Up until I was in college, I was a huge fan of soap operas. As I got older I got (sadly) more interested in the stories and in the characters. Especially all of those 6-pack abs. Hem. Anyway…on a soap opera, there is a lot of actor turn-over, so you’d tune in one day and you’d hear this voice come on saying, “The role of Cassanova Villanova Smith is now being played by…” and the new actor’s name would be given. The characters were always completely ignorant of the voice and of the fact that their son/brother/lover/father looked completely different. But you knew that it was somebody new.
I think a lot of people in Social Media approach the online world as if they can step in to the shoes of someone like Brian Clark, Darren Rouse, Guy Kawasaki, or Chris Brogan and have a voice come on saying, “Now playing the role of…” However, there is a fact that is being overlooked.
Times have changed.
A few weeks ago, you decided to make a really nice dinner for the family. One of the dishes was broccoli smothered in cheese. After eating the deliciousness, you help clean up the kitchen. Somehow you get stuck with the cutting board that you cut up the broccoli on, and all of these teeny teeny tiny green “broccoli boogers” are clinging to that board for dear life. Suddenly, you get an idea for a small, easy tool that would easily pick up those little pieces of broccoli flower.
Who created the first crouton? How did that happen? When you really think about it, a crouton is nothing more than bread gone bad. How did someone figure out that you could make bad bread into croutons? Did a piece of stale bread fall into their salad? Did they get tired of throwing out bread that wasn’t moldy, just hard?
When you first start getting involved in Twitter and the blogosphere, it’s kind of like going to a new place for the first time. Everything is bright and shiny and new and exciting. It seems like everyone talks about “giving to get.” People who write really good stuff get the credit. It’s all a Polyanna could wish for.
When I was in fifth grade, I won the chance to speak at a huge event for DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education). When I walked up to the podium, the microphone was up above my head. My mom said that everyone could hear me perfectly, but no one could really see me, so the effect was kind of like a disembodied voice was floating through the gym.