The “Un-Conference” Call
A strange thing happened to me on social media this week: After using an app, I walked away empowered.
I didn’t waist tens of minutes scrolling pithy statements trying to feel something.
I didn’t peruse people’s pictures of their prettied selves or their latest meals.
I didn’t like or retweet just to do it.
And best off all, I didn’t fall down a rabbit hole of grievance, because isn’t that what social media is these days: grievance?
On this certain app, I simply listened, then contributed, and afterward, I felt great.
I’m talking about Clubhouse.
Just shy of a year old, the social media platform described as “drop-in audio chat” isn’t about pictures or posing, nor is it about preaching or proselytizing.
Still in its beta launch, one must be invited, or nominated, to the platform. My best friend and life coach welcomed me.
Once on the service, you select areas of interest and can search for people on the app to follow, and then the fun begins. You’re introduced to rooms and clubs within the larger club, where you can simply drop in to listen, and then—when you’re ready—you can raise your hand to speak.
It’s a bit like a conference call, but instead it’s interesting and fun.
I spent 30 minutes here and there last week practicing my Spanish, speaking with fellow Latinos about how we build our corporate networks for upward growth, chatting with black, brown and white entrepreneurs about how to snap out of complacency, and, on day two, I co-hosted a room with my best friend and nominator about how to spark creativity.
Sure there’s a performance element to it, and a bit of eavesdropping, but the rules of engagement are in a word, egalitarian. Once welcomed “on stage” by a moderator, the speaker introduces themselves and then they take the floor. Their words are heard, processed, and then applauded. Once the speaker is finished, they say their name again, and say, “I’m done speaking.”
This act of sharing your real self through voice, hearing others do the same, and then experiencing the conversation and the collective idea grow, a certain magic materializes: humanity.
I’m so thankful my friend invited me. The few rooms I’ve been in have inspired me. I’ve since been invited to multiple rooms. I’m getting to know strangers through their real voice.
My hope is that this magic lasts, and that as more people join, the authenticity reigns, and most importantly, that toxicity never gets in.
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Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash
