Thought Leadership

There’s a lot of “thought leadership” online, especially on Twitter. Much of this consists of what I tend to call “gossamer aphorisms”. They are aphorisms because they are usually stated plainly without explanation, with an implication of the presenter nodding sagely as they type, as if bringing the wisdom of the ages to this particular situation, or a heaped dose of good old fashioned common sense. They are gossamer because they’re beautiful when you look at them, but flimsy - and dissolve under even the gentlest examination. Usually they are far too binary or linear in their analysis, don’t fit this circumstance, or a moment’s thought reveals numerous examples where they don’t apply as universally as is implied. ...