Actions Speak Louder (September 2025)

We are now in a social media driven world where every action, idea, joke, slander or thought line can be videotaped, broadcasted and promoted for followership. Where every waking day has become another opportunity of desperate competition for millions of people online who holler, “Look at me! No, look at me! NO, LOOK AT ME!” And we can all get pulled into it.

As a result of so much promoted online material that we now call “content,” we are actually creating some of the most vain, self-centered people who ever walked the planet earth. Seriously! And where we used to promote new projects and products with a designed schedule in mind, we are now able to watch people who videotape themselves taking a routine walk through the park with their family dog while calling it “content” for thousands of people who “follow” them.

But before I call that a little extra, just think about the vanity of the Egyptians, the Greeks and the Romans, who all had their eras of extreme self-appreciation. If you stop and think about it, we have more incredible artifacts that are still standing from those three historical cultures than any others that were produced.

So, maybe we are now in another one of those incredible cultural zones of history, where we document everything. However, in our continuous attempts to create attention in the middle of a million other vehicles, we can actually lose our focus on what’s really important. And although we all want to be read, watched, talked about (in good ways) and called upon to perform, we have to be cognizant of our various attempts of promotion overtaking the purpose of what we’re doing in the first place.

For instance, as a writer of books, I would normally take a full year to research, write, edit, design and then promote a new book for the community to evaluate on different topics that were interesting to address in a novel.

But in today’s community, if I take a year off with nothing to say on social media, a podcast, or a YouTube video, it would be similar to becoming a hermit or dropping off the planet. Like, where did he go? Which forces you to feel anxious about not posting anything, even when you really don’t have anything to say at the moment.

I battle with that dilemma right now. Do I stick to the pace and tempo that makes more sense for the research, logic and delivery of my normal annual projects? Or do I succumb to the new microwave meals of steady content that “followers” may or may not like, while I knowingly overextend myself?

I’ve seen it done by several media friends of mine, who consistently jump in front of cameras now for a momentary spotlight faster than cheetahs chasing down a wildebeest.

After a while, it looks pressed and exhausting, particularly when you check your social media numbers and realize that you still haven’t grown a significant audience with all of your content antics. That’s when we can pulled in by the lure of the times that have definitely changed.

So, I now challenge myself to be resilient in the practice of DOING more than I talk about. You know, you have to remind yourself to hold on to the skills that you’ve already mastered and continue to use them for community good, whether the masses choose to join in and follow you or not.  Because everyone is not going to join you on your mission. And at the end of the day, we all have to make a decision to stick to what we are good at, or run the risk of losing ourselves in the rat race of competition with others, who may not even do what we do, just because they have more “followers” and “engagement” in doing whatever.

I’m realizing in this new confusion that it’s good for us to maintain consistency in something as professionals, like used to do. Training, experience and consistency is what made us professionals in the first place. Society could count on us to deliver what we need when we need it. And all our talk and promotions on social media won’t ever change that. The bills still need to be paid with work and income—unless you’ve found a way to do so otherwise.

The last time I checked, our ACTIONS still speak louder words or post. So, no matter how many people choose to follow the next man or woman who may be more popular than you are, productivity still comes down to what you can PRODUCE for your community.

Eventually, after all of the talk, promotions, and viral content that floods the social media marketplace each day, we’re all gonna have to show and prove what we’re capable of producing for a living, unless you’ve found a way to monetize your activities.

And if you’re not a videographer, a comedian, a dancer, a rapper, or a new wave content expert, then we have to maintain comfort, poise and confidence in doing what we still know how to do. I have to remind myself that every day now. We can’t all do everything. So, don’t lose your focus while being hammered by a million new distractions. Keep doing whatever you do that works! That’s exactly what I plan on. Keep your focus.

What about you?

Omar Tyree is a New York Times bestselling author who has published more than 30 books and counting and won an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Work of Fiction after graduating from Howard University, cum laude, with a degree in Print Journalism from the School of Communications in 1991.