Too Real to Be Fake, Too Fake to Be Real: Stan Hustad's Inconvenient Ideas for a New Media World

On the first day of December, while many people are still digesting Thanksgiving leftovers and arguing about when it's "socially acceptable" to play Christmas music, broadcaster and performance coach Stan Hustad steps up to the microphone with something more than seasonal sentiment. In his new Monday series, Inconvenient Ideas with Stan Hustad, he invites listeners into a world where what we see, hear, and even believe may be—quite literally—too real to be fake and too fake to be real. Stan begins with a memory from his days hosting the early morning show "Morning Sound" on a large international station. Every December 1, he opened with a simple declaration—"It's the first of December, welcome to Morning Sound"—and then rolled straight into Joy to the World. It was his line in the sand: Thanksgiving had been honored, and now the Christmas season could begin. That little tradition becomes a metaphor for what he's asking us to do now—mark a moment, take stock, and decide how we're going to move forward in the days ahead. From there, Stan revisits one of his core themes: ideas matter. Interesting ideas, he reminds us, can lead to good ideas, which lead to greater insight. Insight opens the door to greater influence, influence leads to impact, and impact can lead to income. It's a kind of "good life formula" that reflects how we truly grow—personally, professionally, and even financially. But now, he's raising the stakes. It's not enough to chase interesting ideas. We have to face inconvenient ideas—those uncomfortable truths that challenge what we think we know, disturb our assumptions, and refuse to be neatly ignored. One of those inconvenient ideas came to him this weekend while watching a stunning Christmas video. The scenes were beautiful, the people were inspiring, the storytelling was moving. The whole thing, he knew, couldn't possibly be real—and yet, parts of it were so authentic and so well-crafted that it couldn't be entirely fake either. So he names the paradox: "It's too real to be a fake, and it's too fake to be real." In that sentence, Stan captures the strange territory we now live in—a world shaped by AI, deep media, and global storytelling machines. We are moved by images and messages that may be partly fabricated, partly factual, and fully influential. And that's not just an interesting observation; it's an inconvenient idea that demands a response. Stan then turns the spotlight from the screen back to the listener. In a world where so much can be generated, staged, or edited, he insists that you will need to learn new skills just to stay in the game. Like it or not, we are all now in the performance economy. You'll need to learn: - Performance marketing - Performance mentoring - Performance selling And yes, he says, you're going to have to learn how to be comfortable behind a microphone—even if it's not a golden one like the one on his desk. That might be a podcast mic, a Zoom microphone, a smartphone camera, or a stage. Either way, your voice, story, and presence will matter. This, he admits, is more than a little inconvenient—especially coming from a man who once tested as a strong introvert on the Myers-Briggs scale. Stan cheerfully confesses he's still "an off-the-wall introvert." But he also realized long ago that if he wanted to do radio, help people, and make an impact, he would have to learn to speak, perform, and be different. And that's the third inconvenient idea of the day: You will have to keep learning new ways of being different if you want to grow, contribute, and succeed. Stan then connects the dots. In this too-real-to-be-fake, too-fake-to-be-real world, it's no longer optional to think clearly and communicate well. You'll need to: - Think critically - Tell stories that are honest, human, and compelling - Stream those stories into the world - Sell your goods, services, and yourself ethically and confidently. All of that must be part of a purposeful strategy—one that you and your colleagues know, believe in, and practice together. Good is not enough. In many settings, you will need to be great. And that is another inconvenient idea. As the program closes, Stan pushes ahead to the coming year with his own playful motto: "In '26, pick up more sticks." More sticks of opportunity, creativity, service, income, and impact. More ways of making money, having fun, pleasing others—and maybe even pleasing God. And then, as he signs off for this first Monday of December, he leaves listeners with one last, profoundly inconvenient idea: Treat every person you meet as if they were the most important person in the world. Things to Remember - Ideas must move from insight to influence, impact, and implementation. - We live in a world where content can be both real and fake at the same time. - Performance economy skills are now essential. - Even introverts can learn to communicate powerfully. - In many areas today, you will need to be great. Things to Share - ...