To Act or to Comment

Whaller_en
Jul 20, 2017 · 4 min read

With a smartphone in his hand, today Hamlet would easily ask the question “To act or to comment?” In our era, forums can be found everywhere, and everyone readily has a comment to make, which can be tempting, easy and rewarding. However, commenting also proves to be not very demanding, often useless and sometimes even harmful. At that point, would it not be for only the elite? On the contrary, anyone who so chooses can make a comment. While my brother-in-law questioned me in 2010 about the harmlessness of Facebook for his son, I decided to, instead of commenting on his concerns, devote myself and my time to creating a social network that his kids, as well as mine, could use without having to worry.

We live in the era of comments

Commenting is a way of engaging our minds with information, a topic or a subject. All you have to do is add or subtract some elements in order to — not always so humbly — perfect it. A commenter thinks, disputes or consolidates. A comment has a derivative, a by-product of action.

Freedom of speech in Western countries paved the way for the so-called importance of a personal opinion. Nobody can express your own point of view on everything and anything better than you can, similar to an unassailable lighthouse. This is why we have the tendency to believe it is the only opinion that counts and that it must be heard, though it is nothing but an illusion. Those who are on Twitter understand how a short tweet can sometimes put us under the illusion that we grasped the essence of the subject. We live in the era of comments.

500,000 comments per minute on Facebook

Today, the worth of information published online is partly due to the readers’ engagement. The post’s number of comments or likes matters. This is why quick information, which made networks into social medias, needs our attention so much. However, in reality, what does our comment really bring to the world? Every minute, half a million comments are published on Facebook. So what?

Lives led vicariously

The present is the background of our existence. It constantly calls our attention, and it is difficult to resist the gratification that comes with commenting on it. It gives us importance. However, if we are not careful, we will soon start to live our lives vicariously through others, whether they be politicians, “people”, athletes or “friends” on social media.

But we also have the choice to act. All on your own, you can start and follow through on something positive, an endeavour or a metamorphosis. It could be a personal ambition, a childhood dream, an artistic creation, a company or simply giving your life the shape or significance that seems to be missing.

“Setting aside time”

You need to devote time to be able to do something. This means giving your continued attention to something you wish to create or transform, in accordance with the vision you gave yourself. Action does not come from reflection, but rather mostly from your relentless efforts. During my company’s beginnings, I worked without keeping track, night and day, alone and long weeks. I was overexcited by the early stages. I built like a stonecutter sculpts a bloc of granite, piece by piece, starting off general and over time getting into the smallest details.

Age quod agis: Do what you do

Action originates from a thousand tirelessly repeated smaller actions, a thousand intentions renewed every morning. Action revolves around itself. It does not worry about comments. “Age quod agis” as the poet says. Do what you do. Yes, really do it, without ever letting yourself get distracted or discouraged.

Your action must have a vision that makes it good. Even if you are a relativist and the notion of fundamentals (Beauty, Goodness and Truth) irritates you, let us be clear on a few criteria that give action its convincing worth. Action is productive, lasting, beneficial and responsible. Comments expose their author only to other comments. Action, if it is good, involves us differently. It is first our responsibility to act and exercise our freedom. We must then answer the others on what we have accomplished. Without speaking of the risks we run.

The cult of the entrepreneur

Today we are familiar with the cult of the entrepreneur, the creator of society. However, all companies are far from being economical. In many other fields, everything always begins with the first action, a rough sketch, a recipe, a vision. Being an entrepreneur, in this sense, is to act with a specific purpose in mind: to build. With the company I created, Whaller, my intention was always to establish digital confidence. Six years ago when I created this project, I first thought about my almost three-year-old daughter Myriam. The stock I continue to invest in today makes sense to me. But what really drives me in the end is wanting to pass on the fruits of my labour to those who succeed me.

Thomas Fauré, CEO at Whaller

)

Written by

Whaller enables you to easily create private social networks for your organisation, be it a company, a school, a community…

Welcome to a place where words matter. On Medium, smart voices and original ideas take center stage - with no ads in sight. Watch
Follow all the topics you care about, and we’ll deliver the best stories for you to your homepage and inbox. Explore
Get unlimited access to the best stories on Medium — and support writers while you’re at it. Just $5/month. Upgrade