There is one hallmark of a cult which this document misses: there is no legitimate reason for leaving a cult.
From the cult member's perspective, this is really a manifestation of the problem of induction. Everything is going great (the article's "love bombing" phase) until one day you want to leave or break a rule or both, and then in an instant everything is upside down and you lose everything.
I guess the business equivalent would be switching costs: leaving the Apple ecosystem is rough for your iTunes collection. For most people this really pales in comparison to the losing-all-your-friends pain of leaving a cult, but maybe not for a hipster.
That "switching cost" doesn't just apply to cults. I know for sure it applies to at least certain streams of Islam and Judaism. I wouldn't be surprised (but don't know for sure) if it applied to certain streams of Christianity too.
You may consider those religious streams cults at your own discretion :)
From the cult member's perspective, this is really a manifestation of the problem of induction. Everything is going great (the article's "love bombing" phase) until one day you want to leave or break a rule or both, and then in an instant everything is upside down and you lose everything.
I guess the business equivalent would be switching costs: leaving the Apple ecosystem is rough for your iTunes collection. For most people this really pales in comparison to the losing-all-your-friends pain of leaving a cult, but maybe not for a hipster.