During the 60’s, when computers were too limited for personal use, Andy Warhol had already predicted that in the future (which is NOW) each of us would have 15 minutes of fame (just like his signature Campbell soup ).
Naturally, he couldn’t have predicted the rise of social media which upend traditional broadcast media, turning it around from one-to-many (old) to many-to-many (new) forever and free (Cloud computing + mobile + social media).
Unrestricted and unleashed i.e. texting while driving (we have yet come up with an acronym similar to DUI).
We “Like”. We “tag”. We “tweet”. Yahoo now bets big on Mobile.
We prepare to lay ourselves exposed: photos (even pictures when we were babies), home-recorded songs and secret sauce.
We learn the art of filmography and biography e.g. story board and story line, scripting and screen playing (Youtube).
We share lessons on sewing and selling.
It’s quite an open world and open society.
It used to be that the only time someone asked “tell us about yourself” was at a job interview.
Now, we tell them about ourselves even when not asked. “They” here means the World Wide Web:
A narrative was supposed to have a beginning, middle and end. Since we keep discovering and reinventing ourselves, our personal narrative evolves. Every day, we put on make-ups off line and make-over on line. Some even called this “the start-up of you”.
The more interaction on-line, the more detailed our social graph, the richer our narrative. Fresh content generates higher Search Engine Optimization. This process also creates Digital Addicts or DigitAl-holics who cross-comment and follow each other. A band of brothers, only more inclusive and extensive (coincides with austerity).
This domain used to be exclusive for professionals e.g. product improvement and placement now laid bare for all (design your T-shirt contest etc…).
Now, people are the product (sold to advertisers). Their tweet or post could go viral, to the tune of a million hits.
Self-branding.
Self-aggrandizement is in. Self-effacing is out.
The modesty of Asian mystique faces serious challenges, perhaps more so than last century’s cultural invasion of the West e.g. China and Japan with men eventually do away with braided hair or Samurai tradition. This time around, the invasion is technology-enabled, a spontaneous explosion of personal freedom and expression second to none (including the 60’s Flower Power. This time, it’s trans-cultural and trans-continental in nature.)
As a result, we need to put up personal “firewalls” to protect our privacy and safeguard our brand.
To trade ourselves up. Tier-One (as in Premium LinkedIn accounts etc..).
Sort of like LV who refused to offshore the manufacturing of its handbags. Planned scarcity.
We first expand, then contract our circle over time.
This retrenching was mentioned in The Tipping Point (maximum 120 in your circle to have a meaningful conversation and community).
In the early days of Social Media,, we enjoyed new-toy stage (friending everyone).
Then Google + came out. By then, we became social-media fatigue.
Once you lost that first-mover’s advantage, it’s hard to play catch-up,
Good luck yahoo, with revamping.
Yahoo was late in Search, and Social.
I wonder whatever else it could do to innovate and leapfrog competition. Perhaps with the yCloud? or Ymobile.
Meanwhile, we still want to find new ways to connect, to share and to show off.
We are members of a digital country club, where strangers suddenly become intimate i.e. know more about our personal stories, or at least, more quickly, than family members . These are our intimate strangers.
So, if you share, learn to show and tell properly. Learn the 2-minute summary like our presidential candidates just did tonight. Tell them what you are all about, your hopes, fears and dreams, all scripted and rehearsed (elevator speech). And maybe, someone out there, can identify with your vulnerability, your shortcomings and your humanity. Maybe they will endorse you, adopt you as family member, and you then become “famous” for 15 minutes. Warhol would have never guessed someday (today) we would be showing off our secret sauce, while he, could only photocopy the (Campbell) Soup he touted as arts.
Thang Nguyen 555 