I have always thought it would be cool to be ‘Internet Famous’. Looked up to by your peers, invited to speak at conferences all over the world, and make a handsome salary. I have changed my mind. The reason? Most of the ‘Internet Famous’ people I have had any contact with are jerks. It seems that they think if they haven’t heard your name or heard about anything you have worked on, you are not worth their time.
This could be just me, but the few of these type of people that I have reached out to are jerks (that is the censored version). I am confident that I am not the only one that has experienced this sort of arrogance, and I am absolutely sure that I never want to be the guy that is too good to talk to someone else.
It’s sad in a way. People that are looked up to from others in a given community have an awesome opportunity to help people that no one has ever heard of. An opportunity to help those that may be climbing up through the ranks to get better at their craft, and in turn both people become better developers/designers/etc..
If you are one of the ‘Internet Famous’ people, take a moment and think about what taking a few minutes might mean. You never know, you might actually learn something from someone who is beneath you.