How Earl Nightingale’s perspective shift can transform your approach to content and campaigns

Imagine standing in front of a problem. It’s in your hands. It’s complex, important, probably a little tangled. And because you’re holding it, you can’t really see it.

That’s the image Earl Nightingale painted in one of his legendary audio lessons on creativity. He talked about the power of setting the problem down, literally or mentally, and walking around it.

Like a sculptor evaluating their work, angle by angle. When you stop carrying your challenges and start observing them, new solutions emerge.

This isn’t just a nice metaphor.

It’s a method.

And if you’re in marketing, it might be one of the most powerful tools you’re not using.

The Marketing Trap: One View, One Output

Most marketers are locked into a default view of their content:

• A blog post is a blog post.
• A webinar is a one-time event.
• A deck is something you present, not repurpose.

We get too close to our work. We build content, push it out, move to the next thing. All while holding our challenges tightly under pressure, in execution mode.

No space to think differently.

We ask, “What should I create next?” when the better question might be, “What else could this become?”

Walk Around It: A Creative Mindset Shift

Here’s how Nightingale’s concept applies to your campaigns and content marketing work:

Set the content (or problem) down. Literally or mentally.

You want to envision it in 3 dimensions as if it were a physical object.

Then walk around and inspect it. Ask questions like:

• How would your sales team look at this piece?
• What would a skeptical prospect or customer say?
• Could this support an earlier stage in the buyer’s journey?
• What would it look like in 30 seconds instead of 30 minutes?

Each angle reveals a different version of value.

It’s not about stretching your work thin—it’s about discovering depth you didn’t realize was there.

Repurpose = Strategic Observation

In P/Repurpose, I talk about repurposing not as content recycling, but as creative strategy. It’s not just turning a webinar into a video clip. It’s turning a moment into a message, a question into a campaign, a single effort into momentum.

That’s only possible when you walk around your content with intention.

Here are a few frameworks from the book that help:

• Escape From / Arrive To: Revisit the transformation behind your content. What pain are you helping someone escape from? What success are they arriving to? That shift unlocks new content paths.
• Role Reversal: Imagine someone else using your content. What would sales do with it? What would a new customer want from it? What would your past self miss?

These aren’t gimmicks.

They’re prompts for walking around the work. And they help you extract 3x the ROI from what you already have. Repurpose it.

Try This: The Walk-Around Practice

Want to apply this today? Here’s a 5-minute exercise:

1. Pick one content asset—a blog, a guide, a slide deck.
2. Write down its original goal and format.
3. Ask questions from 3+ unique angles:
   • What would an overwhelmed buyer need from this?
   • Could this be made timeless instead of topical?
   • What if I stripped it down to one big idea?
   • How could I package this for someone who hates reading?
4. List 3 new ways this could show up in your funnel or feed.

You’re not making more content. You’re thinking is even more dimensional.

New Angles, Better Outcomes

Nightingale’s lesson is more relevant than ever. In a world drowning in content, the difference between noise and impact isn’t always what you make. It’s how you look at it.

So next time you’re staring down a marketing challenge or wondering what to do with a high-effort piece of content…

Don’t push harder.

Set it down.

Walk around it.

And then—repurpose it like a strategist.