I is for Influencer

Influencers get a bad rap for "stealing" marathon bibs and generally being an internet irritant, but how about if I told you that *you* are an influencer?

Influencer. It’s a modern word, indicative of the Instagram generation, i.e. since 2012, formally recognized as a word by Merriam-Webster as recently as 2019. New things cause visceral reactions in those who hark for days gone, but influencers have always existed.

Yes, public figures from athletes to royalty, musicians to supermodels through the ages hav…