You Never Know

I heard a business writer interviewed on NPR this morning.  She's written a book on investing called The 10 Laws of Enduring Success.  She was well spoken, full of anecdotes and examples.  She didn't pull any punches on Wall Street or the anger of the American people over the bailouts and financial mess.  When the interview was almost over, the host of the show asked her if she was insulted by her nickname, The Money Honey.

At that point, I was waiting for some feminist diatribe and a discussion on how her serious works were disparaged.  It never came.  She said she thought it was funny.  Turns out, she knows the story behind it.

She'd been covering Wall Street and all things financial as a reporter.  She got emails from a guy named Joey Ramone asking her opinion on different companies and especially on internet stocks.  She didn't think he was THE Joey Ramone, but she answered his questions and they had conversations over time.  Eventually, she considered him a friend as you do with correspondents.

One day, he told her he had written a poem about her.  He WAS that Joey Ramone.  She has a TV show where she gives the financial news and some opinion.  I'm pretty sure her theme song is sung by The Ramones.  They played it at the end of the interview.  So, she not only knows the source of the nickname, but the intention behind it.  Which was all benign and friendly.

You never know who your listeners or readers are.  You don't know who you reach when you publish a book, a song or star in a TV show.  You might be very important to a total stranger.  That person might feel like they know you, are friends with you, or have a right to your time.  Putting yourself out into public is putting yourself into a situation where you might be contacted by someone who approves or disapproves of your work.

You might get called a name.  You might make a lifelong friend.  You never know.

--Sandee Wagner