People say I’m self-obsessed… but enough about them.
OK, gather round, I don’t want anyone else to hear this… is it just me, or has LinkedIn got a bit, well, meh? I start most days with a quick trawl of things that pop up on my feed, but I will be the first to admit that in recent weeks the scroll has become shorter and faster. At this point I should make it clear that this is not a criticism of you dear reader. Most of the things I see aren’t original content, generated by you - it’s things that people like, or celebrate. So what are people liking and celebrating at this moment? Let's check my feed... Someone is getting married… someone has had a baby… someone thinks I should become a franchise partner in workspaces and co-working… someone is excited to see family they haven’t seen in a while… someone is going to be on TV… Ah! Someone is bigging up their company for meeting someone important in the government of an African nation! Someone is promoting an art exhibition… someone is on the radio… someone has got some qualifications… WAIT A MINUTE! WHAT’S THAT NOISE? Oh, don’t worry… it’s just the Irony Alert klaxon. Here I am, bemoaning the paucity of actual business-related content on, y’know, a business-related social media channel, and I’m adding to the noise. I just think that after however many months of the world being put through a blender we have reached a nadir of things to talk about, but there is still a need to be out there, saying something. CAN SOMEBODY TURN THAT IRONY KLAXON OFF? Right. Business focus… this is meant to be business focused. Stick to the point Howard. Here’s my thought, for what it’s worth: “No one is listening. Everyone is just waiting to speak.” And that is not just a critique of the easily-shared, one-click expression of a stance, opinion or political affiliation that social media provides. It seems to be true of so many comms in organisations too. (I’ve always thought it funny that the department that strives for clarity of internal messaging abbreviates the word that is central to their role. There goes that klaxon again.) It seems that people need to make a noise – any noise – to ensure that the world doesn’t ignore them. At one end of the spectrum, internet trolls saying things to get reactions; at the other end of the spectrum, me, writing this. As I write this I have just seen someone shilling their coaching business by comparing someone’s brain tumour to “their own burnout”. There it is. The nadir. (“Today’s challenge. Link the following: a) reference an acquaintance’s life-threatening condition, b) somehow make it about me, c) use MY experience, and MY hot take on someone else’s illness to promote my business.”) “But look, I made you some content…" I can’t leave you like this. Instead I will point you to this masterpiece of the challenges of creating content in a vacuum - musician and comedian Bo Burnham's lockdown musical comedy, "Inside". If you haven't seen it yet, give it a watch. It's the journey of one man's desperation to create meaningful content, totally alone, during a global pandemic. And it's brilliant. Take it away, Bo… (and don’t forget to hit “like” or “celebrate”!)
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November 2022
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