CITIZEN KANE
What a 1941 film can teach modern brand builders about loyalty, clarity, and the danger of forgetting your why.
There’s a reason Citizen Kane is still held up as one of the greatest films of all time. Not just for its form, but for its truth.
It’s the story of a man who gains the world and loses himself. Who starts with purpose and ends with spectacle. Who builds an empire but forgets why he started building at all. That story feels eerily familiar for anyone who’s worked with a brand that once had meaning—and then chased more.
In one of the most important moments of the film, a young and idealistic Charles Foster Kane writes a “Declaration of Principles”—his promise to the public:
"I will provide the people of this city with a daily paper that will tell all the news honestly... I will also provide them with a fighting and tireless champion of their rights as citizens and as human beings."
It’s a mission statement. A rallying cry. A brand story with values at its core. And it works. People believe him. He builds trust. He builds audience. He builds meaning. But slowly, quietly, that meaning fades. His actions start serving his ego more than his purpose. His principles become props. And what’s left is the machinery of a media empire, loud and powerful—but emotionally empty.
Somewhere along the way, the brand forgets what made it matter in the first place. It still has reach, power, even cultural relevance—but it no longer has meaning. The voice is louder, but the message is hollow. The brand exists everywhere, yet no one truly connects with it anymore. It’s become something impressive on the outside, but unrecognizable at its core.
And in the quiet moments—the moments of reflection—it becomes clear: The most valuable thing it lost wasn’t market share or media buzz. It was emotional truth. The clarity. The conviction. The spark that made people care in the first place.
That’s the real heartbreak. Not just that the world stopped listening— But that the brand stopped being worth listening to.
WHAT’S
WORTH NOTING
Start with meaning—and protect it fiercely.
Your "declaration of principles" is more than a message. It's your emotional core. Guard it. Revisit it. Live it.
Success is seductive. Don’t let it blur your values.
Growth is great—but not if it pulls you away from the people you set out to serve.
People remember how you made them feel.
Kane built a brand that shouted. But he forgot how to make people feel seen, understood, and connected.
When the story stops being true, loyalty dies.
You can fake depth for a while. But eventually, people feel the disconnect—and once you lose their trust, it’s nearly impossible to get it back.
Belonging can’t be bought.
It must be built. Slowly. Authentically, and with meaning at the center.