This is certainly not a jab at my boys who run Klout; and for the record, I think they are doing some pretty amazing things – and yes, I do check my Klout score every now and then and have enjoyed a few Klout Perks along the way — love my Kobe (Black Mamba) poster that’s hanging in my office (okay, cube).
We live in a world today where ego prevails. I see it all around me where friends, colleagues and even a few of my mentors consistently talk only about themselves. And as much as I try to keep mine in check, sometimes it lets loose, I admit it.
Self promotion is okay within reason. But the reality is and whether you see it or not, we live in a world where there is suffering, poverty and people in need of the very things that we all take for granted every single day — all while we tweet, retweet and brag about how many lists we are on. Most of us live in a bubble and have no idea what is going on in the world around us. Now imagine this just for a second. Imagine if we refocused our conversations just a little — and instead of spending time tweeting that we just updated our “about page” on our blog or thanking people for reaching a thousand Twitter followers – that we shared something so much more important and impactful. I am not talking about sports scores, what’s for dinner or complaining about receiving poor customer service from an airline. I am talking about conversations that make people aware of the problems that exist globally and even in our own neighborhoods like poverty, sex trafficking and cancer to name a few. These are all global problems and using “our” collective influence to not only make people aware of an issue but actually do something about it would make a tremendous impact. I am talking to myself here too; and this is the reason why I am donating 100% of my book royalties to Not For Sale.
A few years ago, my dear friends Jennifer Leggio, Gabriel Carrejo and I started the Silicon Valley Tweetup. Over the last two years, we have supported organizations like the Anissa Lopez Foundation, George Mark Children’s House, Twitter Kids of Tanzania, San Jose Family Shelter, the American Cancer Societies Relay For Life and Fair Fund. I am proud to say that we have not only raised awareness about these organizations but also raised several thousands of dollars. It’s something I am so very proud of to know that we have made such an impact in people’s lives.
Wouldn’t it be awesome if Klout’s algorithm actually took into consideration the conversations we have about some of these issues? Better yet, what about our financial contributions? I wonder how many folks would be willing to share their Klout scores if that was the case. Probably not a lot and I find that to be a huge problem.
What say you Klout? Any possibility of seeing a @kloutforgood anytime in the future?
About Michael Brito