Passion Is A Terrible Thing to Waste

Every now and then, when I have too much time on my hands, I do a Twitter search for "adcontrarian."

It helps me gauge what people are saying about this blog. But what I find more interesting is that it gives me a sense of the type of person who is tweeting about it.

Since I am highly skeptical of the magical properties of digital advertising -- and often whine about it publicly --  I am surprised to find that a very large proportion of tweeters and retweeters of my material describe themselves as somehow involved in digital advertising or marketing.

Another interesting thing is that in the brief personal description that Twitter allows, there is a large number who describe themselves as "strategists." Apparently, the digital industry is swimming in strategists.

The adjective that these strategists use most often to describe themselves is "passionate."

If you can believe their descriptions, however, they seem to be passionate about dismaying activities like "consumer engagement," "social branding," and "web evangelism." In the good old days of advertising  all this passion might have been directed at more worthwhile pastimes like drinking and screwing. I guess social media is replacing social behavior.

On the other hand, one Twitterer succinctly and courageously described himself as a "Schmuck." You've got to admire that kind of honesty.

And for all you digital strategists out there, a tip from an old guy -- don't fritter away your passion on foolish crap like "consumer engagement," "social branding," and "web evangelism." Passion is a terrible thing to waste.