The idea that one person can change the world might sound far-fetched, but
Brent Lindeque has catalysed an online revolution which could render the
biggest sceptic, a believer.
Though the origins of the social media phenomenon known as NEKnominating
are unclear, legend has it that the chain activity, which requires the downing of
an alcoholic beverage and the nomination of two more participants who have 24
hours to repeat and up the ante on their challenge, began as a bar drinking
game in Australia – no surprises there. However, what is pleasantly surprising is
that Brent Lindeque, director of brand activation agency The Chaos Theory, has
turned the game into a pay-it-forward drive for positive action which he calls:
Change One Thing.
“When we post something online we are essentially immortalising our actions
and words. That is your product, that is the brand you are projecting for the rest
of the world to see and you can either be proud of it or not. I heard about the
NEKnominations and my take was that we need to be a little more responsible
about what we post online,’ says Lindeque, who saw the movement as an
opportunity to campaign for acts of kindness, instead of binge drinking. As it
turns out, inebriation is far less infectious than selfless generosity.
“I gave a homeless person a meal for lunch, thinking that it would at least reach
and spread throughout my own friendship circle. I posted the video and within
minutes it had over 100 views. An hour later it had shot up to a thousand views
and a few days later my Facebook inbox was filled with thousands of incredibly
moving messages.’
What came next was an overwhelming response which saw people from
Australia, Canada, France, Dubai and the UK uploading videos and creating their
own NEKnomination campaigns for good causes – ranging from donations to
literally giving the clothes off their backs to persons in need.
To date, Lindeque’s video has over 330 000 hits and stats continue to trend
upwards, indicating an international movement which has caught the attention
of Sky News, BBC, ABC Australia, Channel Ten Australia, UK newspaper The
Metro and One News New Zealand, among others.
Lindeque concludes: “If you want to be part of Change One Thing, go and do
something. If you’re waiting for someone to nominate you, I nominate you by
default! Start your own ripple effect right now. Do the good deed and you’ll
notice how you want to do more.’
