Cryptocurrency businesses and professional development groups promise prosperity and self-improvement, using an empowering narrative of wealth, skills mastery, and personal transformation. This motivational language is used to attract individuals looking to invest, grow their career, or change their lives.
Researcher Derek Beres sees this “selling dreams” approach as a common trait in these groups, using testimonials of transformation and growth. While persuasive, Beres warns these tactics can play on people’s desire for improvement and prosperity. Careful scrutiny of these claims is therefore imperative.
Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) companies like Amway, Tupperware, and LulaRoe entice newcomers with offers of empowerment and entrepreneurial independence. However, this resembles cult recruitment strategies. The commitment required far transcends the ideal of becoming one’s own boss. Deceptive marketing strategies are unfortunately commonplace, warranting caution from people seeking financial independence.
Steve Eichel, psychologist, differentiates between commercial companies and cults by their motive. While businesses are driven by profit, cults are centered on loyalty to an ideology or individual, aiming for total submission from followers. As business power increases, the line between corporate leadership and extreme loyalty can blur, leading to cult-like behavior.
Beres states that typical cult language is becoming more common in the business environment, highlighting the near-deification of tech pioneers. Admiration for a leader can give way to cult-like devotion, which Eichel characterizes as unequivocally harmful.
Despite controversies, cryptocurrency believers demonstrate a cult-like loyalty, maintaining faith even when faced with financial losses. Their firm belief in the future of digital currencies remains unchanged, seeming to mirror devout worship.
Beres emphasizes the importance of distinguishing between encouraging positivity and misleading individuals into potentially harmful situations, increasingly prevalent in today’s corporate world. Ethical communication is crucial, avoiding manipulative rhetoric and instead fostering a culture of openness and truth. He believes respect for transparency and authenticity in communication should always be a priority.
