#35 - The Price of Fame
Groundbreaker, micro-famous, and noise
We’re all a little bit famous these days. Social Media offers a platform to billions of people.
That’s a problem.
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Groundbreaker
Albert Einstein was remarkable to say the least. An absentminded and humorous chap, he shocked the world in 1905. Aged 25 he had his “miracle year” releasing no less than four ground breaking papers. A decade later, in 1915, he published his general theory of relativity and the rest is history.
Four years later, in 1919, Einstein became a global sensation. This was not a positive is his books. Once famous, Einstein reflected that fame is the bane of great work.
Fame is distracting. Einstein’s breakthroughs took years of single mind pondering and exploring ideas. Living in relative obscurity, he could focus. Post-fame those weeks of playing with ideas and long walks in the countryside were far harder to come by. He couldn’t walk through the street without recognition. How is one supposed to crack the secrets of the Universe if they must stop for an autograph every 30 seconds? Impossible.
Micro-Famous
The same dynamic plays out for all us. On social media we’re micro-famous.
I’m off most social media these days. Linkedin remains. My Linkedin engagement is pedestrian. I’m lucky if I get a couple of hundred likes. Even at that level I can see what Einstein means.
Running Unplugged isn’t rocket science. There are a handful of things I need to do well and the rest is supporting everyone involved. Any sort of traction on Linkedin and I receive a heap of DMs and comments. I go from having a clear and focused mind to overwhelmed- my attention pulled in many directions. In those moments everything feels harder. I have to remind myself my messages are not a to-do list. An easy mistake to make.
Noise
We’ve lost control of our time. 85% of us check our phones within 15 minutes of waking up. For those 15 minutes your mind is fresh, warming up for the day ahead. Then, one check of Whatsapp, or emails and the problems and requests come flooding back.
I get it wrong to this day. Some days I do well- I steer clear of the noise and am far happier and more productive as a result. Other days I’m drawn into my emails early, enticed by the exciting goings on of running a company. The day becomes a dopamine fuelled rush. Stuff happens but I’m far from present.
Less, better. That’s what it comes down to. We live in the age of more, and it’s addictive. Yet all the results come from a few. It’s the handful of relationships or the one thing done well. That’s what counts. It takes blocking out the noise to see that. It takes unplugging.
What else?
I’m speaking about Unplugged on BBC Radio London today @ 10:25 today (Sunday 26th June)
I know what you’re thinking: What a d*ckhead.. Writing an article about fame just so he can plug his radio appearance.
It’s not as impressive as it sounds. They told me: “we’ll start at around 10:25am. It may be 10:35am depending on whether we have any listeners on air”.
So unlikely to be a bumper audience. Will probably just be my mother (thanks Ma!) and a couple of lost listeners wondering what happened to the Archers.
Nonetheless tune in if you’re at a loose end. Here I believe.
My Week in Books📚
Philip & Alexander by Adrian Goldsworthy
The story of Alexander the Great and his father Philip. I find it fascinating why we’re still talking about people over two thousand years later. (more intellectual curiosity than egotistical drive to reciprocate.)
It’s a wild story. A wonderful lesson in human nature. More was never enough for Alexander, and it drove him to early grave. Splashes of Icarus. Yet, just this week my sister, Freya, recommended to me a Greek restaurant called “Alexander the Great”, and here we are talking about him today. Perhaps, to him, the early grave was worth it.
I’ll be updating the books I’ve read this year here. Any recommendations? Let me know!
A Final Thought 💡
"There have been as great souls unknown to fame as any of the most famous."
- Benjamin Franklin
Hit the nail on the head with this post 👏
Oh I wrote about unplugged this week 💛