Have you ever looked in the mirror and been surprised at the old person looking back at you? Is it just a male thing?
At his 60th birthday party, my father-in-law described this dilemma. He wonders every morning what happened to the face of the 18 year old who used to greet him while shaving. It is not that he feels all that different — sure he has more knowledge and understanding of the world — but his enthusiasm and excitement for each and every day has not waned.
Russell Davies has been asked to speak at a Youth Marketing conference. It is no surprise that he has been asked, considering his profile, expertise and insight … yet he was struck by a similar paradox. He was "trying not to laugh at my own ridiculousness".
Yet it is PRECISELY this ability to laugh at himself, to view his position through the eyes of his audience (OK they will be marketers not "teens"), that makes his insight, writing and ideas so sought after. And that fact that he can generously share this with the world will make him ok in the eyes of today’s young people … they can smell a fake at 50 paces. The key is authenticity.
S.