“The bait must appeal to the fish, not the fisherman.” You’ve heard it before—probably from a coach, a consultant, or some guru who thinks they understand your business better than you do. It’s supposed to mean you need to give your audience what they want, not what you want.
But here’s what nobody admits: This metaphor has become a weapon to shut down differentiation and creative thinking.
In this episode, I connect a recent LinkedIn exchange about podcast distribution to something happening right now in German education: Lower Saxony just removed written division from elementary schools because it’s “too complex” for students.
Both scenarios reveal the same dangerous pattern: optimizing for immediate comfort over long-term capability. Surrendering expertise to popular opinion. Racing to the bottom while calling it progress.
Yes, the bait must appeal to the fish. But you still choose the fishing spot, the timing, the rod, and which fish you’re targeting in the first place. Not everything is the bait.
Excellence requires challenge. Differentiation requires risk. And sometimes, the best strategy is doing what the fish doesn’t expect.
