or is it the selling

Always the selling. Heinlein had it right:
When in danger, when in doubt
run in circles, scream and shout.
When in danger,
When in doubt,
Run in circles
Scream and shout!
Anonymous U.S. military saying, e.g. Infantry Journal, Vol. 35, (1929), p. 369.
Variant: When in danger or in doubt, Run in circles, scream and shout.
Popularized in Herman Wouk, The Caine Mutiny (1951), which describes it as an ancient adage.