Memeflinger or influencer?

There’s a way to generate influence that bugs me. I call people who do this “memeflingers.”

Here’s how it works.

First, identify the memes that are spreading most widely on social media, especially if they include meaningless platitudes about behavior and careers. Maybe even hire people to track them down for you.

Second, repost as many as possible of those memes. Repeatedly, if necessary.

Third, build up a huge following on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram based on sharing such memes.

Fourth, use that following to establish yourself as an “influencer” and use the following to promote yourself or your company.

What kind of memes?

Here are a bunch of posts from one account:

Where’s the value?

Honestly, I’m not picking on this one person, who I’m sure is an intelligent and resourceful individual. If you figure out who it is, good for you, but don’t post it here.

My problem is not with this person, my problem is with the technique.

How does “I recycle other people’s popular content” translate to “I have special wisdom” and then “Follow me for access to that wisdom?”

What is a memeflinger’s area of expertise? Being a decent human being?

I have a bias towards the original. If you have a new idea, even if I disagree with it, I respect that more than old recycled ideas.

Please, disagree with me. It could be that memes are an art form. Perhaps memeflingers are “curating” the internet. Maybe you like this stuff and feel it enriches your life.

But don’t aspire to this. Learn from experience, not shallow memes. Read books. Do original research. Write original thoughts.

If this is the future of influence, leave me out of it.