Tag: network thinking

Social Business, Story + Narrative5 Comments

I Am An Artist, You Are An Artist, We Are All Of Us Artists

ThisMuchWeKnow

Seth Godin has some great content, of course, about people picking themselves. I have written previously about the transformation I went through when I realized the means of creative production were within reach upon first using MiniDV video technology and editing on an early iMac. Embracing the technology, I was effectively picking myself: because Suddenly, I was in control, a one-man shop, a creative force! I was a child again, trying things out, self-congratulatory, experimental, churning, learning. By producing content – where before I was just full of ideas – I was making art. I was a self-proclaimed artist. Modern art … Continue reading I Am An Artist, You Are An Artist, We Are All Of Us Artists

Social Business, The Future of WorkLeave a comment

How To Flock In 3 Easy Steps

ThisMuchWeKnow

Here is a short video that illustrates the amazingness of flocking – the ability of birds (and other animals) to work together in a network with only very limited, local sets of rules. Graphic designer Craig Reynolds developed this computer modeling called a Boids model many years ago; wherein randomly moving objects are given three simple rules of engagement in the network: Collision avoidance – cohesion Velocity matching – alignment Flock centering – separation and, lo! a flock is formed in real time, with absurd coordination and cooperation, yet without any central controls. This, friends, is how we need to model … Continue reading How To Flock In 3 Easy Steps

Social Business, The Curious Will Inherit The World2 Comments

A Network Is An Idea Factory

ThisMuchWeKnow

I hope you will have already seen Jason Silva’s Moments of Awe videos. Just delicious. In a recent interview, he explained his kaleidoscopic network approach to his work, “…when I see sentences and words, I see a network of connections. The manic geometry of associational thinking is probably the best description how my brain works. It is all networks. Ideas are networks.” It brought to mind an association from 50 years ago by the neuropsychologist, Roger Sperry (via Brain Pickings) of the analogy between neurons and ideas: “Ideas cause ideas and help evolve new ideas. They interact with each other … Continue reading A Network Is An Idea Factory

Social Business, Story + Narrative, The Future of Work1 Comment

I Must (Re)Learn to TRUST

ThisMuchWeKnow

In my recent reading about networks and the future of work, I have seen the word ‘trust’ flash like a lighthouse. Here are just a few quotes I have recently squirreled away. Seth Godin says: “The connection economy isn’t based on steel or rails or buildings. It’s built on trust and hope and passion.” Stowe Boyd talks of the need for ‘swift trust’ in the future of work. Harold Jarche, meanwhile, believes “Connected leadership starts by organizing to embrace networks, manage complexity, and build trust.“ Nilofer Merchant, in a great Wired article, has this to add: “Relationships are to the social … Continue reading I Must (Re)Learn to TRUST

Social Business, The Curious Will Inherit The World3 Comments

The Sophisticated Answer To The Prisoner’s Dilemma: Tit For Tat

ThisMuchWeKnow

In my undergraduate studies I was paid to participate in game theory sessions within the economics faculty. The (flawed) assumption of game theory (and a lot of economics) is that individuals are rational. Anyway, The Prisoner’s Dilemma is a simple modeling tool to understand decisions, and to understand complex systems (definition: “large networks of simple interacting elements which, following simple rules, produce emergent, collective, complex behavior.”) If you need the rules of the ‘game’ – here you go. It turns out that the best approach to this ‘game’ is surprisingly simple. Tit for tat wins out every time. One of … Continue reading The Sophisticated Answer To The Prisoner’s Dilemma: Tit For Tat

The Curious Will Inherit The World, The Future of Work2 Comments

Go Ask The Person Of Whom You Are Least Certain

ThisMuchWeKnow

Picking on yesterday’s post on entropy, I see this discussion of the cost of moving energy / data pops up in many ways. There is a lot of good writing on how weak ties are good for you. Facebook prospers by driving ‘many lightweight interactions over time.‘ These are various embraces of complexity. It seems perverse to introduce this cost of data into one’s ecosystem, but no! Entropy is good for you. From this great Fast Co article, In information theory, “entropy” is the term used to describe how much actual information there is in any given set of data; … Continue reading Go Ask The Person Of Whom You Are Least Certain

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The Community Manager As Maxwell’s Demon

ThisMuchWeKnow

More from my Complexity MOOC: this time a learning from the second law of thermodynamics, about entropy. Entropy is the ‘heat’ or loss created by changing energy state in a system. It can be considered the cost of that transfer. [And apologies for any holes in my understanding. It was not real education; just a MOOC :)] The idea of entropy can be transposed to information management theory, as the unpredictability of the data. Moving data, sharing information, aligning teams and organizations all cause entropy. This is a cost to the system. The second law of thermodynamics shows entropy as a … Continue reading The Community Manager As Maxwell’s Demon

The Curious Will Inherit The World, The Future of WorkLeave a comment

Why Complexity, Why MOOCs? Renaissance, That’s Why

ThisMuchWeKnow

Another short reflection on taking a MOOC on complexity from the Sante Fe Institute. I am not certain I need to know too much about biological systems, fractals, and mathematical logarithm formulas, as discussed in the MOOC, but I do need to own my journey through the ever more interconnected hivemind of work. We need each other, and we need to cultivate large, random, nuanced networks of co-conspirators. We need more data, and we need support to filter and synthesize it. We need to be anti-fragile enough to deal with complexity and constant change. From a google docs report on … Continue reading Why Complexity, Why MOOCs? Renaissance, That’s Why

Personal Branding, Social BusinessLeave a comment

Dissecting Your Personal Brand: How Do You Show Up Online?

ThisMuchWeKnow

We have to think differently about our personal brand than we did 10-15 years ago. Then, in order to get ahead, to get promotion, to get on that juicy project you could scan your immediate work environment and determine who it was you had to impact to make a difference. Now, things have changed. Your network of influence might be social, virtual, global, segmented based on the communities in which you hang, participate, lead. When I am hiring, the first thing I do in a cursory scan of a resume is to look for online avenues of investigation – therein … Continue reading Dissecting Your Personal Brand: How Do You Show Up Online?