I am getting ready to blast someone I actually like…and it almost hurts me. This person has been very good to me, and given words of encouragement a time or few. However, last night, he Tweeted something out that just made me see red. He’s generally a decent guy, but without context the tweet was just plain idiotic.
He is a Digital Emperor, and has a lot of awesome things going for him. He’s just released his first Iphone app. He’s got a great music service going and he has a blog. Yup, he’s a blogger and much more. Something I am striving to be. Let’s take a look at the tweet, then I will say why it peeved me off.
I don’t need another blog to read…what I need is another “doer of great shit” that I can admire.
Nathan Hangen
nhangen
As I said, I like Nathan. I can also see his point. However, without context, the comment seems to indicate he thinks he is above reading “new to him” blogs. May or may not be true. If I were a new follower who was embarking on my adventure in blogging, that would make me wonder if I was doing the right thing. It would upset me that someone I admired might never look at my blog until I got to the big time..if that was my aim and I got there.
Yes, we could use more people doing great things. Yet we all have to start somewhere. Nathan him self started out writing articles for a paltry sum each in order to fund his business start up while he was in Afghanistan as a member of the US Military. His story is inspiring to say the least.
However, just because you’ve “made it” does not mean you can say or do anything you want! We should think of others and help them. Nathan is great for helping those who cross his radar. However, I think he should have thought a moment before posting the tweet in question. If someone like me, who admires and respects him, found that post off putting…imagine a newbie bloggers reaction. Especially with all the talk of the blogosphere being saturated! In this case, I think he could have done a lot more harm than good.
Here’s the kicker for me…I doubt he will care. He spoke his mind and will stand by it. The two of us and some others were in an almost heated discussion on another blog…and he came off as very narcissistic to some of us. There are times it seems Nathan has a hard time seeing others points of view. I sometimes wonder if the nice guy or the asshole is the real Nathan Hangen. The jury is still out for me on that one for now.
I know that one of the reasons his comment hit me hard is that I am working on becoming a do’er of great things. My start on that is building a great blog, and then moving on to great products. It’s going to take time, so I am depending on others to want another blog to read as I move up to a doer of great things. A LOT of people use this model these days. It would be easier to do it the other way around, but this is the most cost efficient way for me. And it pisses me off when it seems someone is knocking what I do. Most especially when they are doing the same darned thing.
So here’s my points for the day:
- Think before you tweet (or post to other social media)! You don’t have to keep it nicey nice, but don’t be a friggen hypocrite.
- Be very careful not to put people you admire on a pedestal. It will come back and bite you in the ass.
- Grow a thick skin if you are going to be doing something new to you. It will help you weed the naysayers from people with legitimate advice.
- Don’t depend on anyone’s thoughts to validate you or what you are doing. If you are, then you’re on shaky ground.
- Learn to call out the bullshit when you see it. It just feels good to tell it like it is.
I think you missed what I was trying to say.
1. Don’t be tied to the idea of blogging unless it’s something you just love doing. It’s not the only way.
2. Blogs are a dime/dozen…good products and good ideas aren’t.
Every day there are 1,000’s of new blogs, and people are losing interest. Blogs are getting devalued, and so is the content inside of them.
You don’t have to agree, but you know me well enough to know that it’s not a personal attack. It’s encouragement to do your own thing, in your own way.
Oh, and by the way, your 5 points are spot on.
I am having a hard time with this article and the content of it. I can see Jenn’s point and how she could be offended, she is just getting her blog going and seeing “I don’t need another blog to read” could be discouraging. I also know what Nathan is trying to say with that tweet. He doesn’t just want fluff and articles to read. frankly, I don’t either. I have way too much to read and do to just sit and read. Now, using those articles to promote yourself and your writing into creation of products that can help people is what this whole blogging this should be about anyway. Nathan is on record several places as saying he wants to build businesses, not blogs. The Blog is a tool to promote and run your business with. Jenn is out there right now CREATING products that will be launched soon. I myself am still working on getting my business working the way I want it too. I am using my blog now to promote my writing and my personality so that people will be willing to put forth some money to read what I have to say. I think this is where Jenn is at as well. And this is exactly what Nathan keeps promoting.
This tweet could be paraphrased as dont give me fluff, give me your ideas.
i hope that is clear.
Actually, I KNEW what your point was. I have context others might not. Not everyone who follows you has had interactions with you or are subscribed to your newsletter/e-course. Through both, I could infer your point. Which leads me to what I think will be a point in a future post of mine…When we tweet we should consider the possible lack of context. Its too easy to be misinterpreted and that can be bad for whatever it is we are trying to do.
I am really glad that you took this without getting too upset. I know it wasn’t an attack on me..you would have emailed or something more direct. I agree that good products are perverbial needles in they haystack of sub-par ones. Thanks for checking this out and taking the time to comment when you could have just ignored it. You are a great sport and your replies were very cool.
Justin.. my man. I was mostly playing devil’s advocate. A lot of us have people following us that we’ve never had a single interaction with (or at least I do!). So there are times when they may not get our intended message due a lack of context. I like your paraphrase there, it would definitely get the point across (I think!) without needing any other context.
There is entirely too much love going on here. Giving Coots a ‘good’ name! Let’s get back to business.
Nathan…you might keep the comparisons apples to apples:
“2. Blogs are a dime/dozen…good products and good ideas aren’t. ”
Wrong. Blogs are a dime/dozen. So are products and ideas.
Good blogs are not a dime a dozen, and neither are good products and ideas.