The web of influence

What public figure do you disagree with the most?

“The difference between “influencers” and actual influential people is influential people don’t need to point it out in their Twitter bio”

A couple of years ago, the song, Kiki do you love me’ went viral on TikTok. I liked the song and did not have a TikTok account, so I did not know why there was a hullabaloo around it. Eventually, I read about the reason it went viral, and the dancing while letting the car roll down the road without anyone in the driver’s seat navigating the vehicle is reckless endangerment. And for some reason, this was considered acceptable by adoring fans who decided to blindly ape the behavior. Then the Ice Bucket Challenge captured the imagination of the public. And then there was the Tide Pod challenge. And I’ve constantly wondered when we would snap out of it. For some reason, it feels like we are slumbering in this social media wonderland, where the grass is always green on the other side and we are forever taking a blind leap of faith, without once considering the consequences of our actions. The rabbit holes run deep and some of them are twisted, yet all of us leap hoping for something better. Something different. Something new.

“The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet”

James Oppenheim

Let’s look at influential people, Prime Ministers, and Presidents of nations, Tony Robbins, Robin Sharma, David Ogilvy, Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos, Mark Cuban, Satya Nadella, Kelly Ripa, Max Verstappen, among many others. Have they ever created a TikTok challenge that would harm an individual? They just work towards improving themselves. Shattering ceilings. Climbing ladders of achievement that were earlier considered impossible.  Proving again and again, with every notch of accomplishment, that a person with real influence does not persuade to sway popular behavior, they are keen to get on with their life. And it is this discipline that sets them apart and makes them influential.

Transforming yourself from an influencer into a person of influence is simple. You just need to encourage your followers to use their brains. And the entire great power great responsibility argument kind of puts it in perspective. But it also means that your actions are scrutinized, and your achievements define you, not your followers, or your fans. A difficult step to take because hitting reset and starting from 0 is what the influencer, any influencer is scared to do, as it may be the straw that breaks the camel’s back or the snap that wakes the devotees.     And just like that, you know the kind of public figures I disagree with the most. For the longest time, I avoided logging into social media assuming if I did not see it – it did not exist. But being an Ostrich only meant that I got into the game a lot later. I got on social media to have discussions with my kids, and the other children I often interact with about the trends that are hitting the vibe on the street. It’s an ongoing conversation and sometimes even a discussion. But the point is to highlight this difference between the influencer and being influential. The latter is always the preferred option because it means that you are hitting at your best effort consistently and your popularity is not because you are known among a million of your online peers. Always remember,

“The purpose of influence is to ‘speak up’ for those who have no influence. It’s not about you”
 

Rick Warren