| name | hormozi-brick-exercise |
| description | WHAT: Alex Hormozi's Brick Exercise — a divergent thinking framework for generating unlimited offer components by listing all possible uses of a brick. From $100M Offers.
WHEN: When applying hormozi brick exercise knowledge |
Hormozi Brick Exercise
hormozi-brick-exercise
Core Principle
"Life will pay you for your ability to solve problems using a divergent thought process."
The key insight: Most people are trained for convergent thinking (math problems with one answer). But life rewards divergent thinking (many possible solutions to one problem). The Brick Exercise trains your brain for divergent thinking so you can create offers that make you rich.
Convergent vs. Divergent Thinking
Convergent Thinking (Math Mode)
- Many variables, all known
- Unchanging conditions
- Single correct answer
- Binary: right or wrong
- What school teaches
- Easy to grade
Divergent Thinking (Creative Mode)
- Multiple variables, known and unknown
- Dynamic conditions
- Multiple possible answers
- One answer may be WAY more right than others
- What life rewards
- Not taught in school
The Example
Convergent: You have 3 salespeople who can each take 100 calls/month. 4 calls = 1 sale. You need 110 sales. How many salespeople?
Answer: 5. (Math. Clean. Binary.)
Divergent: How many ways can a brick provide value?
Answer: Unlimited. (Creative. Multiple valid paths.)
The Brick Exercise
The Exercise (2 minutes)
- Set a timer for 120 seconds
- Think of a brick
- Write down as many different uses of a brick as possible
- How many different ways could a brick be used in life to provide value?
The Point
"This exercise will engage the part of your brain that you will need to use in order to make something magical."
You're not looking for practical answers. You're forcing your brain to generate MANY options instead of converging on the obvious one.
Why This Matters for Offers
The Problem
When creating offers, most people default to the obvious solution — the same thing everyone else does. This is convergent thinking applied to business.
The Opportunity
Divergent thinking reveals:
- Options they've never considered
- Delivery mechanisms they didn't know existed
- Combinations that create massive value
The Result
"What could you do that someone would immediately say, all that? Seriously? I'm in."
How to Run the Exercise
For Each Problem Your Client Has:
- Set timer: 120 seconds
- Write the problem: What problem does your customer have?
- Brainstorm: List every possible solution, no matter how weird
- Don't filter: Include impractical, expensive, time-consuming ideas
- Go for quantity: The more ideas, the more likely you find the gem
The Brick Exercise Applied
Think of ONE component of your offer, then ask:
- What could a brick be? (Gold brick? Plastic brick? Lego brick? Brick with holes?)
- How many different uses?
Apply the same logic to your offer components.
Example: Grocery Shopping Problem
Convergent (Obvious)
"Offer a grocery shopping service."
Divergent (Many Options)
DIY:
- Grocery list template
- Meal planning system
- Grocery calculator tool
Done-With-You:
- In-person grocery tour
- Live video grocery walk-through
- One-on-one grocery coaching call
Done-For-You:
- Full-service grocery delivery
- Pre-made Instacart carts
- Personal grocery shopper
Each option creates a different offer at a different price point.
The Cheat Codes (For More Variations)
Material Variations
What if it were:
- Gold instead of brick?
- Plastic instead of brick?
- Has holes in it?
- Lego-compatible?
- Edible?
Context Variations
- What if it were free?
- What if it were expensive?
- What if it were one-on-one?
- What if it were one-to-many?
Combine Variations
Mix and match across the Delivery Cube dimensions.
Key Principles
1. Push Your Limits
"Even if you come up with something you're not actually willing to do, it's okay. The goal here is to push your limits and jog your brain into thinking of a different version of the solution you'd normally default to."
2. You Only Need One Great Version
"You only need to do this once, literally one time, for a product that may last years. This is high value, high leverage work."
3. Get Paid for Thinking
"You ultimately get paid for thinking. You got this. This should be fun."
4. All That + Only That
"What could you do that someone would immediately say, all that? Seriously? Yes, I'm in."
The Framework for Offer Creation
Step 1: Identify Problems
List all problems your customer has before, during, and after using your product/service.
Step 2: Apply Brick Exercise
For EACH problem:
- Set timer
- List ALL possible solutions (divergent)
- Include impractical ones
- Include expensive ones
- Include weird combinations
Step 3: Filter Later
After you've exhausted options:
- Which are actually deliverable?
- Which create massive value?
- Which can you price appropriately?
Step 4: Stack into Grand Slam Offer
Combine the best components from your divergent lists.
Key Questions for Brick Exercise
/prompts:
- "What's the ONE problem I'm solving for my customer?"
- "If I could do ANYTHING to solve this problem, what would I do?"
- "What would 'all that' look like for my offer?"
- "What would someone say 'all that? Seriously?' to?"
- "What have I never considered that would dramatically increase value?"
- "What would my solution look like if it were gold/plastic/free/expensive?"
- "How many different delivery formats could this take?"
- "What's the most valuable version of this component I could offer?"
Source
From $100M Offers by Alex Hormozi, Chapter: "Value Offer, The Thought Process"
Core concepts:
- Convergent vs Divergent thinking
- The Brick Exercise (120 seconds)
- Cheat codes for variations
- Applying divergent thinking to offer creation
Transcript source: ~/Downloads/100MOffers.txt (Docker: /home/GOD/100MOffers.txt)
Related Skills
hormozi-delivery-cube — The three dimensions of deliveryhormozi-grand-slam-offer — Building the core offerhormozi-value-equation — Understanding what creates valuehormozi-bonuses — Adding components to increase value
