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The Death of a (Relationship) Marketer
I used to think I knew how to choose my partners, until I fell for a salesman.
I lie on the couch shivering, with two sweaters on and covered with a blanket. The comfort movie I’ve watched three times this week ends, and I start scrolling through HBO. I’m going to make the effort to find something new to watch. I pick The Vow, a documentary series of the sex cult/multi-level marketing company NXIVM. Maybe too much for my feverish brain, but I need some variety.
The show looks interesting and well-made at first glance, and I love watching things like this. They let you pat yourself on the back a little bit. “I would never let someone brainwash me,” is what we all think.
Then the leader, Keith Rainiere, appears on screen for the first time. He looks into the camera and speaks about the philosophy behind the company, with a hint of a smile in his eyes as he seems to look directly at me.
My stomach turns and chills run along my spine. The nausea is just because of COVID, I tell myself, but there’s something else. I know this man.
How he shines when someone is looking, and makes people compete for his attention. How he looks at you as if there was something special in you, because he knows that’s the way to make anyone give him…
