What kind of attention do you want?

What kind of attention do you want? How much of that kind of attention do you want?

Every person you will meet today has a level and a kind of attention that they want. You do, too.

Perhaps attention for you is like sunlight to a flower, essential for you to flourish to your fullest. Perhaps attention for you is something you resist or do your best to avoid. Perhaps attention for you is somewhere between those two extremes.

A lot of human actions and interactions are guided by the kind of attention that a given person wants. Yet the person in question may even be aware when their personal and specific need for attention sings out loud through what they do.

Is that the attention you want?

I’ve been thinking a lot about attention this week, after listening to a 2020 podcast interview with marketing specialist and former YouTuber Finn McKenty. Marketing is all about the attention economy. How do you get the attention of the audience you need to reach?

Finn talks about how his approach to content creation derived from some words of wisdom from his father’s work as a prison counsellor:

“Here’s your options. You do what you want. But you’ve got to live with it.”

For McKenty, these words from his father can provide a crucial steer for creators in search of the kind and level of attention their work requires. He says:

“I think that’s a good reminder for people making content. For example, if you want to get a lot of attention, the number one way to do that is to talk shit about people who are famous or successful. You know, that is the best way to get attention. But you’re going to have to live with the nature of that attention. I think you get what you put out. So, I would just question, is that really what you want? Is that the attention you want? If it is, go for it. But just be thoughtful about that.”

You get what you put out. You can court the kind of attention you want to the extent that you want in the manner that you want. But you will have to live with the nature of that attention, whether positive or negative.

These words are as relevant to everyday life as they are to marketing and content creation.

Gentle reader, please consider asking yourself: What kind of attention do you want? How much of that kind of attention do you want?

May you be nothing but kind today, to others and to yourself.

May today be nothing but kind to you and yours.

IMAGES

• Helianthus angustifolius in Gahanna Ohio 1 via Wikimedia Commons.