George B. Thomas
This episode felt like the right kind of ending. Chris Carolan opened it as the final chapter in the foundational Value First Humans series, right on the edge of a new year. And for me, it landed like a mirror. Not just for business. For how we choose to show up as humans when nobody is clapping, when the metrics look quiet, and when we still decide to serve anyway.
In this conversation, Chris and I focused on the seventh commitment: we will enable multiplying value rather than extracting diminishing returns. That sounds like a business idea. But it is really a belief system.
Because when you build a company around extraction, you eventually drain the room. When you build around multiplication, you create momentum that keeps giving.
Key takeaways: Create value that spreads without you controlling it. Stop gating, trapping, and squeezing every moment for a return. Trust that value given returns, eventually, somehow. Pay attention to human signals over digital vanity metrics. Build community spaces where value flows between people, not just from you to them.
The moment that changed everything
The turning point for me happened in real time over the last thirty days. Four different humans showed up at my doorstep, and they did not say what I usually hear. They did not lead with “I watched your video” or “I read your article.”
They said ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Claude mentioned me while they were searching and asking questions. That hit me because it confirmed something I have believed since I started creating content back in 2013.
I did not build content because I had a master plan. I built it because I wanted to add value to the world.
And now, in this new season, those “digital metrics” are not the only signals that matter. Human signals are everywhere. And the systems are starting to recognize what real humans doing good work looks like.
That is why I said it plainly in the episode: “There's no secret sauce.”
When you try to protect everything, you shrink your reach. When you share value freely, it multiplies in ways you cannot predict or control.
How they do the work in the real world
Chris framed it perfectly with a list that should make all of us pause.
Someone engages deeply with content, so we gate it.
-
A referral comes in, so we build an incentive program nobody asked for.
-
A customer succeeds, so we turn it into a case study to leverage it.
-
A community starts forming, so we monetize access.
That is extraction dressed up as strategy.
Multiplication looks different.
-
It looks like creating offerings that help everyone win, not just you.
-
It looks like building spaces where customers help each other, not just where they get managed by you.
-
It looks like focusing on expanding the total value created, not capturing more of a fixed pie.
-
It looks like measuring success by how widely value flows, not how efficiently you can extract and convert it.
And yes, this requires trust.
Chris said it well: trust that value given returns, eventually, somehow.
Not because you forced it. Because you enabled it.
This is where I also get practical and a little uncomfortable, because we need to say the quiet part out loud.
If your first move is to trap people in a funnel the moment they show interest, you are not leading with value. If you only give when you can measure payback, you do not believe in giving. You believe in control.
A lot of “best practices” in marketing and sales are just industrial age habits. They treat humans like units and treat trust like line items.
- That is not the future. That is the past holding on.
The lesson they want you to carry forward
Chris gave the challenge for the week, and I want to make it even simpler.
Give something valuable away with zero extraction intent.
-
Not a lead magnet.
-
Not a nurture device.
-
Not a clever play.
Just value.
And I want to stretch it beyond business for a second, because you do not stop being a human when your calendar says you are off.
-
Add value to your family.
-
Add value to your partner.
-
Add value to your community.
Because this mindset is not a marketing tactic. It is a way of living.
Here is the moment that makes it stick. Imagine your partner says, “Can you take out the trash?” And you reply, “Yes, but could you please fill out this form first?”
That is ridiculous at home. It is just as ridiculous in business.
If you want a resource that reflects this whole conversation, here is what I shared in the episode. Visit spiritualsideofleadership.com/superhuman-framework to explore the Superhuman Framework. There is no gate. It is there to help leaders and owners feel less overwhelmed, less stressed, and clearer about who they are becoming. And if you have questions, start a real conversation.
That is the whole point.
Watch and listen using the embedded media near the top, then choose one way you will help value flow this week without trying to control what comes back.
Frequently asked questions
What does “multiplying value” actually mean?
It means you design your work so it spreads through people and the community, not just through your funnel. Value grows when it is shared.
Why does “extraction” feel so normal in marketing and sales?
Because a lot of systems were built in an industrial age mindset that treats humans like units and success like control.
What is one easy way to start practicing this today?
Give something helpful away with no conversion attached. Then pay attention to how it changes your energy and how people respond.
