Taking the metaphor into our own lives, when do we stop and question our own actions and simply ask: why are we making these choices? Is it because we think it is right? Or because everyone else thinks its right? When working with people in business I hear constant requests: “We have to do this!” Then there is a stampede! (The stampede de jour is Social Media. )

When I push back and say, “well no, that won’t work” I am seen as a pariah. And yet I find myself grumbling at the obvious: erosion of privacy, empowerment of Google, Google’s unfair auction practices, social media’s mushy paybacks. I spend a lot of time outraged. But that does not mean that I am stabbing what I “should be” promoting. I simply want to bring reason to the stampede. I am drilling down to meaningful long term solutions for my clients. The process is maddening because it is so counter the over hyped world of advertising and marketing. But though it may be counter intuitive to others, it is completely intuitive to me.

Kumaritashvilli’s death has made a deep impact on me. I saw writ bold how someone who has spent a lifetime guarding against stampede thinking can be stampeded. How vigilant must we be? Clearly vigorously is never enough.