Yesterday I was invited onto a seat on Blab. I was attracted to the show after seeing a friend in one of the other seats.
As the host of the Blab accepted my request to join the conversation, she decided to welcome me with several derogatory comments about lawyers (yes, I’m a lawyer).
This woman was a professional. How she welcomed me to her Blab honestly caught me a bit off-guard. In a DM on Twitter after the show, my friend confirmed he felt the same way about what she said to me. By the way, the name of this lady isn’t important but I think my takeaway is.
Had my friend not been on the Blab, I would have simply left the broadcast. Life’s too short to deal with people who are so self-involved with themselves that they don’t respect others and see the big picture. Instead, I took the high road and tried to engage in a positive fashion until my family was ready to head out for Saturday afternoon soccer. A day later, I’m still a bit bothered by what happened and wanted to get a few thoughts off my chest.
First, technology doesn’t make people successful. People make people successful. How we treat and interact with other people is what defines our happiness and success. It also helps shape the perceptions others have about each of us, good and bad and right or wrong, on various live streaming platforms.
I’m not sure if the host of this show was serious, just making a bad joke, or simply sharing several misguided comments. Either way, it immediately alienated me from her. Despite the value of her message and services, and I’m giving her the benefit of the doubt, she’s lost me as a live streaming participant, a referral source (30 years of business connections), and as a possible client.
The takeaway I mentioned is as follows. On live streams, in business and life, you never get a second chance to make a good first impression. Always be polite and courteous with others. Even if, for whatever reason, you don’t respect or like what someone else stands for or does for a living, keep it to yourself. No matter how smart or funny you think you are, most everyone else watching will not feel the same way. In fact, most will wonder what you will say about them when they’re not around or on one of your shows.
In closing my little min-rant, this weekend’s Blab reminds me of something Mark Twain once said:
“It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.”
Let’s treat each other with respect. It’s the best way, if not the only way, to engage on the live streaming platforms.
Today’s #Periscope on the same topic!
