How much information do you require before you willingly invest your trust in somebody?

Probably not very much.

As it turns out, our choices seldom have much to do with the actual quantity of facts involved. Most of our daily decisions are made “on a hunch” that we later flesh out with judgements on authenticity, transparency, and a perception of humility.

The social media space is filled with conversations on the need for “authenticity” and “transparency” from corporations and individuals alike. In spite of all the words published about “how to be authentic” or “how to be transparent,” little in the way of concrete guidlines or actionable sequences has emerged.

That’s especially unfortunate because blogs enable intelligent people from all over the globe to gather at no cost to discuss a topic. Why then, when we have the tools to push a conversation forward in real time, do we walk away from so many discussions with our ideas unchallenged and thought structures unchanged? Because we’ve forgotten about humility.

It’s difficult to discuss humility because to do so is often considered arrogant. It’s just not socially acceptable to discuss humility as it relates to people and businesses. Blessedly, we’re allowed to bend the social rules a bit online. I’d like to. Just for a bit. Shall we?

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Oh, yeah! Papyrus on a busy background brings all the designers to the yard!

Designers, here’s a scenario:

Coca-Cola is launching a new energy-regulating beverage in early 2010 called “Sublime.”

The team in charge of creating a graphic identity for the new brand is hip, open-minded, and–to be quite honest–desperate to create a winning logo.

They decide to try crowdsourcing.

What do they fear?

• A pool of inferior entries.
• Wasted time, effort, and money.
• Backlash from a design community put on edge by the crowdsourcing efforts of other organizations.

What do they hope for?

• A top-notch pool of thoughtful and creative entries.
• Superior return on time, effort, and money invested.
• An enthusiastic response from a design community that willingly participates in the project.

Execution:

The Sublime team decides to blend what they know of co-creation from inter-agency efforts with a crowdsourcing element to lure in a few outliers.

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I don’t think we can classify Twitter interactions, no matter how frequently they take place or the information shared through them, as friendship.

Why? Because friendships require context. Twitter doesn’t allow for context.

Without context we are left with nothing but the dancing shadows of our own unrealistic expectations.

What’s your favorite way to add context?

photo: radioher

Are We Friends On Twitter?

Seth Godin, in a nice suit (Take note, social media scruffies – classy is still a workable brand) with some much-needed thoughts on project management. [video]

So what can you do today, right now, to begin implementing what Elder Seth talked about?

1. Outline your ideas – Put that Moleskin to use for a simple “What does this idea provide to others?/What does it provide to me?” outline.
2. Get a friend to help you thresh your ideas - (A real friend, not a Twitter follower or Facebook mutual) Type the outlines from your Moleskin (I like to use the back of junk mail envelopes) into a Google doc and share, share, share. Godin uses the term “Thrashing” but I like threshing better because it refers to the process of revealing value through effort instead of catatonic project management.
3. Ship something - Pick an idea you have the resources to develop and make it happen. It doesn’t have to be complex. In fact, it’s best to start with something simple like a well-researched article for your blog. Set out to ship something you know you can ship and build up some confidence before you go after the bigger projects.

What are you going to do?

Photo: Jim Frazier

How To: Ship On Budget and On Time Every Time

If you’ve ever spent a large amount of time around kids (or easily-bored adults) you know the value of inventive amusement.

Grab a few 3×5 cards & expand your world. You’ll be glad you did!

Did you try it?

(If you’re at all adept, you should find it easy to use these directions to make tiny leaping origami frogs out of business cards.)

Enjoy!

Photo: Aleksi Aaltonen

Things you need to know: How to make a jumping paper frog [video]

I took a quick survey on the train ride home this past Wednesday. Of the 53 people in my car, 39 had at least one college degree, 1 had an iPhone, and 0 knew who Robert Scoble was.

A few thoughts:

In spite of the hype thrown at us by social media pundits,

• You can still buy a hard copy edition of many newspapers.
• People still listen to the radio.
• The average American still watches TV like it pays the rent.

It’s easy to build an intellectual echo chamber of like-minded individuals online. But what’s the value? Happily singing around a campfire doesn’t change the fact that there are hungry bears in the forest.

How many times do you need to be patted on the back before you realize how creepy it is to be in a room full of people patting each other on the back?

Have we allowed ourselves to become so caught up in The Conversation that having our voice heard now matters more than having something to say?

Are we so excited about how much dirt we can move by spinning the tires on this newfangled social media loader that we forget to use the bucket?

We’ve got something powerful here. Why must we so freely waste it?

I’m disgusted that we (I include myself in this) are so easily drawn into pointless genital-measuring and leap after red herrings like there are no more fish in the sea.

I’m not sure of a solution, but I think we’d do well to spend less time talking about passion and more time talking about action steps that the passionate can use to make a difference.

Your thoughts?

photo: martin

Are you wasting your connections?