It’s the Fourth of July weekend. People are celebrating the birth of the nation with barbecues and fireworks.
It’s also wedding season, and people are getting hitched left and right.
What’s the common thread?
The public vow.
There’s a reason why the Founding Fathers declared their intentions publicly, in writing, as opposed to just discussing it privately amongst themselves.
Just like there’s a reason wedding vows are done publicly, not “something just between the two of us” on an empty beach somewhere.
It’s simple. If you’re not willing to declare something important in the most public way possible to people you feel seriously accountable to, you’re probably not that serious.
The Declaration of Independence wasn’t just a breakup letter to King George. It was a spell. A transformation. The moment they signed it, they stopped being British subjects and became Americans—not because the world recognized it, but because they declared it.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed…”
These words didn’t describe the reality of the day. They created it.
When we declare something, our brains rewire themselves. Public commitment triggers what researchers call “consistency bias” – where our minds reorganize to match the stated identity.
Studies consistently show that public commitments are significantly more powerful than private ones. The social pressure and risk of appearing inconsistent makes people more likely to follow through.
The Scots figured this out in 1320, with the Declaration of Arbroath (where the phrase “consent of the governed” originates). It wasn’t a military victory but a written declaration that stated power ultimately comes from people’s consent, not a King. 600 years before Jefferson, they declared a truth that didn’t exist yet and made it real. It’s a document still cited to this day by the Scottish Independence movement.
Gandhi didn’t defeat the British Empire with armies. He declared Indian independence first, then lived as if it were already true.
Social movements understand this. “We Are The 99%” didn’t describe existing reality— it created a new one. The suffragettes didn’t wait for permission to vote— they declared “Votes for Women” and made it inevitable.
It works the same way in business.
Apple didn’t just become innovative. Steve Jobs declared “Think Different” and they organized around that principle.
In 1977, Nike declared ten principles that defined who they were: “Our business is change. We’re on offense. All the time. Perfect results count—not a perfect process. This is as much about battle as about business. Assume nothing.”
These weren’t aspirational statements. They were declarations of identity. And like Apple, Nike organized every decision around proving them true. The declaration came first. The evidence followed.
Results don’t happen in a vacuum. They begin life with intention. And until you declare it publicly, until you hold yourself accountable to people, it isn’t real to them.
And according to the science, not very real to you either. |
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