Jim Rohn used to talk about the “seed, sunshine, and soil” as a metaphor for personal improvement. No one can guarantee that a plant will grow. All we can do is create the conditions under which plants usually thrive, and let nature take its course.

The same is true for building brands in the digital age:

Anyone who guarantees business results is either a quack or a charlatan. The market, economics, and consumer behavior are far too erratic to work out with any kind of mathematical certainty.

However, Tony Robbins always used to say “success leaves clues.”

Meaning, you know how your local used car dealership does it:

• An intern creates the email blasts

• Jim’s cousin does the social media

• The website is a Webflow template (or AI generated)

• …and so on.

But you also know how unicorns do it: They ruthlessly focus on things that don’t seem to matter in the short term. Things like beautiful logos, world-class websites, apps that are better than what everyone else is doing, and stunning 3D graphics.

Now clearly, having a beautiful brand does not guarantee unicorn status—nothing does.

But it’s also not an accident that breakthrough companies all tend to focus on seemingly unimportant, pretty-looking frivolities that don’t appear to be connected to the bottom line at first glance.

These are the seed, soil, and sunshine today.

These are the conditions under which brands that deserve to succeed will thrive, and they are as important as any spreadsheet or chart.