“Professor” Nearly Strangled by Billionaire on CNBC

First of all, thanks, Donny, for having me on your show tonight.

Second, thank you, Linda McMahon, for not snapping my neck like a twig. I have never before been threatened with strangulation by a friendlier or more beautiful woman, and I don’t suppose I ever will be.

Finally, judging from the preliminary emails coming in, I have a new nickname. When I went on set I invited Donny to call me Jason. He insisted on using “professor.” I told him I didn’t go by that title. He said, “Tonight, you’re ‘professor.’” That was the extent of the conversation.

(On a panel with a former Navy SEAL, Jim Kramer of Mad Money, and Linda McMahon of WWE, my job was to bring the credibility. It’s enough to make your head spin on so many levels.)

Just one thing: I have an MBA, not a PhD. TV doesn’t allow much space for subtlety, but out of respect for my wife and others with doctorates, I want to be on the record. After Donny insisted, my only option would have been to challenge him on the air. I didn’t have the presence of mind to figure out how to work that in to my answers. (Something about being a bit overwhelmed by my first on air panel appearance, methinks.) So I’m on the record here on my blog.

Call me Jason. Or Jase, or even J is OK. Seiden works, too.

Those are the only titles that will ever mean anything to me.

Jason Seiden is Co-founder and CEO of Ajax Social Media, a training company that shows professionals how use social media to work more effectively.