Walk on stage, walk on stage, walk on stage
Have a thought-leader explaining his thought-leader process to a rapt audience of thought-leader appreciators.
Self-proclaimed “thought leader” Pat Kelly gives his talk on “thought leadership” at the annual CBC This Is That Talks in Whistler, B.C.
Note the scare-quotes.
Strangely, they don’t like being called “thought followers.”
I found that very profound, even transformative in its insight, and would very much like to absently graze videos by this man or someone who talks and dresses like him on a regular basis. I feel if everyone could just hear this talk, it might just change their lives. Or possibly not, but it was fun saying that, while nodding apparently thoughtfully and solemnly and perching my glasses near the end of my nose and peering in donnish fashion over them as though they were reading glasses (which they are not).. Oh, look, _another_ video! And this one has kittens!
(Semi-related: I occasionally hear This Is That (via FM in the car, usually; yes, such technology does in fact still exist). Bit hit and miss, sometimes honestly just ho hum chuckleworthy, but when good, _very_ good. Funniest bits are usually the outraged calls from listeners… Never quite sure if those or some of them are genuinely appalled and confused listeners; seems all a bit improbable, but apparently at least early on they had some trouble with people not realizing, no, that story about repealing the law of gravity on weekends due to a lack of available personnel to enforce or whatever wasn’t actually from the newsroom.)
Ha! I was annoyed at the audience for not laughing, at first, until I managed to figure out that they were performing too.
I’m also a fan of listening to This is That via technology that I have in my house and car (that can pull energy waves out of the air and convert them into (mostly) intelligible sounds). I give This is That about 75-80% for pieces that range from mildly amusing to downright hilarious. I’ve seen other spoof TED talks, but this is the first time I’ve seen a public takedown of “Thought Leadership”
Brilliant. People will plunk down hundreds to listen to similar performances promising everything and anything.