---
title: "The outlier is the brief"
description: "Find what broke out, often in a niche next door, and bring it back to your message."
canonical: https://tomsharman.com/playbooks/content/the-outlier-is-the-brief/
updated: 2026-10-25
---

# The outlier is the brief

> Find what broke out, often in a niche next door, and bring it back to your message.

Playbook 2, Content. Animation: /playbooks/content/the-outlier-is-the-brief.mp4

The outlier is the brief. Where most people go wrong is only looking in their exact niche. Look next door too, find the post that broke out, and bring it back to your message. And measure your own against your median: anything past three times it is a winner.

## How do I use it?

1. Work out the median views of the last 30 posts. That is the baseline.
2. Mark anything past three times the median as an outlier.
3. Look past the niche: track outliers in two or three adjacent ones too.
4. Rebuild the outlier's format or angle around one of your eight things, then post it.

## In his words

> Look for outliers in adjacent niches and apply that to your own.

> Tom Sharman, 2026

## Questions

### What does "The outlier is the brief" mean?

The outlier is the brief. Find the post that broke out, here or in an adjacent niche, and rebuild it around your own message.

### How do I put "The outlier is the brief" into practice?

Work out the median views of the last 30 posts. That is the baseline. Mark anything past three times the median as an outlier. Look past the niche: track outliers in two or three adjacent ones too.

### Why does "The outlier is the brief" matter?

The outlier is the brief. Where most people go wrong is only looking in their exact niche.