The Real History of Black Friday — And What It Teaches Us About Decision-Making

(A special follow-up because so many of you replied to the Yellow–Purple–Orange email series)

Last week I sent out a playful three-part email series: Yellow Saturday, Purple Tuesday, and Orange Thursday.
I thought it would be fun.
I thought it would be helpful.
I did not expect the wave of responses, questions, or “Wait… is that story REALLY true??” messages in my inbox.

So by request — here it is:
the expanded, deeper, stranger story of Black Friday…
and what it reveals about how we make decisions (and how we sabotage them).

PART 1 — Black Friday started as… a financial disaster?

Long before discount TVs and 3 a.m. parking-lot stampedes, the phrase Black Friday appeared in newspapers in 1869 to describe one of the biggest financial collapses in U.S. history.

Two men (Jay Gould and James Fisk) tried to corner the gold market.
It went horribly wrong.
The stock market crashed.
Fortunes evaporated in hours.
People panicked.

Newspapers called it “Black Friday” because of the devastation.

Not exactly festive.

And yet… already there’s a parallel to our work:

When fear, pressure, and chaos rise… people make panicked decisions.

They rush.
They freeze.
They follow the crowd.
They lose their way.

Sound familiar?

PART 2 — A century later, it resurfaces… thanks to police officers

Fast-forward to the 1950s–1960s.

Philadelphia police had one day a year they absolutely dreaded:
the day after Thanksgiving.

Not because of turkey hangovers.
Not because of traffic.
…actually, yes. Because of traffic.

The Army–Navy football game, holiday shoppers, and the start of the shopping season collided into one massive, chaotic day.

The police hated working it so much that they began calling it Black Friday.

Dark humor at its finest.

Once again:
Chaos → stress → messy decisions → overwhelm.

Even today, you and I feel this:
When the world is noisy, it’s harder to hear your own values.

PART 3 — Retailers tried to rebrand it several times

Retailers hated the name “Black Friday.”
It sounded negative.
Unfriendly.
Bad for business.

Their first attempt?
They tried calling it “Big Friday.”

(This failed spectacularly.)

In the 1970s, they tried other softening strategies.
Also failed.

Finally, in the 1980s, they leaned into a narrative — a story — that stuck:

“Black Friday is the day businesses go from losing money (‘in the red’) to making money (‘in the black’).”

It was tidy.
It was positive.
It made people feel good about participating.

And it was also… not historically true.

But it worked.
And that’s the thing about decisions:

We are deeply influenced by the narratives we believe.
Even when those narratives aren’t entirely accurate.

If you think you’re “bad at decisions,” you’ll hesitate.
If you believe you’re “too emotional,” you’ll doubt yourself.
If you assume you “always mess things up,” you’ll self-sabotage.

Your narrative shapes your choices.

PART 4 — So what does all this have to do with you?

Everything.

Because Black Friday — in all its history — is a story about chaos, pressure, misdirection, and reactivity…
which are the exact conditions that make decision-making so hard for people.

Even outside the holidays, most people live in a near-constant Black Friday of the mind:

• Too many options

• Too much noise

• Too many internal “police officers” yelling directions

• Not enough clarity

• Not enough internal peace

And when your values aren’t clear?
You default to survival decisions, not aligned decisions.

You freeze.
You overthink.
You rush.
You avoid.
You second-guess.
You self-sabotage.

The good news is:
you’re not broken — you’re overloaded.
And clarity is a skill anyone can build.

Which brings me to why so many of you have loved the Yellow–Purple–Orange Sale Series…

PART 5 — If Black Friday is chaos, Orange Thursday is clarity

So many of you wrote back saying the same thing:

“I’m tired of making decisions out of pressure.”
“I want clarity, not chaos.”
“I want to trust myself again.”
“I want a values-based way to choose.”

Same.
That’s why I created the 5-Minute Decisiveness Solution — a short, experiential, audio-supported course designed to help you:

• Get out of the overthinking loop

• Identify your true (not inherited) values

• Make faster, calmer decisions

• Stop self-sabotage at the root

• Build alignment you can feel in your body

It’s normally $270.
But during this extended “Color Days” season, you can get it for:

$27, limited time
Plus a free 1:1 consult with me to go over your Decisiveness Speed Test results and create a personalized decisiveness plan
Only 12 spots available

Here’s your link to claim it:
https://www.caseycolecorbin.com/values-based-framework?coupon=DECIDE90

No frenzy.
No noise.
No pressure.
Just clarity — the antidote to Black Friday thinking.

Final Thought

Black Friday became enormous because the world responds to urgency.
But our best decisions come from alignment, not adrenaline.

I hope this deeper dive helped you see the story in a new way — and maybe even see your own decision patterns through a kinder lens.

If you want to build a more grounded, confident, values-aligned way of choosing, this is your moment.

Warmly,
Casey