talking heads

Raise your hand if you’ve attended a panel discussion where you just tuned out after a few minutes.

I know I’m in that camp.

There are so many “talking heads” out there who just spew industry jargon just to make themselves feel better and make their audience feel inferior.

These kinds of discussions are important, because it’s an opportunity to hear how the leaders in an industry are thinking and prioritizing their efforts.

But too often it’s sooooo boring.

I was a panelist yesterday and my whole goal was to see how many people we could keep on until the very end.

We turned it into a conversation, instead of a Q&A.

I got the greatest advice one time before a conference from my boss at the time.

He said something like “If people wanted data, they would read a report. They are here to listen to YOU.”

That shit blew my mind.

People are showing up to hear what I have to say?!

Too many panel discussions fall into the trap of a bunch of canned questions with banal prepared answers.

Why don’t we try bringing our whole human selves to the table, and contribute our unique perspectives from our life experiences.

We did that yesterday and it seemed to work.

In case you were wondering, 87% of people stayed the entire hour.

Would you pay for a subscription where you could listen to industry leaders talk about their challenges and opportunities?

These kinds of conversations are decentralized and often behind closed doors. However, increased transparency about priorities will actually help business by

Clubhouse tried to do something similar during the pandemic, but I think people realized that listening to randos and friends talk all day gets old really quick…

I’m imagining a space where the executives have an opportunity to engage in open and and honest discussions with peers, while other market participants can align their work with corporate priorities.

Thoughts?