That feeling you’ve got? The one where you think it’s stress and frustration? I’ll re-frame it … for many, it’s fear and anxiety, otherwise known as vulnerability. 

So many words, I know. But if you know me, you know I talk about the change thing constantly, and we have a slight luxury in the fact that we can recognize things are changing faster than we can keep up … so we are able to create a strategy to adapt. 

But while creating our individual strategies, we also could use a little direction. We crave direction; there is comfort in someone telling us that things are going to be OK. Like JFK telling us we can get to the moon, we, as a society, need someone to help quell the anxiety, recognize our vulnerability, and charge us up to get to the next level. 

And while there is no shortage of experts telling you HOW you are supposed to be (without context), there is a glaring gap in the category of “gurus we can trust.” Everyone seems to be selling this fix or that fix, or promote ideas that are self-serving to their ego. It’s rare to find someone who can balance the “what’s best for everyone” with their own self interest in an appropriate way. 

It takes transparency, conscience, altruism, and trust. And while we develop ourselves and build – this trust difficult to come by. 

Now, it’s easy to state that “other people should be shining examples for us.” We can’t dictate what public figures should be, while not expecting them to do it to us. However, these people exist already, and it’s up to us to find them. It’s our responsibility to filter the noise that coming to us as we create our strategies. We click the follow or unfollow button. And as we look to get our influence and developmental information, remember this: garbage in; garbage out. 

So – this week, rethink the info you are getting; and if the people you follow are really worth following. There is are obligations that come with being a public figure; yet many seem to neglect or ignore this. Self-interest and promotion often conflict with what’s best for the audience. 

SO – that’s the thought this week … good luck with it … and have a great time cutting back the follow list.