As a creator, few things are scarier than sitting down in front of your laptop and facing a blank screen… for hours.
Your mind races, but no ideas come.
You start asking yourself.
“What if I have nothing worth saying today?”
No need to worry about that anymore.
Today’s method will help you generate content ideas daily without ever running out.
The method is called the 4A Framework, and it’s simple to follow.
What’s The 4A Framework?
The 4A Framework breaks down any topic into four different buckets:
- Actionable – “Here’s How”
- Aspirational – “Yes, You Can”
- Analytical – “Here Are the Numbers”
- Anthropological – “Here’s Why”
1. Actionable
These are tactical pieces designed to lead readers to take action:
- Tips
- Tricks
- Hacks
- Curations
- Resources
- Ultimate guides
Take your core idea and give readers something they can apply immediately.
2. Analytical
These are breakdowns involving numbers, frameworks, and processes.
- Trends
- Reasons
- Numbers
- Examples
- Teardowns
- Swipe files
Take your core idea and support it with data, evidence, and analysis.
3. Aspirational
These are stories of how you or others put your core idea into practice.
- Lessons
- Mistakes
- Reflections
- Personal stories
- Stories of growth
- Underrated traits
- Advice to past self
Help the reader understand what’s possible.
4. Anthropological
These are things that speak to universal human nature.
- Fears
- Failures
- Struggles
- Paradoxes
- Observations
- Comparisons
- Why others are wrong
- Why you’ve been misled
Help the reader understand why something is the way it is.
How to Apply The 4A Framework
Here’s how to apply the 4A framework:
- Pick a broad topic you write about.
- Break it into the buckets above.
Simple.
You can even combine the buckets. This is where your content can explode and multiply your chances of going viral or gaining traction on social media.
For example, let’s say we’re writing about online business. We can combine buckets in the following way:
Aspirational + Anthropological
“I used to believe entrepreneurship was only for the lucky or the rich. But diving in showed me it’s the ultimate path to self-discovery and freedom.”
Aspirational + Actionable
“I built a 6-figure business in 18 months. Here’s how I did it while working a full-time job (and how you can too.)”
Actionable + Analytical
“I analyzed 100 viral threads from successful creators. Here are the 5 strategies they use to grow their audiences (and how you can implement them.)”
The sky’s the limit.
Final Words
Once you get the hang of the 4A Framework, you’ll start noticing it everywhere – even in the money and finance section on Amazon.
Here’s how some of the best-sellers fit perfectly into these buckets:
- $100M Offers (Actionable)
- Rich Dad Poor Dad (Aspirational)
- The Intelligent Investor (Analytical)
- The Psychology of Money (Anthropological)
I’ve tried countless methods, but this one, created by Dickie Bush, is by far the most effective.
Try it.
J
P.S. Here’s an exercise:
Pick one topic, open ChatGPT, and write this prompt:
“I write about [Topic] to help my audience [Achieve Goal]. Can you please generate 10 ideas for each content type bucket – aspirational, actionable, analytical, anthropological – that have viral potential? Thank you!”
Example:
[Topic] = Health
[Achieve Goal] = Lose weight
You’ll thank me later!
