The Three M's
Differentiate familiar ideas through your message, messenger, and medium.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~days to results
- Steps
- 4
- Confidence
- 98%
The Three M's model separates content differentiation into message, messenger, and medium. First, clarify the idea the audience needs to hear, accepting that its underlying subject may not be new. Next, recognize that the messenger's experiences, language, personality, and relationship with the audience alter how that idea is understood. Finally, select the medium—such as writing, video, audio, or a professional network—that best fits both the communicator and the intended audience. The model shifts the creator's standard from inventing an unprecedented topic to producing a distinctive combination of idea, voice, and delivery format. That combination provides a practical route through creative paralysis in crowded markets.
Origin
Extracted from The Jasmine Star Show, where Jasmine Star introduced the model while addressing the belief that everything worth creating has already been done.
Core principles
- 01Originality can come from delivery rather than subject matter.
- 02Your perspective changes how an established message is received.
- 03Audiences connect differently with different messengers.
- 04The chosen medium should amplify your natural communication strengths.
How to run it
- 1
Clarify the Message
State the central idea you want the audience to understand or act upon. Do not discard it merely because someone else has expressed a similar idea.
Pro tip Express the message in one clear sentence before creating the content.
Watch out Do not mistake a familiar topic for a message that has no value.
- 2
Define the Messenger
Identify how your experiences, language, personality, and audience relationship shape the message. Use those qualities rather than imitating another creator's delivery.
Pro tip Include a perspective or example that only you would naturally use.
Watch out Changing a few words while copying another creator's voice does not create meaningful differentiation.
- 3
Select the Medium
Choose the format and channel that suit your communication strengths and the audience's habits. The same message can produce a different experience as a podcast, video, article, or social post.
Pro tip Begin with the format in which you communicate most naturally.
Watch out Do not select a medium solely because it is currently fashionable.
- 4
Combine and Publish
Create the work using the chosen message, your authentic delivery, and the selected medium. Publish without waiting for a completely unprecedented idea.
Pro tip Evaluate the complete combination rather than judging originality by topic alone.
Watch out Endless comparison with existing content can become an excuse not to publish.
In the wild
A first-time manager wants to discuss giving feedback, despite thousands of existing articles on the subject. She frames the message around reducing employee anxiety, draws on mistakes from her own first management role, and presents the lesson through short role-play videos rather than a conventional article.
→ The familiar subject becomes useful and recognizable through a distinctive perspective and delivery format.
One creator explains a business principle through a detailed LinkedIn post, while another communicates the same principle conversationally through a podcast. Their personalities and chosen media attract different audience members even though the underlying idea overlaps.
→ Both creators can serve audiences without needing exclusive ownership of the topic.
Common mistakes
Demanding a Completely Original Topic
Rejecting every familiar subject creates unnecessary paralysis. The framework locates differentiation in the combination of idea, communicator, and format.
Imitating the Messenger
Copying another person's tone weakens the element that should make the content distinctive. The creator's own experiences and delivery must remain visible.
Ignoring Format Fit
A creator may force an idea into a fashionable medium that does not suit their strengths or audience. This can make a sound message less effective.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for creators, educators, founders, and marketers working in crowded content categories.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal for situations requiring genuinely novel research, proprietary evidence, or patentable innovation.
From the transcript
“Number one, the message.”
“Then there's the messenger.”
“And the third M is the medium M one message M to messenger in three medium.”
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