《出人头地的代价》 ，一篇被传颂了100多年的经典文案

文案：《出人头地的代价》/又译《领导者的惩罚》
作者：奥西多 麦克曼斯

在人类活动的每一个领域
得了第一的人必须长期生活在世人公正无私的裁判之中
无论是一个人还是一种产品
当他被授予了先进称号后
赶超和妒忌便会接踵而至。

在艺术界、文学界、音乐界和工业界
酬劳与惩罚总是一样的
报酬就是得到公认；
而惩罚则是遭到反对和疯狂的抵毁

当一个人的工作得到世人的一致公认时
他也同时成了个别忌妒者攻击的目标
假如他的工作很平庸，就没有什么人去理会他
如他有了杰作，那就有人喋喋不休地议论他
嫉妒不会伸出带叉的舌头去诽谤一个只有平庸之才的画家

无论是写作、画画，还是演戏、唱歌或从事制造业
只要你的作品没有打上杰作的印记
就不会有人力图赶超你，诽谤你
在一项重大成果或一部佳作已完成的很长一段时间里
失望和嫉妒的人仍会继续叫喊：“那是不可能的”

外界人早已将惠斯勒（Whistler）称颂为最伟大的艺术大师之后
艺术领域中仍然流言纷纷
将自己的艺术大师说成是江湖骗子
当人们成群结队到音乐殿堂Bayreuth向瓦格纳（Wagner）顶礼膜拜时
而—小撮被他废黜或顶替的人却气势汹汹地叫嚷：“他根本就不是音乐家”

当众人涌向河边观看轮船行驶之时
少数人仍坚持说富尔顿（Fulton）决不可能造成轮船
杰出人物遭到非议，就是因为他是杰出者
你要是力图赶上他，只能再次证明他是出色的
由于未能赶上或超过他
那些人就设法贬低和损害他——
但只能又一次证实他所努力想取代的事物的优越性

这一切都没有什么新鲜，
如同世界和人类的感情——嫉妒、恐惧、贪婪、野心以及赶超的欲望——一样
历来就是如此，一切都徒劳无益
如果杰出人物确实有其先进之处
他终究是一个杰出者。

杰出的诗人、著名的画家、优秀工作者
每个人都会遭到攻击，但每个人最终也会拥有荣誉
不论反对的叫喊声多响，美好的或伟大的
总会流传于世，该存在的总是存在的

英文原版
《The Penalty of Leadership》
In every field of human endeavor, he that is first must perpetually live in the white light of publicity. Whether the leadership be vested in a man or in a manufactured product, emulation and envy are ever at work.
In art, in literature, in music, in industry, the reward and the punishment are always the same. The reward is widespread recognition; the punishment, fierce denial and detraction. When a man’s work becomes a standard for the whole world, it also becomes a target for the shafts of the envious few. If his work be merely mediocre, he will be left severely alone – if he achieve a masterpiece, it will set a million tongues a-wagging. Jealousy does not protrude its forked tongue at the artist who produces a commonplace painting.
Whatsoever you write, or paint, or play, or sing, or build, no one will strive to surpass or to slander you, unless your work be stamped with the seal of genius. Long, long after a great work or a good work has been done, those who are disappointed or envious continue to cry out that it cannot be done. Spiteful little voices in the domain of art were raised against our own Whistler as a mountebank, long after the big world had acclaimed him its greatest genius.
Multitudes flocked to worship at the shrine of Wagner, while the little group of those whom he had dethroned and displaced argued angrily that he was no musician at all. The little world continued to protest that Fulton could not build a steamboat, while the big world flocked to the river to see his boat steam by.
The leader is assailed because he is the leader, and the effort to equal him is merely added proof of that leadership. Failing to equal or to excel, the follower seeks to depreciate and to destroy – but only confirms once more the superiority of that which he strives to supplant. There is nothing new in this. It is as old as the world and as old as the human passions – envy, fear, greed, ambition, and the desire to surpass. And it all avails nothing.
If the leader truly leads, he remains – the leader. Master-poet, master-painter, master-workman, each in his turn is assailed, and each holds his laurels through the ages. That which is good or great makes itself known, no matter how loud the clamor of denial. That which deserves to live – lives.

Theodore F. McManus Saturday Evening Post, Jan 2, 1915

诞生于100多年前的凯迪拉克，一直被誉为美国豪华车的代表。

上世纪初，凯迪拉克发布了一款新车V8 Touring，上市后引擎性能和其它小故障导致销售并不理想。与此同时，竞争对手Packard很快打出广告质疑它质量不可靠。面对市场的质疑，凯迪拉克陷入了被动的舆论危机中，必须尽快作出回应。

1915年1月2日，凯迪拉克在美国《星期六晚间邮报》上刊出了一篇令人惊叹的纯文字广告。文案由知名广告Theodore F.MacManus 撰写。李奥贝纳这样评论它：“从这篇文案，我读到的不是一个广告人在兜售轿车，而是一个雄辩的哲学家在改变你的人生。怪不得这篇广告登报后，很多企业老板，都把它剪下来，镶上框，郑重地挂在自己办公椅背后的墙上，以此勉励自己呢！反过来，我又想，这篇文章当初刊登出来，也肯定遭到了文章中所说的“攻击嫉妒”吧。但哪个锐矛能刺穿这个“头戴皇冠的盾牌”呢？攻击越是激烈，越能证明“盾牌”的坚不可摧。”