Why Creators With Purpose Fail (How To Think Like Virgil Abloh)
Purpose.
The answer to all your problems.
At least that’s what we’re told.
Without it you’re meaningless.
With it you’ll never fail.
As a creator, you see it everywhere.
Endless new accounts.
Same promise, same noise.
Another ‘hook formula.’
Another ‘30-day plan.’
Another ‘boost engagement’ hack.
New face, same fix.
Where do you end up?
Forgotten.
Lost in the scroll.
Why try at all?
It’s been done.
Standing out?
Knowing your purpose?
Why you matter?
It all feels impossible.
And, worse, pointless.
So you’re left endlessly searching for answers.
But what if the answer isn’t an answer—but a question?
Here’s the truth.
Answers are overrated.
Doom scrolling for the next solution to our problems has never been easier.
Answers are everywhere.
But you’ll always get the wrong answers—
When you ask the wrong question.
I wasted years of my life chasing my goals through everyone else’s lens.
Endlessly spinning my wheels doing things because they were the “answer”.
Never stopping to think that I might be asking the wrong questions.
That’s when I watched some lectures by Virgil Abloh.
Virgil once said:
“An output for me has to have a reason to exist… Every output, does it need to exist? It’s okay to say no in that context.”
This one insight changed my whole life.
Virgil taught me to think about life as a design problem.
Not ‘what’s the answer?’
But ‘why should this exist at all?’
Do I need this part in the video?
Is this thought helping me become who I want to be?
Do I actually like this, or do I like it because other people do?
Why do anything at all?
I began to question all my actions.
Why was I making music?
Why was I making content?
As a creative it’s so easy to feel like we have to have endless output.
If we’re not posting daily we’re forgotten.
But there’s something worse than being forgotten.
Being known for something you don’t even believe in.
Why do anything at all?
Everything serves a purpose.
And all actions have a result.
When I applied this lens to my creative work, everything became clear.
My choices became my own.
My voice became unique.
My actions aligned with my goals.
Not everyone else’s.
Most people fail because their actions aren’t aligned to their desired results.
The worst part is they have no clue.
If you can’t answer why your content or brand should exist—
It shouldn’t.
If you don’t know why you’re doing something—
You should stop.
Because it’s most likely because someone else told you you should do it.
The best brands know why they exist.
They know what they make and who they help.
Their goal isn’t to ‘get views’.
It’s to bring value to their audience.
Because in the long term that’s what brings in the right views.
And builds the right audience.
When you design something.
The first thing you start with is nothing and a goal.
You have a goal and you have to turn nothing into something that achieves the goal.
So the first thing you need to decide is what’s my goal?
Why am I making this thing?
And when it comes to your brand, content and life you should be doing the same.
Don’t ask: ‘How do I gain more followers?’
Ask: ‘Why should anyone follow me at all?’
Don’t ask: ‘What should I post today?’
Ask: ‘Does this video even need to exist?’
Don’t ask: ‘How many views did it get?’
Ask: ‘Did the video give the value it was meant to give?’
Brand = Identity
A brand is your public identity.
Good brands know who they are and show up that way consistently.
The best brands design their output to achieve their goals.
You wouldn’t buy from Nike if they sold shoes one week and hotdogs the next.
Good brands build trust through consistency.
It’s not about views it’s about letting your audience know—
This is who I am, this is how I can help, this is why you should care.
Then you show up that way consistently over a long period of time.
That’s how you build trust and create something meaningful that improves peoples lives.
Good branding is knowing who you are.
Here’s how you do it:
The Existence Framework
This is a creative framework that can be applied to your brand, content or anything else when it come to creation and creativity.
1. Define
Why does this exist?
What problem does it solve by existing?
Who is it for?
You need to define your goals and your purpose.
This will give you direction.
Nothing exists in a vacuum, everything has a place, value and purpose in the right context.
Good brands are clearly defined and know who they are, what they do and who it serves.
So where is your place and who are you here to help.
2. Distill
Once you define your reason to exist you give it structure.
This is where your brand identity takes shape.
You need to determine your 4V Brand Structure:
Values: What’s important to you and what you want to express and share with the world
Voice: How you’re going to show up in your content and in person. Energy, tone, style of communication
Visuals: The visual representation of your values and voice, how your content looks aesthetically.
Vehicles: Your products and services (paid and free). How you deliver value to your audience.
3. Design
Now you take your 4V Brand Structure and use it as a guide to design your world.
This is how you’ll create your content, products and culture.
Good brands create cohesive environments through their message, content, communication, products.
It all tells the same story and lives in the same world.
Everything you do says something and you want it all to have the same voice.
4. Deliver
Put it out.
Show up.
Consistently.
You need to be delivering value and putting yourself out there over and over again.
Branding is about building trust.
You build trust through consistency.
Consistency in presence but also in how you show up.
Ship, iterate, repeat.
Put the thing out, get feedback, revise, improve and do it again.
You get better through doing it.
Your audience trusts you when they know they can rely on you to show up when you say you will, and be who you say you are.
The Takeaway.
Purpose isn’t the answer.
Purpose is the question.
If you ask better questions you’ll get better answers.
Don’t accept things at face value.
Try it and question it.
Question everything and determine if it’s right and true for you.
If it isn’t it’s useless and it’ll hurt you in the long run.
Think for yourself.
Your voice and perspective are your most valuable assets.
That’s where your value is.
DM me if you want help asking better questions and finding the best answers for you.
COMMUNITY.
CONNECTION.
‘Til next time.
- Edamame Dufflebag