Punch Drunk as a Sober Davos Winds Down
The end of Davos reminds me of when we had sleepovers as kids. You'd try and stay awake long past your normal bedtime and by the end you'd tend to crack up over anything.
You can see that sleep-deprived attitude creeping in at WEF late Friday. People have been hitting the Piano Bar until 5 a.m. and getting up for 9 a.m. sessions. A group of journalists suppressing hilarity after a TV reporter (not Fox) tried to introduce herself to Rupert Murdoch, who refused her and just shook his head violently.
A couple of policeman having snowball fight outside the secure area.
A spirited discussion in the Congress Center – rivaling any about the economy – on what exactly the best 1980s video game was. (OK, I was involved in that one).
It's been a low-key WEF as expected, but it's always impressive when the world's great thinkers get together.
The Turkish prime minister was the unquestioned Davos personality.
While pessimism was pervasive, radical solutions were offered—like the nationalization and gutting of the big US banks.
And I'll remember discovering the next rock star of the financial world.
If was also our first time with guest bloggers—CEOs from the US, Europe and Asia—keeping us up to date with what's going in and the sessions and behind the scenes.
It's tough not to be a little star struck at Davos, but it's comforting to see VIPs who are star struck themselves. Defense ministers and CEOs are craning their necks to see who the cameras are following—some just want to shake hands.
But most are approachable as long as you use the Homer Simpson technique, the best thing I've learned this year.
When meeting George Harrison at the Grammy's, Homer declared: "Oh my god, where did you get that brownie?"
Ask a CEO about his tie or the coffee she has, and the conversation involves naturally.
Now it's time to hit the slopes.