. Here's why Genghis would've been a successful entrepreneur today...

He would have understood the idea of losing money on the front-end with a tripwire, in order to prosper on the back-end. Because that's exactly what he did.

See, he knew the 1,000 men he sent in were going to die.

But he didn't want the Chinese to know that he had thousands more waiting. And so, as he expected, when the Chinese killed those 1,000 men, they opened the gates in the wall and came out to take the armor and weapons from the dead Mongols.

And that's when Genghis seized his moment.

That's when he sent in his troops.

And that's when he got through the Chinese wall.

Amazing strategy, eh?

Like I say, attacking the wall with all his men would've been like sending cold-traffic to a high-ticket offer.

Sure, there's a small chance it would work. And you wouldn't have to go through the initial "loss" on the front-end.

But in all likelihood, it would bomb as bad as the Star Wars prequels.

(Well, I actually loved the third one... Come at me haters!)

Anyway, by accepting the fact he'd lose 1,000 of his men upfront, Genghis knew he'd still profit on the "back-end". In other words, he'd then be able to beat the Chinese and get behind the wall with the rest of his army.

Just like as an entrepreneur, you need to accept the fact you'll probably lose some money on your front-end offer.

But, just like Genghis and the Mongol army, if you play your cards right and have a great sales funnel in place, you'll have amazing success on the back-end.

In other words, money, money, money baby.

Tom Andrews

PS- I was gonna talk about this yesterday.

But as I was writing, I changed my mind.

Instead, I thought I'd write about a real-world example of how a sales funnel I put in place for "The True Transformation", helped them more than 3x their revenue in 3 months.

You can find out how I did that, as well as how you can apply it to your own business, by going to:

http://iamtomandrews.com/sales-funnel-secrets-from-a-direct-response-copywriter