December 29th, 2025
I was approached with a question that was quite challenging this week.
Does attention equal value?
Let’s take it one step further: does the right attention actually equal value?
Seems like a simple enough question but in the context of our highly “connected” society I was taken aback by this.
If you choose to start a business, you would be amazed at the number of people who are suddenly in the marketing sphere that attempt to get your business by promising you endless attention online.
They have scripts, they have gadgets and gizmos, they have shiny objects that are filled with testimonials about success, they have the marketing fine tuned to target the exact people that you want to help but is it true?
Does the attention they generate actually create value?
Monetarily? Emotionally? Spiritually?
I’d argue from my own experience that it is one of the biggest lies we face as a culture in the 21st century.
Having been conditioned to follow celebrities, we seem to believe that in becoming an influencer we can suddenly generate a life that equates to those we watch artificially generated on TV.
We believe that by generating attention that is quantified in clicks and likes and shares and streams that we have somehow generated value.
This social status measurement, in my opinion, is a giant bag of trash.
It is junk that is toxic to our brain and convolutes our ability to discern what is true from what is generated for the purpose of attention.
More often than not, the value that is created by this attention is a distraction from pursuing what is true, good, noble, and beautiful.
We are on the brink of a cultural shift where more of our society is attempting to become and influencer which may yield some dopamine for a short blip but it does not transform a person or a culture or a society.
I’d say that the attention culture we have generated has actually brought negative value to our lives.
It is incapacitated our youth from being able to have meaningful tribes and connections with real people.
It is incapacitated our coming of age adults from pursuing relationships and dating.
It is incapacitated our young married couples from learning how to navigate the hard times.
It is incapacitated our business owners from the blood, sweat, and tears it takes to actually grow a business.
In my opinion attention does not equate to value.
Even a further idea of the right attention does not equate to value.
I’d say that the opposite is true, value is something that is generated from truth. And what is true and noble and good more than likely will not generate clicks and likes on social media.
What is true and noble will be something you have to encounter in the world through lived life experiences in tribes as it has been since the creation of man.
The shiny object looks promising but the values it generates are destroying our ability to identify with what is actually valuable as a human.
It’s time to stop chasing clicks and likes and to reconnect with your tribe.
Turn the phone off, log off social media, reconnect with people and you will quickly discover the real equation for generating value.
Human connection + truth + time + experience = lasting value.
