The Rat Race of Online Self-Promotion
A reflection on self-promotion, masks, trust, and real relationships in business.
The rat race of online self-promotion. It's such a wonderful thing.
It can feel like everyone online (but you) is online to be seen. Working the game. Seeking some micro fame.
Think about it... Are we scrambling to make that next post that gets people to smile our way?
At the heart, I feel like it is, well, the heart that matters.
At the innermost, we want to be loved. I think, to be really loved, we need to be known deeply. And that brings us back to the rat race of self-promotion. We are not really promoting our hearts. Many of us are in a masquerade.
The masks are many. A key one in the business space is the "expert mask" with all the answers. But are you convinced that any of us really know what is happening, and that we are all really that smart?
Maybe we should drop the mask. Stop talking like experts. Start talking like real people, without a self-promoting motivation.
To drop the mask, I think, it comes down to being ok with the person behind it being seen. That person may not get fame from lots of surface-level eyes. But that person just might get a few eyes on their innermost. That is, their heart.
When we have a connection to the heart, we can develop real trust in both directions. When we have real trust, we are in business, the kind of business that goes on exciting journeys and has real experiences unshielded and felt.
And in my experience, there are two types of gold at the end of that kind of trust-based and heartfelt relationship.
The heart of business? Not 100,000 connections first. Real relationships first.