Idea Ripper // ArchiveCards: 1555 [Live] | Updated: 2026-10-14
Card #c1250IR // #c1250Synthesis

"The idea is that, if someone’s at one rung of the ladder, your goal is to move them up to the next one."

— In our words · Source: This Is the Plan (Ben Wikler)

[Use when]

You want deep commitment from someone who has barely engaged yet.

[Why it matters]

Organizers call it the ladder of engagement. Asking a first-time voter to staff a hotline fails. Asking them for the next small step works, and each step makes the one after it easier.

Filed under situations:When you need a yes and they’re not there yetWhen the team is looking to you to lead

More from This Is the Plan

#c1233"Here’s the operating principle: All other things being equal, you’ll be most persuasive to the people with whom you have the closest…You want to change minds and are about to start with the widest, least personal channel available. #c1234"Keep a CONSTANT WATCH on the DOUBTFUL VOTERS, and from time to time have them TALKED TO by those IN WHOM THEY HAVE THE MOST CONFIDENCE."You need to win over a wavering group and are deciding who should deliver the message. #c1235"Whenever a new way to reach someone unsolicitedly and cheaply pops into existence—mail, texts, Facebook messages—it has a brief twinkling…Your team is excited about a new cheap outreach channel because early numbers look great.

Same situation, different book

#c1335Do something, or be something?You're starting a new role and deciding what kind of reputation to build.From Courage Can Save Us #c1317How many more beakers for five dollars?You need a team to care about costs that seem far removed from the real work.From Digital Impact #c1275Lead from a circle, not a mountainYou're trying to win people over by announcing things at them.From The Oxford Handbook of Modern Diplomacy #c1269Constituents need to know whyYou're closing a deal at the top that the wider team will have to carry out.From The Oxford Handbook of Modern Diplomacy