Posted by Chris Brogan always inspires me. He asks Blog-provoking questions and gives abundantly of his time and brain. So much so, that after a phone call he had today with a potential client they said that he shares so much information on his Blog that they wondered what more he could possibly offer should they hire him?
He tells the story on his Blog in the posting, Am I Too Naked.
The Blog posting title was inspired by the Shel Israel and Robert Scoble‘s book on Blogging called, Naked Conversations: How Blogs are Changing the Way Businesses Talk with Customers. As you can well imagine, the Blog posting has sparked an even better conversation in the comments sections that is well worth checking out, but I think there’s a bigger idea here that has not been addressed.
Everyone commenting (and this includes Chris and the individual who said this to him in the first place) seem to think that ideas, strategy and execution is based on the scarcity model. Meaning, they will get something that no one else is getting – and that it is also in limited supply. The more I have, the less my competition has.
This is not the case.
The new channel does not work on the scarcity model ("if you share everything on the Blog, what’s left for us?"). The more people Blog, share and connect, the more they learn and the more they can bring to the table. The more they see how others do it and what people think about, the more value they add. The more I Blog, the more I Podcast, the more I use Twitter or Facebook, the smarter and more strategic I am in meetings with our clients at Twist Image.
Scarcity is a fabrication most traditional businesses use to persuade their clients that they have something in a limited supply that their competitors do not.
It’s a lie when it comes to the new media – we have unlimited space for an unlimited amount of voices and ideas online.
So, to answer your question Chris Brogan, you can never be too naked. The more naked you are, the more you’re able to bring to those clients… even the ones who think you might have nothing more to offer.
Never another podcast episode or article 
In the past, value was largely based on scarcity: the less open and available, the higher the value.
Today, I’d argue that value is based on connectedness: the more open and available, the higher the value.
What’s in your head, or my head, or Chris Brogan’s head is not the be-all and end-all.
What’s interesting is the collision of interesting ideas and diverse opinions and what new things that might create.
Anyone who hopes to be brilliant in a vaccuum should go blog for a week. Then they’d realize that there’s a lot more creativity outside the safety zone than there is inside.
hey mitch
i think that what i love most about social media is that it pays to be open and be “naked”. the more you listen and share ideas, the more you can add to the conversations. coming from the traditional model of the music business where the idea was to ‘hide everything’ on pain of death, to the world of social media where smart people talk and share things freely is amazing. and i agree with tom, connectivity is the new currency.
You and Chris always inspire me! Lately, I’ve been putting myself out there a lot more. I’m planning on doing more over the next little while. I’ve been wondering how much is too much.
After reading your posts and reflecting on the impact of sharing more and increasing connectivity with others, I agree with you entirely.
Thanks for leading the way and showing us how it’s done.
“The more I Blog, the more I Podcast … the smarter and more strategic I am in meetings with our clients at Twist Image.”
F**king eh, Mitch…
Just to play off the post and David’s comment, Grant McCracken (cultureby.com) has a great post about how the music world is opening up. He specifically comments on how Lil Wayne has been busy flooding the market “free stuff”. AND THEN, something funny happened – his album went #1. Sure, there were probably plenty of people who thought “why buy this album when he gives away so much for free”? But 1.68 million people voted with their wallets and still bought the album.
There will always be people who will figure that there’s nothing left to buy if you give of yourself so freely. But I’m betting that these people are outnumbered by the people who will think MORE of you (and be more likely to buy your product/services) for it.