TED Talk: Simon Sinek - How Great Leaders Inspire Action

After reading a hilarious and somewhat accurate critique of TED Talks via Stuff White People Like (thanks P!), I had trouble listening to this talk, emailed to me by someone at Miami Ad School, without wanting to roll my eyes. And then a minute in, I realized I had already heard the talk via podcast on my iPhone. The memories of me walking through the beautiful, tree lined streets of the Manhattan's East 60's in late Spring, while on the way to the Apple store came flooding back. Yes, the irony is not lost on me.Essentially, he's describing the type of emotional connection that brands and leaders want to create with their consumers. As account planners, it's our job to find the insight that leads to that connection. About 30 years ago, Bill Bernbach had a similar insight:

“At the heart of an effective creative philosophy is the belief that nothing is so powerful as an insight into human nature, what compulsions drive a man, what instincts dominate his action, even though his language so often camouflages what really motivates him. For if you know these things about (a) man you can touch him at the core of his being."

http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf

What brands do you connect with? Why?