Friends of Dave #89: If You Are What You Say You Are...

Sep 08, 2018

Thought leader? Influencer? A superstar? Have no fear -- the camera's here.

So I've started running again. It quickly becomes evident (and a bit depressing) how long it has been since I regularly ran longer distances when one takes a look at the "Workout" playlist on my iPhone...let's just say some of the songs have a bit of dust on them.

On a recent run, with my playlist fully rocking "shuffle mode," I caught a deep track I had not heard in a while by Lupe Fiasco entitled "Superstar." It's a song about being able to manage our own insecurities and self doubt in order to do what it takes to achieve success. For some reason I started paying attention to the lyrics a little more closely on this particular run and my mind began to wander. It opens with the line:

If you are what you say you are, a Superstar, then have no fear, the camera's here.

We seem to be in a particular period of time where everyone, from young kids to global leaders, is ultra concerned with their public perception. People want to control their personal brands and the narrative around who they are. They want likes, retweets and shares to validate their efforts. We all do it to a certain extent.

So with the devices and apps readily at hand, we set out to construct the image (or as previously shared here, an avatar) according to how we want ourselves to be viewed. We will label ourselves "thought leaders" or "serial entrepreneurs" or "influencers" on LinkedIn profiles and in social media, to try to get people to think we are superstars at whatever we do. Doesn't matter if we haven't ever really influenced anyone or are viewed by others as someone with an interesting point of view -- it seems we collectively put more weight behind how much and how loud we say that we are worthy of the attention and respect of others. Maybe you don't do this, but I am quite certain you work with, speak to, or have connections with people who do.

But if are what we say we are, we shouldn't be worried about how we are perceived by others, right? Shouldn't we have the confidence that when it's "lights, camera, action," the truth will always find a way of coming out? Can we really walk the walk? Can we be accountable? Or do we just talk the talk? I think people are definitely getting wise to this and are starting to see the BS for the BS.

Along these lines, the song continues:

Did you improve on the design, did you do something new?

We can anoint ourselves as superstars, but at some point we have to be able to articulate what we actually did to achieve that status. Were we successful due to our own actions, or were we just riding the coattails of others? Did we ever actually do anything to give us the right to elevate ourselves about the average? Talk is cheap and people are increasingly getting sick of the false rhetoric.

Finally, we have this line:

The audience ain't fazed. And they ain't gonna clap and they ain't gonna praise.

Okay, so we talked a big game to get people's attention. Maybe we are lucky enough to be given an opportunity to prove how great we said we are. They are waiting for us to do something and to meet the expectations we set. So when we start to do it, we shouldn't expect to hear the cheers in return or for people to tell us how great we are. The audience doesn't care -- we said we could make things "terrific" and they came to see us do it. They don't want to hear how hard it is, excuses for why things aren't going as we said, or pleas to cut us slack. We shouldn't expect trophies for our efforts -- we get rewarded for our results. When you set the bar high you better live up to expectations. Or as someone else once said, "Here we are, now entertain us."

Maybe I'm getting more cynical as I get older. Or maybe I am just more ornery when I go on long runs. Either way, these days I feel like we are seeing a lot more people talk a good game because they can but not live up to the hype. If you are going to call yourself a superstar, go be a superstar. Do the work that it takes to be extraordinary and don't cut corners. Improve on the design -- actually do something that makes things great. And for god sakes, when you get the spotlight you asked for, don't expect accolades when you are simply doing what you said you were going to do. True superstars never require praise or need to have their egos stroked in order to be great. People who are the best at what they do know deep down that they are already great and have the inner drive and confidence to achieve the same results whether other people notice or not. The cheers, for them, they are are just icing on the cake.

I guess I realized how much I really enjoyed listening to the song (which you can find in the Last Word section below) on that recent run. Sometimes it is worth taking time to dust off things you liked in the past in order to appreciate them once again with some renewed perspective.

I hope you are able to enjoy your weekend and have some time to read the selections below. And go be a superstar while you are at it. Have no fear.

XOXO

Dave

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