Craft messages that are understood, remembered, and drive action using the SUCCESs checklist (Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credible, Emotional, Stories).
books-made-to-stick/SKILL.md
---
name: made-to-stick
description: 'Craft messages that are understood, remembered, and drive action using the SUCCESs checklist (Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credible, Emotional, Stories). Use when the user mentions "make it memorable", "no one remembers our pitch", "tagline", "value proposition", "why the message isnt landing", "curse of knowledge", or "concrete language". Also trigger when writing a pitch deck, simplifying a complex product explanation, or making a presentation more compelling. Covers the six SUCCESs traits and the curse of knowledge. For narrative brand frameworks, see storybrand-messaging. For viral sharing, see contagious.'
license: MIT
metadata:
author: wondelai
version: "1.4.0"
---
# Made to Stick Framework
A framework for crafting ideas and messages that are understood, remembered, and drive lasting action. Based on decades of research into why some ideas survive and others die.
## Core Principle
**The Curse of Knowledge is the single greatest barrier to effective communication.** Once we know something, we can't imagine not knowing it—which makes us bad at explaining our ideas to others. Sticky ideas aren't born, they're made: the SUCCESs framework provides six principles that make any idea more memorable and impactful.
## Scoring
**Goal: 10/10.** Score any messaging (copy, presentations, campaigns, onboarding) by running the [Quick Diagnostic](#quick-diagnostic): rate each of the six traits 1-10, then map the 6-60 total to a band (50-60 = 9-10, extremely sticky; 35-49 = 7-8, strong; 20-34 = 4-6, forgettable; below 20 = ≤3, won't stick). Always state the current score, which traits scored lowest, and the specific fix from the diagnostic's Fix column.
## The SUCCESs Framework
**S**imple · **U**nexpected · **C**oncrete · **C**redible · **E**motional · **S**tories
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