reality is negotiable====

 

“Don’t lose touch of reality, it might drive you insane if you’re locked in your own world of possibilities for too long.”

Unknown

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 Ok.

This is part business and part social media culture thinking and part how the world is coalscing into smaller worlds, with world views, and some thoughts about those worlds.

your own world hands connectThe world as it exists within social media is different than the real world. What I mean by that is while we blather about some massively interconnected world it is far more likely you are part of a 10 million twitter following and that is more often than not is your world. Or. If you are part of a 5 million blog feed following that is more often than not your world.

This may sound counter to what everyone suggests about the role of media in influencing people. The truth is that the concept of ‘mainstream media’ <which, in my eyes, is being so poorly discussed and labeled similar to how political correctness has become the go-to phrase of the day> has difficulty penetrating an established social world. Tidbits get filtered in and then bounce around this parallel universe in which the facts create new constellations that the real world cannot see, do not see, when they look up at the sky. Inevitably all these tidbits feed on itself and only grow stronger and stronger the longer they exist within the world ultimately helping to share real tenets, beliefs, rites and established norms

The trouble is that, in this social world, thoughts and untruths and truths echo as equal opportunity informers. This begets a real world truth … and a parallel world truth. Sometimes they can be the same, sometimes just similar … and sometimes a parallel truth which, well, as parallel suggests … travels a lane that never intersects with the real world truth.

Some of us older folk and maybe some real world truth tellers gnash our teeth and pound the tables and imagine if we yell loud enough, or calmly tell the truth in maybe a different way <the ‘go-to’ thought by older folk is ‘be visual … it is a short attention span world’>, that somehow we can communicate the business truth or the Life truth or real world truth or whatever real truth which will impact the alternate world we are frustrated with.

Well. That is a slightly ignorant and totally egotistical view <as well as it will get you nowhere>. Whether we like it or not an alternate world is a real world in and of itself. It may not actually be a reflection of real truth or overall reality per se  but that alternative world captures the reality of that ‘follower world.’

world you live in 100percentThat world takes on the same characteristics of any traditional civilization and culture. Ethics, values, norms, dreams, despairs and hopes.

Some idiots call it a ‘tribe.’ I call it idiotic because it sells the world in which this social following lives short. Tribe is too small. The social world, and the online communities which is created in these different followings, are like small civilizations which may, or may not, interconnect with other cultural views & values, religious views & values and societal views & values.

Others may attempt to call this ‘countries’ … heck … Facebook is the largest country in the world. And, in some cases, this may actually be the correct metaphor … but in more cases it is not. Countries coexist. Worlds are, well, worlds apart. And entering into one of the larger follower social world groupings is absolutely like a world apart. Within the following are individuals who have come together based on a world view in which they do not see anywhere than in this virtual population <which are real people in a made up world>.

What I can promise you is that what each alternate world DOES coalesce around is like minded individual self-interest – views & values & aspirations. It is easy to see how his could happen.

It is incredibly easy to feel powerless in the real world but in this new world all you feel is … well … power. Power to feel what you believe and do <at least virtually at the moment> what you want to do.

It is incredibly easy to feel one person can do so little and now, all of a sudden, the individual finds themselves in a world together with individuals who think the way they do, say the words they say and want to do the same things they do. The world exists only in a virtual sense <and they now that> and, yet, they can envision this world being created as a tangible reality.

world bubble own business connect

It is incredibly easy to block out all the noise <even things that may represent Truth> trying to infringe upon the beautiful sounds echoing in this virtual world.

Look at whatever news or information sharing research you want, but the majority of people seek one main source for their information. If that is true <which it is> than once you have decided to become part of a social follower world that becomes your main feed of information, truth and reality. Once you have decided to become part of this following it becomes your world and then it becomes obvious <at least to me> you now have a world mainly of likeminded people cocooning thoughts, norms, cultural beliefs, civilization characteristics … and desires, despairs and hopes.

Anyway. While I like to wax philosophically I am a business guy … and I like to offer solutions.

sigh.

I do not have a solution on how to penetrate these alternative worlds <assuming you want to>. But I imagine if I were to do so I wouldn’t barrage them with facts or pontificate about my world view <because it is counter to their world view so why would I care> but rather I would assess their world, and their world view, and figure out a way to appeal to some aspect.

And I would definitely better understand the core of this alternate world view — the self-interest. Because in the end, while this is a sweeping generalization, the main way to connect with someone quickly is to do something or say something that appeals to “me.” Me as in self interest, self esteem, self view and self actualization.

begins and ends in your mind world powrThat may sound like a selfish world view but it really isn’t. It isn’t as cold & harsh as “what’s in it for me?” as the foundation for all attitudes & behaviors but rather it is a nuanced world view of individual survival within a larger world view. Think about it. If I see other worlds around me crumbling or spinning out of control in its orbit I see those worlds as a threat to my interests and ultimately my survival. Therefore I am going to want to be part of a world in which an orbit is established, a global climate of prosperity & fairness <however that world may establish it> & my world view survival is insured.

I say that because “what’s in it for me?” sounds too small for what I view in this alternate world this group of individuals are seeking as we try and view their individual self-interest motivations. To penetrate this word in any meaningful way we need to appeal to some sense of self … and offer a new world view in which the individual decides to find a different world to live in.

By the way. Parts of what I am sharing today pain me. It pains me because a significant thread of what I am suggesting is grounded upon two thoughts that go against everything I believe in

<1> a large group of people do not desire to be fully enlightened <or are okay knowing what they know and want to invest energy doing other things>, and

<2> I am recognizing that the individual has more power to create ‘worlds’ than societal needs.

Neither of these are incredibly bad in a larger view it is simply an acceptance I have acquiesced to the greater need – that there are worlds apart from the real world which need to be brought back into the real world.culture change thoughts

That said. Instead of calling people stupid or suggesting they are ‘unenlightened’ in some way or ‘they just don’t understand what I am trying to sell them is good for them’ … maybe it would be more productive to begin our own thought process by recognizing these are worlds in which they are happy, seemingly productive and hopeful. In their world they are not missing things … they have things.

These are worlds of their own making and maybe we should think that people do not build worlds based off of fear or anger or despair, they build based on hope & dreams & beliefs. Think about that last thought before you start spouting off about “tapping into anger” or “driven by disappointment.”  Things are not built from anger and disappointment, things are built by hands seeking a house for the future.

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Written by Bruce