What’s just true enough not to be a lie? 

Barnum was the greatest showman because he knew how to create a bold strategy to conjure up a storm of interest in his work.

Media referred to his shows as humbugs, which weren’t lies, but events put on to arouse public curiosity.

According to his biographer, he put on glittering appearances and novel expedients, by which to suddenly arrest public attention, and attract the public eye and ear. Barnum knew people would be entertained and that they would get their money’s worth, either by enjoying the state of doubt in which one of his exhibits placed.

As he said in the movie about his life, it doesn’t matter where the smiles come from if the joy is real.

It’s no wonder his museum turned into the premier tourist attraction in the city.

Looking back, there’s unquestionably something powerful to his approach to business. And in fact, modern entrepreneurs and startup founders are not that different from this circus of a man. They, too, have taken on a career where building a profitable company is basically impossible, and almost everything is working against them.

Of course they’re going to utilize the power of humbuggery. People will be in whatever business they need to be in to get the job done. That’s where leverage comes from.

Now, that doesn’t make it morally acceptable to commit fraud, lie to customers and deceive board members. But next time you leap to the judgment that every company founder is a pathological liar, put yourself in their shoes.

Are they really lying, or are they just being necessarily optimistic about succeeding against nearly impossible odds?

Because if they don’t have confidence to believe in their company when the rest of the world is telling them no, they lose. If they don’t have the courage to follow their inner guide even if they look stupid and risk alienating those who don’t understand, they lose. If they don’t work tirelessly to delude themselves into thinking their work is significant, they lose.

Hell, maybe entrepreneurs don’t even know they’re lying. When you have to show investors how fast your new company can grow, embellishment is standard practice.

As my entrepreneur friend once joked, it’s one thing to share how many users we’ve signed, it’s another thing to share how many users we’ve gotten handshake agreements with.

Minor ethical lapses like these aren’t part of some sociopathic plan to rule the world.

Seuss, another one of my entrepreneurial inspirations, had a fondness for heightening and exaggerating. He famously used the term, a minnow forever turned into a whale.

It was all part of the fun.

Point being, in a world where we may honor and celebrate honesty, but we don’t actually require it, why not engage in a little humbuggery?

You have to be crazy to handle the truth. 

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
What if all levels of reality were valid?