Thought Experiment Thursday: Pick Yourself

Stardom is for everyone

You are the star. You can rent the Twitter theater, but what if it shuts down? What if their lights break and you can no longer see the audience? You could rent a different theater, but then you'd lose half your fans along the way. Not everyone can get to the new location. Some won't realize you've moved until it's too late. And what if the next social media stage breaks? Will you just keep moving?

You are the star, but the show you run is not a circus. It's a serious service, and people should know where to find you. They need a door they can knock on, a mailbox to drop feedback in, a fence to yell over, "Where is it?! Where is the thing you promised?"

The circus moves because after a while, everyone in town has seen the show. The town now houses eight billion people, and you'll be lucky if a fraction ever comes to watch you perform. In a town this big, it's best to stay in one spot. Easier for people to find you.

Plus, it gives you time to work on your show. There is no point in moving around pulling off the same tricks. Your show is the thing that must keep moving. Evolving. Attracting people from all parts of the town with a different theme for each crowd, a new idea for each suburb.

You are the star. Don't rent someone else's platform. Take the time to build your own stage. It'll be slow and small at first, but at least no landlord can kick you out, and you'll embrace your responsibility from day one, a responsibility that includes — but goes far beyond — fixing your own lights.

-Nik

---

---

About Thought Experiment Thursday: We can’t solve our problems with the same thinking that created them. Science estimates we have 7 thoughts per minute. That’s a lot of chances to change our thinking. So, on Thursdays, that’s what we’ll practice.

A question opens the mind. A statement closes it. Let’s keep ours wide open.