She Made $3M in One Week With 7 Words | Ep 296 with Aurora Winter Founder of Same Page Publishing

Summary

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Founder’s Story Ep 296: She Made $3M in One Week With 7 Words

Guest: Aurora Winter, Founder of Same Page Publishing

Host: IBH Media

Date: January 5, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this episode, host IBH Media sits down with Aurora Winter, founder of Same Page Publishing, to explore the transformative power of messaging and storytelling in entrepreneurship. Aurora recounts her remarkable $3M-in-a-week story, delves into the neuroscience behind messaging that sticks, and offers concrete writing, branding, and publishing advice. The conversation is fast-paced, hands-on, and packed with relatable stories and actionable tips for founders and anyone looking to amplify their impact through words.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

The $3 Million, 7-Word Message

• Aurora’s Core Story:
  Aurora describes a pivotal business moment when her company struggled to sell a high-value product—until she distilled their offer into “five weeks of sun, fun, and tax shelter,” a seven-word phrase that changed everything.
  • “When I came up with seven words that totally captured the idea…that made $3 million in one week.” (01:12, Aurora)
  • The phrase worked as a “pattern interrupt,” grabbing attention through novelty and curiosity and appealing to the “croc brain.”
  • This led to more than sales: profits doubled and her company became the largest yacht dealer in Western Canada.

The Neuroscience of Messaging

• How the Brain Processes Messages:
  • The myth of the 8-second attention span is debunked; people are just more efficient at filtering.
  • Messaging needs to move sequentially through three brain layers:
    1. Croc Brain (Reptilian): Grabs attention with novelty, urgency, pleasure, or risk.
    2. Midbrain (Social): Looks for authority, social proof, community.
    3. Cerebral Cortex (Analytical): Handles logic and data, but this is where too many messages start and fail.
  • “Most people start with the cerebral cortex, which is not the place to start.” (03:53, Aurora)
  • “We buy with emotion, we decide emotionally, and then we rationalize with the numbers.” (04:56, Aurora)

Storytelling Structures for Books and Branding

• From Hooks to Hero’s Journey:
  • Every chapter, page, video, or speech should start with a hook.
  • Use the Hero’s Journey as a personal or founder brand-building arc.
  • Use “myth busts”—pointing out popular but false beliefs—to “pattern interrupt.”
    • Example: “People think they need a ghostwriter, but the fact is…they actually need to be launched as an author, as a thought leader.” (06:35, Aurora)
  • “Every bit of information, like every chapter, should start with a hook.” (05:41, Aurora)

Overcoming Internal Barriers and Imposter Syndrome

• Reframing Fame and Purpose:
  • Rather than fixating on self (and risking imposter syndrome), shift focus to service and the audience.
  • “When we have the spotlight focused on ourselves…that’s when depression or uncertainty or imposter syndrome creeps in. When we can shift the spotlight of attention onto the people that we want to serve…you can communicate so much more effectively." (08:35, Aurora)
  • Fame in your industry, not general fame, is enough to create lasting impact.

When a Story Doesn’t Land: Listening and Reflection

• Aurora admits her storytelling sometimes fails when she assumes too much or rushes.
  • Biggest fix: “Have them describe in their own words what they think their hell is…Then what would heaven look like?...And then you feed back what the hell is, ‘you’re currently having these challenges,’…’you’d really like these challenges to be solved.’” (10:04, Aurora)
  • Mirroring and reflecting back can crystallize insights for potential clients.

Personal Branding and Signature Elements

• “If it gives you joy, you’re onto a correct kind of branding. But if you’re forcing it, then probably not. So if it’s not your thing to wear…a glittery glove like Michael Jackson, don’t go there.” (12:24, Aurora)
• Reiterates the importance of memorable names, unique elements, and repetition in branding.
• Shares the story of a client whose revised, clearer pitch after training resulted in immediate investment.

The Importance of Messaging Practice

• Cites Steve Jobs practicing Apple keynotes for weeks: “If you think you’re too busy to practice your message, you could be wrong. In fact, I think it’s the highest payoff activity that you can do.” (13:41, Aurora)

Why a Book Still Matters in 2026

• Aurora sees books as legacy assets that open doors to speaking, media, and authority—paralleling MDs or MBAs in credibility.
  • “A book is a legacy piece. You kind of really only need one amazing book. Like James Clear has done just fine with just Atomic Habits.” (16:46, Aurora)
• Recommends paying attention to YouTube as the #2 search engine and recent leaps in video capability (mentions OpenAI’s Sora 2 and the democratization of animation/video creation).
• “I think there’s an opportunity right here, right now to really boost your brand. And I think if you miss this window of opportunity in 2026, maybe part of 2027, you’re going to regret it.” (17:13, Aurora)
• Encourages producing content while the “playing field” is still relatively open.

The Leverage of a Single Breakthrough

• “You can be one video away, one book away, one podcast appearance away from 10x-ing or more your business and your income and your influence.” (19:36, Aurora)
• Leverages screenwriting background to create even short videos with the structure of a feature film for maximum impact.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Pattern Interrupt:
  “Five weeks of sun, fun, and tax shelter.” (01:20, Aurora)
  —The 7 words that made $3M in a week.

• On Messaging and the Brain:
  “We buy with emotion, we decide emotionally, and then we rationalize with the numbers.” (04:56, Aurora)

• On Overthinking Fame:
  “When we can shift the spotlight of attention onto the people that we want to serve…you can communicate so much more effectively.” (08:35, Aurora)

• On Reflecting Clients’ Needs:
  “A good way to check in…is have them describe in their own words what they think their hell is…Then what would heaven look like?” (10:04, Aurora)

• On Practicing Your Message:
  “Steve Jobs spent three weeks practicing what to say, where to stand, where to pause.” (13:30, Aurora)

• On Books as Legacy Assets:
  “A book is a legacy piece…opens doors that you didn’t even know were closed to you.” (16:56, Aurora)

• On Seizing the Moment:
  “There’s an opportunity right here, right now to really boost your brand. And…I think if you miss this window of opportunity in 2026, maybe part of 2027, you’re going to regret it.” (17:13, Aurora)

• On the Power of One Breakthrough:
  “You can be one video away, one book away, one podcast appearance away from 10x-ing or more your business and your income and your influence.” (19:36, Aurora)

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Important Timestamps

• 00:55 – Aurora’s $3M yacht-selling story and the power of 7 words
• 02:48 – Neuroscience behind messaging: croc brain to cortex
• 05:41 – Story structures—book chapters, hooks, myth busting
• 08:27 – Addressing imposter syndrome and reframing fame
• 10:04 – What to do when your story doesn’t land: “hell vs. heaven”
• 12:16 – Personal branding, signature elements, authenticity
• 13:41 – Steve Jobs and the importance of practicing your message
• 16:00–17:50 – Why write a book? Books, YouTube, and legacy
• 19:36 – One key asset can be the multiplier for your career or business
• 20:39 – Aurora’s resources (websites, free ebook, calls to action)

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Takeaways for Listeners

• Make your message simple, novel, and sticky—aim for emotional resonance before details.
• Structure every communication like a story—from a book chapter to a two-minute video.
• Practice and refine your message as seriously as your product.
• Leverage books and video as legacy-brand assets—and do it now while the opportunity window is open.
• Be authentic, distinctive, and move the spotlight onto your audience to build real influence.

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Resources Mentioned

• Free ebook: TurnWordsIntoWealth.com
• Aurora’s publishing/branding: samepagepublishing.com
• Book a call: Bookcall Biz

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Aurora Winter’s episode is an actionable masterclass for founders, creators, and anyone who wants their message to cut through in 2026 and beyond.

Transcript

[A]

This is the story of the 1. As the purchasing manager at a manufacturing plant, she knows the only thing more important than having the right safety gear is having it there when you need it. That's why she partners with Grainger for auto reordering, so her team members can count on her to have cut resistant gloves on hand and each shift can run safely and efficiently. Call 1-800-GRAINGER, click grainger.com or just stop by Ranger for the ones who get it done. So, Aurora, I'm particularly excited to have you on. That's a hard word to say, by the way, particularly. But I'm excited to have you on because you and I, I think, both agree that stories are imperative to anyone. Telling a good story could be the differentiating factor between people remembering you and not remembering you. What was the moment for you when you realized just how important telling a story is?

[B]

I had an occurrence where I had a million dollar idea for a business and we were trying to sell it and it was just not landing. But I knew it was a million dollar idea. And when I came up with seven words that totally captured the idea that made $3 million in one week. So from going from completely stalled to 3 million in one week was seven words. So that was the moment where I'm like, holy moly. It's not enough to have just a great idea. You also have to have a great message. In that particular case, the seven words were five weeks of sun, fun and tax shelter. And the neuroscience behind that is like, what? Those three things don't go together. Sun, fun, and tax shelter. And that was enough to be a pattern, interrupt and grab people's attention. And we were selling yachts with tax shelter benefits. And what happened is, in addition to the $3 million in a week at a boat show, we also doubled our profit margins from 12% to 24% and we became the largest yacht dealer in Western Canada. Nobody could compete with us. Well, they could have competed with us, but they chose not to because there were barriers to entry because you had to figure out the tax shelter. So every client I've helped, every founder I've helped nail, their message has come to me with zero capital raised. And they've all raised seven or eight figures. And it's about distilling your message to the essence that grabs attention. I call that the movie trailer mindset. Like something quick and then you want to lean into the Netflix series mindset and continue to give them more stories, more information, and engage until they say yes.

[A]

So why does this land with people like, what is the neuroscience behind it?

[B]

The neuroscience behind how the brain works. You know, so many people are out there saying people have short attention spans of 8 seconds less than a goldfish. That's not really accurate. It's more that people have gotten very efficient at distilling whether they want to listen further to your message. So, yes, you have to grab attention in the first couple of seconds, but if you grab attention and if you build trust, people will hang with you for three hours. If you're Joe Rogan, right? So you want to both interrupt, have a pattern interrupt or something really grabby like five weeks of sun, fun, and tax shelter, which appeals to the croc brain. The croc brain's always looking for, is this novel, is this new, is this dangerous, is this interesting, is this something tasty, yummy to mate with or munch on? And. But you don't want to make people shut down with fear. But you also don't want to be just like every other message. And you want to do your message in this order. First, ancient, reptilian brain, crop brain. Secondly, midbrain. So many people miss this step. Midbrain. And the third, cerebral cortex, which is. Most people start with the cerebral cortex, which is not the place to start. So grab attention with, like, what category are we in? Like a book title. Turn words into wealth. It's got a benefit. But the midbrain part is the awards. The brain. Human beings survive for millennia, not because we're faster or stronger or have sharper teeth, but because we live in tribes. So we're hypervigilant. For who else thinks this is cool? Does this messenger have status? One way to get status is to be an authority. And the root of the word authority is author. Congratulations on your new book. That's great. And so you want to hit that second stage. You can do that really quickly by just awards you've won, clients you've worked with, name drop. And then third, go on to the main core of your message. But you want to blend stories with data. And in fact, most people don't realize this, but data triggers the analyst brain, and the analyst brain does not buy, whereas the story brain does. We buy with emotion, we decide emotionally, and then we rationalize with the numbers.

[A]

I learned a lot as you were saying it. I was thinking about messaging that I've been doing. Like, oh, okay, I've been doing this all wrong. I need to tweak the messaging. So would you say that. I imagine when it comes to sales, this could be a major thing. But how does this tie into a book. I, like you said before about the yachts, I could totally understand from a sales perspective, I'm thinking about my copy. By the way, I totally redid my whole website in that first couple of minutes that you were talking. But how do you see this translating into a book? And obviously something that's much longer.

[B]

It applies to every element of communication. And so I invite people to just think about your title of your book, make it really clear what problems you solve, think about the subtitle of your book and test it. But every, every bit of information, like every chapter, should start with a hook. In my books, usually the chapters start with a little quote that grabs attention really quickly. Then there'll be a story and then there'll be a lesson. There'll be some action you can take. So, and even within the chapter each like I, there are so many hidden story structures. Once you learn these structures, I know you're also in media, so you know most of these structures as well. Once you master these structures, which I've explained in the book, turn words into wealth, then you can lay over it almost any story. So the Hero's Journey story structure is super effective. Most people are familiar with that from watching any movie like Star Wars. But each founder should have their own Hero's journey story to share. Like why did they start the company? What was the turning point? Or how have they impacted and transform the lives of the people who use their product or service? So you want to collect all of those stories and really leverage them. But there are shorter things. For example, I can teach really quickly. A myth bust is a great way to do a pattern interrupt that will get that croc brain, you know. So you want to consider what is it that everybody knows that is absolutely wrong? So for example, at Same Page Publishing, which is the company that I founded most recently, I've founded a bunch of companies. I think the myth is people think they need a ghostwriter, but the fact is they don't need a ghostwriter. They actually need to be launched as an author, as a thought leader. So what we do at Same Page Publishing is instead of just getting the manuscript or just getting them book, we book them on podcasts, we do media training, we apply for awards, we get the book launch with reviews, we set up a three month pre launch campaign. So it's interesting. Like you can always do a myth bust, see what people think in your industry and then if it's not right, bust it and that'll quickly grab attention.

[A]

What do you think needs to change Internally, for people, I think I obviously know people that I can tell they really want to be famous. Like, they go on TikTok and they dance and they get a lot of followers and they love the fame part. But I think there's also a lot of people that are hesitant because they don't. They're afraid of, of the, you know, the word fame. Right. Most likely they're not going to become famous, but still the thought of. Of that makes them nervous. What do you think needs to change internally?

[B]

Well, I think we all suffer from imposter syndrome from time to time. And I'm not an expert on fame, I'm not a Kardashian. But what I would offer is that when we have the spotlight focused on ourselves, that's when depression or uncertainty or imposter syndrome creeps in, when we can shift the spotlight of attention onto the people that we want to serve. Like, I know you're up to a mission, right, with your founder story. You're not just saying, hey, I want to be famous, you're saying, hey, I want to change lives. I want to help founders. So when you turn the spotlight onto the lives of your clients, your listeners, or your audience, then you can communicate so much more effectively. And who knows, Fame may or may not happen, but you're far more likely to enjoy the journey.

[A]

I like famous in your industry versus, like, general faith. I'm fascinated by this, by the way. I feel like I want to take your brain and put it into, like, chatgpt and just have a chatgpt that tells me all my stories. Was there a time, though, when your story didn't land that maybe you thought it was going to, but for some reason it didn't, didn't take up the way you wanted it so many times?

[B]

What went wrong there? There's. Firstly, no matter how good your story is, it's not for everyone. So I think we can lean into. I think Jack Canfield was the person who, who said it, but maybe he wasn't the first. You know, some will, some won't. So what? Someone's waiting, right? I really like that. But for me, the times when I have failed to connect and thought that I should have it was because I rushed too much. And I thought, well, it was obvious to the other person why whatever I was up to was going to be like, better than sliced bread. But I didn't slow down enough to check in with them. And here's a quick tip everybody can use right away. So a good way to check in with other people Know what, what the meeting is or if you're dealing with a prospect is have them describe in their own words what they think their hell is. Like, what are their challenges, what are their problems, what are their frustrations, what's driving them crazy? Then what would heaven look like? Like what would it look like if they solved those problems, if they overcame that adversity, if they were a better communicator, if they got, you know, best selling award winning book. Have them describe those two things and then sit with that and just reflect back and say what I'm hearing you say is. And then you feed back what the hell is you're currently having these challenges. And what I'm hearing you say is you'd really like these challenges to be solved. And if they were solved, this would be the impact and the times when I failed to have my message land, I did not do that. And that's a simple thing to do. And I've had so many people, when I do take the time to do that, go, wow, that helped me so much. I just mirrored back what they said, but the penny dropped for them. And then I'm like, well, duh, I guess I definitely want a bestselling award winning book. Can you help me with that?

[A]

Be a penny dropper. I like that. I could remember the times, you're right where I was, it was more selling. It's like, you know, you can sell the value of something or you can sell like what it is and when you sell too much of what it is, it totally doesn't land because who cares about what it is? It's like how it's going to impact me. I've made that mistake many times. Aurora, I imagine too your name stands out to people. I really, I think, what do you think about having like a, like something that defines you, for example, like your name and I know, you know, a lot of actors would change their name or I know someone, he, every time he goes to like a speaking engagement or somewhere, he wears these wild looking pants. And I asked him one day, he's like, it's just my thing. I people remember well, how do you feel about that?

[B]

I think that can work for some people. You know, whatever feels right to you and is fun. I think if it's part of your brand, like one of my clients, she's got purple hair and that's really part of her brand and it gives her joy. So, so I think if it gives you joy that you're onto a correct kind of branding. But if you're forcing it, then probably not. So if it's not your thing to wear like a glittery glove like Michael Jackson, don't go there. The other time that the penny really dropped for me about the power of message. I host Million Dollar Message training and I had one of my clients and it's like a couple of day event and I have them come and present at the beginning of the event and then at the end of the event and one of my clients came up and everybody in the audience was like, okay, I know this guy's smart. I think he's got, you know, integrity, but I have no idea what he's doing. I don't understand his business because he was getting in the way weeds like he was 14 steps down into the coding of it. And then on the last day when he came up and he was much more clear after having practiced and having all of the tools, people in the audience actually invested in his business on the spot. So again, the power of having the right words, the right words at the right time can just change your whole life. And quick example, like, we all know how what a success the Apple launches are, but Steve Jobs spent three weeks practicing what to say, where to stand, where to pause. And so if it's, if you think you're too busy to practice your message, you could be wrong. In fact, I think it's the highest payoff activity that you can do. I think a big mistake is people work so hard on their products, their services, their SOPs, their team, their culture, whatever, and then they just pay no attention to their message. And I would love people to lean into practicing your message and read the book Turn words into wealth to give you a bunch of tips. And it's even for free. You can get [e-mail] My gift to you, you get the ebook for free with lots of things you can do.

[A]

I mean turn words into wealth. Like when you first said, I'm like, I need that book right now and I'm, I'm not as busy as Steve Jobs. So I know that, you know, there's no excuse for me. And I didn't realize that about three weeks. If I could meet someone, I would have really liked to meet Steve Jobs and have a conversation. I feel like that'd be very interesting. We had his business coach on year before some and the guy gave us some very fascinating stories about him. But I feel like that'd be an interesting person to me. Who would you want to meet if you could, if you could sit down and have A conversation.

[B]

I would love to meet Elon Musk. He's my hero. In spite of all the flack he's been gotten. That guy is so intelligent. He's scared. Very smart. Gosh, I'd have to think what would be a good question to ask him that would be that I could understand the answer to. I would love to know more about why he wants us all to have a ability to live on Mars. I guess that kind of makes sense. But I would like to learn more.

[A]

About that when you and I understand all these things that you're saying today. And I mean, this is. This is really a masterclass. And I know obviously people can get the book and all the things that you offer, too. What was it, though? A turning point when you said a book. Like, why is a book the shift? Because I think books used to be like, I write a fiction book because I'm an author. And I think a lot of people say, I don't want to write a book because I'm. I'm not an author. And I know you mentioned before some tips there, but why was it that a book is such an important piece that people can build wealth and do things? Whoa.

[B]

Young adult fantasy Magic Mystery in the multiverse.

[A]

I like that. Looks amazing. I want to read that book.

[B]

Yeah, it's amazing. It's kind of like Hair Potter meets Doctor who, and it won the Reader's Choice Award. Yeah. So that's pretty cool. There's a trilogy of books, and we also have a YouTube channel called Anna's Series. So why a book? To answer your question, Amazon is the number three search engine, but YouTube is the number two search engine. So as SEO search engine optimization is being overtaken by AI. So AEO, or generative engine Optimization, whatever we're going to call it, Geo, I think it's a really wonderful chance in 2026 to jump on your branding, because I think there's an opportunity right here, right now to really boost your brand. And I think if you miss this window of opportunity in 2026, maybe part of 2027, you're going to regret it. So I don't think it's only about a book. I think it's about communicating what you're up to and what you care about in a way that's useful to others. A book is a legacy piece. You kind of really only need one amazing book. Like James Clear has done just fine with just Atomic Habits. I think it took him 10 years to publish the workbook to Atomic Habits, but that book he promoted it for a whole year before it came out. And then he's been speaking about it for a decade after with five years on the New York Times bestseller list. So a legacy piece of intellectual property like a book opens doors that you didn't even know were closed to you. It's like having an MD or a PhD or an MBA. You didn't even know that you couldn't get in that door without it. And then, well, all of a sudden you can speak on larger stages, get on media, get on tv. But I also really would love the listeners to pay more attention to YouTube. So in October of 2025, so just two months ago, OpenAI dropped Sora 2. And as a result, it's now possible at a small business budget to do amazing videos. You can see some examples that Anna's series, we had a video go viral. It's got 250,000 views and it's just shocking. Amazing what you can do now. You know, my background's in film and tv, but you couldn't do that on a reasonable budget to have a character and have motion and have music and have dialogue and having, you know, just emotion. And now you can do it. So whether another example is at Strategic Basics, it's me talking to camera, but then a lot of B roll. So that's the. The in between step. If you want to go with an animated avatar or not. I think there's a huge opportunity to step up your branding in 2026. In fact, I have a new book coming out in 2026 called Brand Strategy in the Age of AI. Catch the wave, Own the Future.

[A]

It's great. Like you said, you can do things you couldn't do before at a very low budget.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

At the same time, everyone can do things at a low budget. So I almost feel like you now have millions more people who could potentially be competing with you in your same space. So what's going to really make you stand out? And you know, I didn't. I never even thought about the atomic habits of just you. If you have one book, it's like having that one TED Talk. Like if you have that one thing, that one thing, you're only one step away. We had a guest on told us like nobody was watching his stuff, but one person watched it and it changed his whole life. So it's only that one thing. You only need one fan.

[B]

You can be one video away, one book away, one podcast, a periods away from 10xing or more, your business and your income and your influence. So it's pretty Exciting time to be alive. Yeah. And I, I really love it. Like we, you know, our two minute videos have the same amount of structure behind them as a 90 minute feature film. So that's kind of, you know our edge is as an award winning screenwriter I know the story structure behind successful feature films and I can write a draft of a video that's two minutes long but that is structured like a feature film so it hooks attention and I'm finding that a really fun challenge.

[A]

That's amazing. I, there's. I just find myself making videos and stuff that are useless. I have nothing to do with my business. It's like a hobby. And I saw Disney will start allowing I don't know if they already did or they're about to start allowing people on Sora to be able to use Disney characters and such. But can you tell the your website again how they can get the book and all that?

[B]

Sure. So my website is samepagepublishing.com because I come on the same page as my clients and if people would like help being launched as a thought leader they can sign up for a business breakthrough call for free at Bookcall Biz. Bookcall Biz. And if they would like to get turn words into wealth absolutely for free, they can go to guess it turnwordsintowealth.com making it really simple for you. And you'll get the ebook for free or the physical book is available wherever books are sold. And many people like the physical book.

[A]

I really like that. I can see now it's like we don't always think about the name of something. It's like we come up with a name, we come up with things. But I don't think we always put a lot of thought into like what that will represent and what that means. But I can tell you are you do everything you do is strategic and that is amazing. Aurora Winter. How can you forget that name? That's like I'll never forget your name. But thank you so much for giving all this information today. I, I learned so I think I might have learned the most in 22 minutes. I'm glad to finish out the year with this, with this episode because I think this might be the most I've ever learned.

[B]

Wow. What a nice compliment.

[A]

Almost six years of doing this. I love it.

[B]

We covered a lot very quickly.

[A]

A lot. This is, this is really a lot. This is amazing. But thank you so much.

[B]

End the year and thanks so much.

[A]

Exactly. Exactly. I think we're gonna have a huge 2026 just off this information today. So thank you for joining us.

[B]

Thank you.

[A]

If you like the show, please take a moment to rate, review and subscribe. It really does help the show to grow. Thank you for listening.