What Actually Happened Yesterday (And Why This Matters More Than You Think)
Published on January 28, 2026
Published on Wealthy Affiliate — a platform for building real online businesses with modern training and AI.
Yesterday I dropped a simple “Brain Games” post. https://my.wealthyaffiliate.com/jdenesovych/blog/you-need-to-try-this-follow-the-instructions-exactly
Here’s what happened.
First — Participation Reality Check
Not everyone finished, and not everyone even started.
One person openly said they skimmed the post, read everything too fast, and “messed up the instructions.”
That alone tells you something important.
Most people don’t fail funnels because they’re “not smart enough", but they fail because they don’t slow down long enough to follow basic steps.
That showed up immediately. That's Ok, they are forgiven :).
Image Test Results (Visual Behavior)
Fire Scan Test
Every participant who responded correctly typed:
STILL
That means the visual anchor worked.
People noticed the flame first and followed the instruction instead of describing the image.
Marketing takeaway:
Visual triggers beat emotional storytelling when it comes to fast action.
Badges, icons, arrows, contrast colors — they matter more than paragraphs of copy.
Color Priority Test
Dominant responses:
ORANGE
GOLD
Almost nobody picked cooler background tones.
This tells you something simple:
People don’t “see everything.” They see what visually dominates first.
Marketing takeaway:
If your CTA button blends into your page, it’s invisible.
Contrast wins attention.
Direction Test
LEFT vs RIGHT responses were nearly split.
Same image. Different perception.
Marketing takeaway:
Your audience does not interpret visuals the same way.
Assumptions kill conversions.
Number Behavior Patterns
Random 1–10 Test
Results clustered around:
2
5
7
8
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No one picked 1 or 10.
Humans avoid extremes when told to “be random.”
Marketing takeaway:
This is why middle pricing tiers convert best.
People psychologically avoid edge choices.
Three-Digit Constraint Test
Patterns that showed up:
343
327
323
747
123
Notice anything?
Repeating digits.
Palindromes.
Structured symmetry.
Even when told to be random, people seek patterns.
Marketing takeaway:
Funnels work because they reduce chaos into structure.
People prefer guided decision paths.
Card Test Results (This Was Fun)
Card choices included:
Queen of Hearts
King of Hearts
Ace of Hearts
Ace of Diamonds
Jack of Spades
Notice what’s missing?
Almost nobody picked low number cards.
Most gravitated toward face cards and emotionally “safe” suits.
Marketing takeaway:
“Random” doesn’t exist in marketing.
People lean toward familiarity and emotional comfort.
That’s branding in a nutshell.
Something Else Showed Up (Quietly)
There was a very clear behavior difference between:
People who followed instructions exactly
and
People who explained, summarized, or reformatted their answers
Some replies came in clean:
STILL
5
SQUARE
ORANGE
Others came in as long formatted lists with commas and commentary.
I’m not calling anyone out — but the pattern is obvious.
Marketing takeaway:
If someone can’t follow a one-step instruction, they won’t follow funnels, onboarding flows, or calls to action.
Traffic means nothing if attention quality is low.
The Real Lesson Here
This wasn’t about “mind tricks.”
It was about behavior.
Most people:
Skim
Assume
React emotionally
Miss instructions
Default to patterns
If you understand that, your marketing improves immediately.
Not because you manipulate people.
But because you design systems that match how humans actually behave.
Your Challenge (If You’re Serious About Growing)
Run ONE of these tests on your own platform this week.
Could be:
A color trigger
A number choice
A simple instruction test
A card visualization
A “comment only one word” post
Then observe:
Who follows instructions
Who ignores them
Who overthinks
Who engages
That data is worth more than any traffic stat.
Final Thought
Most people chase algorithms.
The smarter move is understanding behavior.
Yesterday proved something simple:
People don’t behave randomly online.
They behave predictably.
Once you see that, building online income becomes a lot less mysterious.
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