There are times when I cannot sleep well due to back problems or bad restaurant food. I casually flip on the TV while I put in a DVD to watch and before the disc is in the drawer my attention is drawn to a late night TV show. Many people watch late night TV but there are only a few genres of shows that make up the cable channels. First you have the channels with movies. Next the channels that rerun the late night talk shows over again. Next you have the music channels that have "reality" shows now more than actual music. Last are the channels that sell. It is this last group that fascinated me the other night. I was SO tempted to get a full set of Silver Eagle Silver Dollars that they offered that I actually had my credit card out. I already have a set in my coin collection but the deal was too good to pass up. By the time I found my credit card and the phone the deal was gone and they were on to another one. I moved on to a channel where I could by a kit that taught me how to buy real estate for "no money down" and turn it into millions of dollars. I found an exercise contraption that is guaranteed to take off my unwanted pounds in 30 days or I get my money back. There was a cooking gadget that would give me a moist chicken in a fraction of the time it would take in a conventional oven. Finally, I turned off the TV and went back to bed.
Why do these shows appear late night? Why do stations put them on? You would think they would have better shows to present. The answer is: people PAY to put their show on and people BUY because of the show! As amazing as it might sound, people actually do buy based on the shows presented and all the cable channel can to is put a disclaimer at the beginning of the show. Many of the shows are a sham, many of the gadgets don't work, most of the "amazing deals" really aren't but people still buy.
We have a want to trust people and good salespeople know how to use that. We have a want to better our lives and good salespeople know that too. We have a want to become financially successful and good salespeople will use that. We all have the want to be better, higher, healthier, richer, and think that if we are we will be truly happy. Most of the time the only people who become happier and wealthier are the people who sold the "stuff" to you and planned on you being too nice to return it for you 100% money back guarantee.
Here's my late night TV mantra, you can use it if you like: happiness doesn't come from stuff.