Mashable reported that more than 347 new blog posts are published, 571 new websites are created and more than 684K pieces of Facebook content are shared every minute. With the staggering amount of content being created on the web and posted you might say it’s all been said before.
Simply log on to LinkedIn, Facebook or Google, and you will see countless management blogs and articles about how to revolutionize your sales, how to make your first million or top five mistakes when hiring and firing. But what is often missed is not the face of the blog or the article as much as the inspiration behind it.
For instance, one might read an article about a Super Bowl victory, but the experience of the writer who was able to attend the Super Bowl of his favorite team with his father may be completely missed. Or maybe you might read an article about 10 steps to handling an injury with your toddler knowing what it is like to take your child to the Emergency Room for the first time.
This concept of seeing but not living reminds me of one of my favorite movie scenes in Good Will Hunting where Robin Williams’ character challenges Matt Damon's character to see beyond what he has read about in text:
“So if I asked you about art you’d probably give me the skinny on every art book ever written. Michelangelo? You know a lot about him. Life’s work, political aspirations, him and the pope, sexual orientation, the whole works, right? But I bet you can’t tell me what it smells like in the Sistine Chapel. You’ve never actually stood there and looked up at that beautiful ceiling. Seen that. If I asked you about women you’d probably give me a syllabus of your personal favorites. You may have even [laid with a woman] a few times. But you can’t tell me what it feels like to wake up next to a woman and feel truly happy. You’re a tough kid. I ask you about war, and you’d probably, uh, throw Shakespeare at me, right? ‘Once more into the breach, dear friends.’ But you’ve never been near one. You’ve never held your best friend’s head in your lap and watched him gasp his last breath, looking to you for help. And if I asked you about love you probably quote me a sonnet. But you’ve never looked at a woman and been totally vulnerable. Known someone that could level you with her eyes. Feeling like God put an angel on Earth just for you…who could rescue you from the depths of hell. And you wouldn’t know what it’s like to be her angel and to have that love for her, to be there forever. Through anything. Through cancer. You wouldn’t know about sleeping sitting’ up in a hospital room for two months holding her hand because the doctors could see in your eyes that the term ‘visiting hours don’t apply to you.”
This isn’t a quality of quantity argument but rather, it’s about insight, inspiration and where to find information that resonates with you.
– Insight is hearing someone else’s viewpoint based on their experiences. It is emotionally being able to step into their shoes and empathize with their pain, joy or personal growth.
– Inspiration can be found in the victory that follows a person’s authentic story of struggle. We all love an underdog because it helps us to see ourselves winning; it compels us to fight against our constraints and push further ahead.
– Information discovery is easy, but finding true, quality information that appeals to us may not be. Think about information you might hear in the form of “word of mouth” marketing. If we trust the source the information is coming from then we are more likely to buy it. Therefore, seek information that you find impactful.
So why does any of this matter? Because what people miss is not what has been said, but what had been experienced, and that experiential component is what it is really all about. It compels people to blog and write and express themselves so that their knowledge and story can inspire or help someone else.
I have been blogging, writing and publishing content for nearly 10 years. My book, Grow Regardless, has hit five best selling lists. My blog has been read by tens of thousands of people. But when people reach out and give me feedback it wasn’t because they thought my message was nice or it was worthwhile information. Rather, they reached out because my experience resonated with them in some way.
So, when you read that next blog or article, don’t read it for the words, rather read it for the message that it provides for you and remember to keep blogging . . . regardless.
Joe Mechlinski is CEO and Co-Founder of entreQuest, where he's helped hundreds of companies prosper through some of the worst economic times in history. Joe's debut book, Grow Regardless, an instant New York Times bestseller, defines strategic growth, change management, and organizational development.
