Rock on, ninjas
We’ve poked fun at the rise in people calling themselves ninjas and gurus over the years as social media has become more prevalent.
This has injected an excitement into the professional world that is unprecedented, causing some to lose their minds and exaggerate how “hip” they are with trendy profile descriptions like “I’m a social media guru ninja sensei guru rockstar.”
LinkedIn has put science behind the rise in professionals losing their marbles and have outlined the trend in changing job titles over the years.
For example, between 2002 and 2007, LinkedIn noted a surge in the percentage of job titles that include the word “ninja” as well as “guru” and “evangelist” (sidenote: evangelist is not usually a self-imposed job title, just visit monster.com to see for yourself).
Ninjas on LinkedIn:
Gurus on LinkedIn:
Here’s what we think of ninjas… ’nuff said:
Lani is the COO and News Director at The American Genius, has co-authored a book, co-founded BASHH, Austin Digital Jobs, Remote Digital Jobs, and is a seasoned business writer and editorialist with a penchant for the irreverent.
Jason Sandquist
April 8, 2010 at 11:15 pm
The look that “wannabe ninja” gives before the 1st class face plant is priceless
Cathy
April 9, 2010 at 7:49 am
I was just going through the registration for PubCon, and there were more than a few ninjas and gurus…. and one guy who wanted to be listed at Home in Charge and a Director of Awesomization. It’s fun and it’s catchy, but it sort of screams d-bag. Love the article!
Jonathan Benya
April 9, 2010 at 1:27 pm
Director of Awesomization? There’s the person I’m running to for all of my social media needs. Hey Lani, maybe it’s time we change your title to Chief Executive Media Directress Hipster of Ninja Real Estate Awesomization? It sounds like the next big thing here!
Joe Loomer
April 12, 2010 at 6:49 pm
Dude gets up after his trip to la-la-land and thinks he’s still supposed to be num-chukin’! Priceless!