Oh, don’t give me that. Of course you want more fans.

It’s only human to want acceptance. It makes us feel good when people project positivity towards us, pay attention to the work we do, and reward us for our accomplishments. We don’t NEED that acceptance. But we still WANT it.

A lot of people spend time out here online trying to get noticed, and there’s nothing essentially wrong with that – but it’s all in the approach. Those that spend their time broadcasting about how great they are? They probably aren’t doing themselves any favours. But those who provide genuine value, who don’t try too hard to be popular, and who do good work? They deserve to be noticed, don’t you think?

Let’s look at celebrity for a minute. No no, I mean REAL celebrity, not Internet-famous celebrity.

Both Mel Gibson and Bono are very famous, there’s no question about that. But who has more fans? I’d say that, in light of recent events, that Bono definitely has more fans. Why? Because he IS a fan. From what I know about the man, he is about as real as it gets – humble, authentic, and really, just a regular guy – with an extraordinary life. I’ve heard stories from people I know who have had personal encounters with him – he is the kind of person who will take the time to actually sit, and talk with anyone, about whatever they care about. He raises other people up above himself. He does what he can to help the greater good. He is a fan of people, and of life.

Gibson? Not so much, eh. That guy seems to spend more time ticking off his fans than raising them up.
‘Nuff said.

Here’s Your Assignment
Ok class, a couple of weeks back, you were tasked with looking up from your mobile devices for a while and instead, having conversations with the people standing in front of you. How did you do?

It’s time to move to the next level. This week, I want you to find people who are doing cool things, and I want you to find a way to tell them how much you appreciate what they are doing. I want you to become one of their fans. And don’t just tell THEM what you appreciate, tell others too. Shout it from the rooftops if you have to – but be a genuine fan.

Now, don’t go getting all kissy-face and “great post-y” on me, that’s not the point. The point is to spend more time focusing on the amazing things that others are doing, INSTEAD of the amazing things that you’re doing. Project your admiration and pride outwards. Bono wins countless awards and has people banging down his door telling him how great he is all the time. But instead of letting it go to his head, he takes that energy and points it to other people. He uses his influence to shine a light on the good things in the world, and it comes back to him, because he ultimately wins the admiration of people who may not even love his music. See how this works?

I want you to do the same this week – focus your energy not on proving to the world how great YOU are, but on proving to the world how great other people are.

Deal?

[photo credit: spacelion on Flickr]