Quick question: Why didn’t your last few posts do well? It’s probably not your hook, your editing, or even your posting time.

The real issue is that there was nothing to create tension. No enemy, no conflict, and no reason for anyone to care. Just information floating around with nothing to grab attention.

Think about your favourite movie, show, or story. There’s always a villain, whether it’s a person, a bad habit, or a broken system, trying to ruin someone’s day. Without that, all you have is a Wikipedia page. Still, most creators write content as if they’re afraid to take a stand. “5 tips for a better morning routine.” It’s safe, soft, and easy to forget.

You’ve seen another version of this too: a copy that says something like, “We don’t do one-size-fits-all, we’ll build a strategy just for you.” It sounds nice, but it means nothing. There’s no villain, no stakes, and it disappears from your mind in seconds. That’s the villain vacuum at work, making people tune out.

How Liquid Death turned In 2019, a group started selling water in tall cans with a skull on the label. Their tagline was “murder your thirst.” It sounded like the dumbest pitch ever for what’s usually the most boring product. The most boring product on the planet.

Here’s the smart part. They didn’t compete directly with other water brands. Instead, they challenged a whole vibe: the soft, apologetic, wellness language that every health brand seemed to use. Liquid Death called it out, and they did it loudly.

They made Super Bowl-style ads showing kids “shotgunning” water cans like beer. They created a fake “exclusive country club” video to mock loyalty programs. Every post had the same goal: highlight how boring the industry was, make fun of it, and invite the audience to join the joke.

Five years later, the company was valued at $1.4 billion, all from a joke about water. They succeeded because they found a villain that everyone found annoying and let people laugh about it together.

Why this actually works (not just a feeling, but real science)

Researchers studied millions of posts and found something surprising: every extra negative but moral word in a post, the kind that says “this is wrong,” was linked to 24% more shares. Our brains are wired to notice injustice before facts. That’s just how we are.

There’s one catch. Things can get ugly if your “villain” is a real person or group, which can lead to pile-ons and internet mobs. The safer approach is to target an idea, a habit, or a system. You get the same effect without the drama.

Try this: The E.N.E.M.Y. Code

Here are five steps to use before you write. E stands for Establish the enemy. It’s not a competitor, but a mindset, like “hustle culture” or “perfectionism disguised as quality control.”s quality control.”

N stands for Name it. Give it a catchy word people can remember. Liquid Death didn’t say “outdated beverage marketing conventions.” They just said, “boring.” Simple.

E stands for Escalate the stakes. What does your reader lose if this enemy wins? Be specific. Vague fears don’t work, but specific ones do.

M stands for Make your audience the hero. Your content or product is just the tool. They are the ones using it.

Y Y stands for Yield the fix. Give your audience the exact step that beats the enemy. If you skip this, you just leave people feeling anxious. Use this checklist before you publish your post

• Is there a real enemy in this piece, or is it just information?
• Is the enemy an idea or a habit, and not a real one? Could a stranger sum up your “enemy” in one sentence?k Did you explain what your audience loses if they keep letting this enemy win? keep losing to it?
• Will your audience leave with a tool to fight back, or just agree with you?

One last thing

People don’t share listicles with their friends. They share the feeling of finally having a name for something that’s been quietly bothering them. Find that thing before you look for your next hook. The hook was never the hard part.

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