A Rose By Any Other Name…

Kevin Rose, founder of the Social News site Digg.com, was on The Jimmy Fallon Show last night.  That got me thinking about how I define Celebrity.  The first time I ever met Kevin in person,  I was chasing him down 3rd Street in San Francisco.  Wait – it’s not what you think.  It was actually a photo shoot for the cover of Inc. Magazine.  I was stranded due to Hurricane Ike for a little over a week, and staying at Tara Hunt’s house.  I remember we were coworking around her dining room table when she asked me if I wanted to go chase Kevin down the street.  I was like, “Sure – why not?”.

The title of the photo shoot was: Oh, Shoot: A Hard Day’s Night with Kevin Rose.  Kind of a tribute to The Beattles, Technology, and Uber-fame all rolled together.  I’m the plump, happy gal in the video (see right) who clearly hates running.  It’s funny because Rocky caught the exact moment when Kevin and I first shook hands in that video.  But here’s the thing – as cool as it was to meet Kevin Rose, it pales in comparison to the first time I really met Tara.

Meeting Your Heroes

The first time I met Tara Hunt I had no idea who she was.  She was the pretty blond who seemed to hang out with that Chris Messina guy a lot.  I knew who Chris Messina was because I’d gone to a talk Tantek gave at SXSW in 2006 on Microformats.  That was the day I’d first learned about BarCamp.  And that was the night I attended my first BarCamp.  Chances are that I even met Tara at BarCamp – I know because there are pictures showing both of us there – but if we spoke I don’t remember.

I left SXSW in 2006 filled with energy and passion.  I was determined to help organize the first BarCampHouston.  And I did.  And in the process, I learned about Tara Hunt.  Tara it turns out was brilliant.  A veritable force of nature.  I devoured everything she wrote whether on her blog, on google groups, or on twitter.  She became my idol.  And I wanted nothing more in the world than for her to know who I was.  I even re-wrote my bio to include the following phrase: “She considers Tara Hunt her idol.”  In case you’re wondering why I’m sharing this with you, gentle reader, don’t worry all will be revealed.

I was, for all intents and purposes, star struck.  The next time I saw Tara in person was at SXSW in 2007.  Over the last year, we’d slowly gotten to know each other via Twitter.  But we were still relative strangers – and I was still completely star struck.  And while Tara was very polite and nice to me at SXSW and BarCamp that year – I’m not sure she really knew who I was.  At least not at first.  It was during that SXSW that we had the first BarCamp Planning Committee (I think that’s what it was called), at the Driskill Hotel.  My dear friend whurley had invited me to come participate, and that’s the first time I really got to talk to Tara and work along side her.

The first time I saw Tara and she remembered who I was – was in Vegas during MIX 2007.  Chris & Tara were co-working at a lounge in the Venetian and I introduced them to my sister and Matt.  I was so excited because Tara seemed to not only genuinely remember who I was – but be very pleased to see me.

The Danger with Pedastals

I can’t help but feel a little vulnerable and uncomfortable sharing this story with you.  But there is an important lesson in here I promise.

It’s human nature to admire greatness, to look up to people who are in some way exceptional.  But it’s very difficult to cultivate a true and lasting friendship with someone who you keep on a pedastal.  Ultimately, Tara and I became friends (and very close friends I might add) when I realized that she was, afterall, human.  In fact, her humanity is a key factor in her overarching success.  Her ability to be real and vulnerable is what draws people in.  And by her actions, she encourages acts of bravery and everyday rebellion.

Tara is now one of my closest friends.  I stay at her house when I go to San Francisco, and she stays with me here in Houston.  And we frequently travel together.  We’ve been to countless cities with one another including New York, Philadelphia, Austin…you get the idea.  And while she’s still a celebrity in my eyes, my definition of celebrity has changed.

Kevin and Alex said on The Jimmy Fallon show that they are always confused when people are scared to approach them or star struck – “We’re just normal dudes,” said Alex.  And that’s the absolute truth.  People are people whether they are known by millions or known only to themselves.  And what people crave most is to be seen and to form deep and lasting relationships with people who care about them for who they are, and not for what they do or who they know.

My friend Francisco Dao is about to release a book called Business Cards Don’t Matter.  And I’m going to quote a small section from that book.  This is called the Neil Patel Rule:

“It doesn’t matter what you do. The only thing that matters is how awesome you are to be around.”

This year at SXSWi I’m not as interested in meeting tons of people or getting my photo taken with every Tech Celebrity on the planet.  This year I’m much more interested in spending time with the people I love and admire, my friends.  Who are afterall, the only celebrities that really matter to me.

So if we meet at a party or a panel or in the hallways, don’t tell me what you do for a living.  I’m not interested.  Instead tell me what moves you, what brings passion to your life, what fills you with fear, and what makes you get out of bed in the morning.

I hope we’ll run into each other

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