Recognizing there is a bottomless pit of knowledge out in the world.
If you put those two things together in your mind and just let it rest in there and never let it out you will have a lot of fun in life. Because for everything you know there is some indefinable exponential amount of things remaining you don’t know.
I have heard people in the business world say “I want to know everything there is to know on this topic.” I have often thought that was one of the silliest things anyone could ever say.
You can know a lot. You can know enough to be dangerous. But knowledge is truly a bottomless pit. Even on one topic you probably don’t have enough hours in a lifetime to know everything there is. I guess that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try.
But.
Knowing what you know is good. Knowing you could know more is … well … even gooder. And knowing you want to know more all the time … well … that is the goodest I guess.
Anyway.
Curiosity is one of the three things I tell young people is the secret to success. As long as you retain your curiosity and are always seeking to learn more in the attempt to sate it then you are well on your way to being successful if not just a more interesting person.
Sometimes you see things that make you think. And make you understand that the world is a lot bigger and more challenging than what we face day to day in our own lives.
And then when you start thinking about kids and what they face in schools and peer pressure and daily challenges you see something like this and it puts some things in life in perspective.
I don’t doubt that a kid’s life can seem pretty dark sometimes. But I also doubt we adults invest half the energy we should insuring we lighten their lives (because frankly we have our own shit we need to deal with). I am not suggesting we don’t try to shed some light (because, once again, frankly I have some friends who are awesome parents and invest so much energy into their kid’s lives that I am in awe of their energy and strength).
But.
I struggle to believe given what I see happen in our (adults) lives that we remember to see all the darkness in children’s lives.
And, in general, we can never do enough to insure we make sure it never gets too dark for our children.
Anyway. When I saw this it reminded me that kids grow up fast enough as it is and we should do anything we can possibly do to let them enjoy being a child. Sure. They need to understand that there are responsibilities and that life isn’t always easy. But every child deserves a childhood.
So.
When I see an image like this. And I read words like this. I admit. My heart breaks a little.
And makes me want to enlighten even more.
Just so I can do my part to eliminate some of the darkness.
“As long as there was coffee in the world, how bad could things be?”
Cassandra Clare
====
I love coffee.
And I really loved coffee back when it was easy to figure out what to drink.
Strong. Thick enough to stand a spoon up in it. Some cream. Some sugar (or sweetener). And I am good.
Drinking coffee in the good old days was … well … simple.
Then Starbucks came along. Yeah. I am a Starbucks addict but it still scares me (ok. the ‘baristas’ scare me when its time to order. The ‘uccinos’ the ‘half this and half that’ all makes me do what I do when I am in a restaurant in a country I don’t speak the language. I take the menu and I point at something and just say “yes.”
Anyway.
Thank god for this guy Lokesh Dhakar (who i don’t know but found his coffee cheatsheet) who has combined his enthusiasm for coffee and design to create this straightforward guide to coffee brewing (and choices) below.
Maybe now I can actually order something other than “coffee with an add shot.” (which also has a variety of special nicknames – red eye – depending on where you are in the country)
Here you go … the cheat sheet:
The Americano, a popular favorite, is included alongside the Cappuccino, Caffé Latte, and a host of amazing lesser-known concoctions.
The images offer a beautifully simple and accessible guide that can be consulted at a glance to ensure all the ingredients are in perfect proportion.
Now.
I admit I love espresso. But, in general, strong coffee is first thing I think about in the morning, as my feet stumble out from beneath the sheets.
Unlike other people I have no ritual with my coffee other than how fast can I start drinking it.
So.
Enjoy your coffee. I know I cannot enjoy life, let alone a day, without coffee.
I seem to spend a lot of time debating with some of my peers (old … ok … older people) about the attitude and actions of this generation of tweens.
They spend too much time on the computer.
They are lazy. They have a bored attitude.
All they do is play video games.
But, frankly, the biggest issue almost always appears to be the role the internet is now playing in children’s lives.
So.
That is a huge issue I could probably write a book on. This is just one post. I will keep it to one thought.
I vaguely remember being a tween (it was a long time ago) but I remember having lots of fragmented thoughts that seemed relatively thoughtful but I couldn’t articulate if you had paid me a million bucks. Today the web has created an environment for kids to articulate and hone their articulation skills as never before.
In a separate post I comment on a thought a lecturer had suggesting that the influence of the internet on kids is that they won’t cognitively form their own opinions or thoughts instead they will just use other people’s opinions and thoughts. I disagreed. I believe the web has given kids an enormous learning platform to assimilate different thinking and help them take fragmented thoughts in their own head and put them together in an insightful articulation. In fact I believe the fact that kids today have access to such a wide variety of other people’s thoughts & opinions they actually have a better cognitive thinking process. They can better assess their own personal thoughts as good versus bad than ever before.
Yeah. yeah. yeah. So I went around looking for proof points for this. Let me tell you. If you look on the web you will find some of the most amazingly insightful well articulated thoughts you have ever experienced. Kids today are smarter and more insightful and I would argue more capable of articulating their thoughts then, at minimum, my generation of kids. That doesn’t mean they are more mature (although I do believe in some ways they are) but that they are well on their way to becoming a generation of effective communicators. In a way that us old folk may chafe over but better figure out a way of accepting.
These two examples may have come from one of the most unlikely locations I could have ever envisioned. An emo skateboarder site that is peppered with music talk that was so far over my head (I am not sure I knew one band) and the rest of the conversation amongst them was in a language I would need a translator to get me through a conversation. And then. I scanned the stuff they posted. Awesome.
Never doubt that within this generation of kids is smart insightful thinking.
I would also ask everyone to question their doubt of the influence of the web and video on this generation. While these are just two examples the internet is strewn with examples of like these where kids show their ability to dig down a little deeper into why they feel the way they feel. And thoughts on life.
Huh? (Be prepared. This is a mini rant on my own ignorance)
So. The Qatar Foundation has a marketing campaign called Think (“unlocking human potential” is the theme). Immediately I thought I would be re-writing my Nigeria re-branding rant using Qatar as an example. Qatar? Open minded? Schools for fresh ideas? C’mon. It’s a Muslim country.
Uh oh. There’s that damn ignorance popping its head up again.
So I did some searching.
First. Idiot that I am, I needed a map to even be sure where Qatar is. Kind of slightly embarrassing.
Second. Yes. Qatar is an Arab emirate, primarily Muslim, on the northeasterly coast of the Arabian Peninsula bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south; otherwise surrounded by the Persian Gulf.
Here’s the deal. They have an incredible 83% literacy rate. (depending on the numbers you use…USA has an 86% literacy rate). The Qatar Academy, member of Qatar Foundation, recently welcomed leading UK children’s poet and author Nick Toczek to give a presentation of his poetry. Ok. I didn’t expect that either.
Ignorance is a scary thing.
The fact I couldn’t mentally pinpoint Qatar on a map without a physical one is scary. The fact for some odd reason my knee jerk reaction to this advertisement was “wow, how open minded for a Muslim country.”
Scary reminder for me how much I don’t know.
It reminds me that the biggest war being fought is not in Afghanistan, Africa or Israel. It is within the individual. It is the war against ignorance. What I know could probably fit in a thimble.
The sooner all of us recognize that (excluding the people who aren’t that ignorant) the sooner we may have a chance globally.
Ignorance is debilitating.
Conversely, curiosity is surprisingly energizing.
It facilitates debate and dialogue and yes sometimes conflict.
We need to remind ourselves that possibly the two greatest libraries in the history of the world resided in Muslim geography – Alexandria and Cordoba (yup. Muslims controlled the majority of Spain for several hundred years…and they had an open society inclusive of Christians and Jews).
I am not defending the religion of Islam (because I honestly don’t care what an individual’s religion is). What I am fighting is ignorance.
So. Here’s the deal. I am using Qatar as an example of perception versus reality. And the fact my ignorance almost made me look quite silly. Thank God curiosity came to save the day.
In the end I guess, despite the fact I just conducted a rant on my own ignorance, this little learning on Qatar has reminded me of three things:
I need a world atlas
90 percent of Muslims (ok, a big number) are not extremists and have always been students of knowledge
Never trust perception (seek reality). Or maybe better said…Always trust Curiosity.
I have been slamming on our government in some of my posts lately.
It is probably more a sign of frustration than anything to do with democracy (because I am a huge democracy fan).
So.
I will try and back off by offering them a couple of thoughts (should any of them deign to read my little post) and an idea to discuss.
1. Please remember our forefathers:
“I am not a Virginian, but an American.”
Said in speech in the first Continental Congress, 1774, by Patrick Henry.
You will see my idea (a proposed solution) below but at minimum if they could remember that while representing local constituents they are Americans. And making choices for the good of America not just locally (and sometimes what is not good for local may be good for “the whole”). We need to remember Henry is known for his “Give me Liberty, or give me Death!” speech.
He is remembered as one of the most influential, radical advocates of the American Revolution and republicanism, especially in his denunciations of corruption in government officials and his defense of historic rights.
2. Take a field trip to the Lincoln Memorial:
While they all probably walk by the memorial every day, maybe there should be an organized field trip so they can all take a moment and reflect. They can use the time to reflect on a time when the country was divided and Americans were killing Americans. And what it took to lead at that time and reconnect a divided nation.
We aren’t killing each other (at least only figuratively at the moment) but divisiveness is running rampant. And they are feeding the divisiveness. We elect them to lead us not just to follow us (or what we say). They should stand in the shadow of the memorial to one of our greatest leaders and remind themselves of that.
When in DC I have to admit that when standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial I feel the enormity of leadership responsibility as well as the greatness of America. The House Representatives and Senate members could use a good dose of that feeling.
So.
Here is the idea.
I don’t really like politics or pay much attention to it. Because I tend to be straightforward and logical and politics is anything but straightforward and logical.
Ok.
I have a random, completely non-doable solution (which reminds us that unreasonable ideas are often reasonable solutions to problems):
I am willing to let everyone currently in office serve an additional term with no election.
Just once.
They can act and vote as “Americans” without fear of “oh. I won’t get reelected if I do what I believe is the right thing to do”.
This idea has 2 obvious benefits:
Their decisions have some time to actually come to fruition to show some valid proof versus getting slammed solely for a voting record.
The country gets to save all that money and time that gets invested in trying to prove why you should vote for “X” politician.
I have written on a variety of issues with regard to running a business and effective organizations (Running a Business Part 1 and Part 2, Collaboration & Consensus Part 1 & Part 2).
But I came across this video which discusses “the surprising science of motivation.”
It is a long video (18+ minutes) and Daniel Pink, the presenter, is a little practiced on occasion in his delivery but the information is nice. There were two things in the video which I appreciated.
One I had felt but had never been able to confirm.
The other I already knew but hadn’t written about yet.
1. Motivation Incentives.
Maybe it’s because I have worked with several advertising agency owners who wanted to run their agencies like manufacturing plants, but this issue has been near and dear to my heart for quite awhile. The video talks about “carrot and stick” motivational techniques and crap like that.
He uses some nice simple illustrations and some fact based conclusions for why the typical ways we try to motivate each other fail in business today.
A Daniel Pink Quote:
“There’s a mismatch between what science knows and business does.”
Possibly because most of the organizations I have either consulted for or worked at have been more “idea driven” versus “product output” organizations I have always believed (maybe more a feeling) that financial based reward models sucked. Daniel finally gave me some facts (from studies):
“Once the task called for even rudimentary cognitive skills a larger reward led to poorer performance.”
“As long as task involved only mechanical skills, bonuses worked, i.e., higher pay = better performance.”
Halleluiah.
That isn’t to say people in a cognitive driven business shouldn’t be fairly compensated; it simply states that rewarding financially to increase productivity is not the most effective path.
So if it isn’t financial rewards, what does help productivity?
2. Constructed Autonomy.
This is all about self direction within a solid construct of vision and company ‘direction.’ This is something I have believed to be an effective characteristic of effective organizations for some time. It is most likely embodied within larger franchise organizations (in some form or fashion) but it is easier to see it in those organizations because they are obviously fragmented and local autonomy works within some “rules” construct.
So.
The video.
In addition to talking about motivating employee behavior he also talks about creating an environment for productivity. I wrote about this in Organizational Alignment.
But.
He reminded me when he discusses the idea of autonomy about what I call “constructed autonomy” environments (yup. I do love contradictions).
I used the whole Constructed Autonomy idea in a consulting presentation in early spring (with a source reference) as I discussed organizational alignment and creating the most effective organization.
I apologize but for the life of me I cannot dig up the source for that autonomy business idea but I believe there was a big European based study on organizational behavior that talks about it (if I can find that presentation on some thumb drive I will source it).
My “twist” on the Autonomy thing was to tie it to a tightly constructed organizational vision. To me it’s all about giving employees within the organization lots of freedom within a well defined construct (not a box but rather a guiding star they can always locate).
Ok.
Maybe not lots of freedom but enough freedom on some key things (whatever they may be that is relevant to that particular organization).
Ok.
So here’s the deal with Autonomy.
Every time I have used the word “autonomy” to an organizational owner, President, Sr. VP, whatever…their faces pale, hands grip the table a little harder, they may even gasp a little and their voices quiver slightly with fear.
Autonomy means lack of control.
Autonomy means I need to trust my employees.
Autonomy means “so then what do I do”? (sorry, had to throw that last one in).
But autonomy on the ground:
permits a slight level of localization (if that is relevant to an organization)
certainly creates a higher level of responsiveness (good for customer satisfaction)
actually is a good idea/innovation generator (as long as you have a feedback mechanism)
automatically creates a higher level of energy within an organization
builds a happier organization because it creates a stronger sense of ownership & responsibility
It takes a strong leader with a clearly articulated vision to make autonomy work within an organization (if you don’t, then autonomy simply fragments an organization by permitting pieces to go flying off in every direction aimlessly).
So.
That’s the “Constructed” portion of it. In my Running a Business Part 2 I described this as one end of the bookends. A clearly articulated vision, mission, okay … what ‘the organization is going to be good at’. And ruthlessly good at.
If that is provided as the “North Star,” then Autonomy always knows what direction to steer toward. And because of that North Star, autonomous groups can wander slightly but have an opportunity to course correct (
which, by the way, is also a good evaluation mechanism for employees).
There you go.
A nice video sparking some clarification on my part.
First. I like contradictions in life. Smart and funny. Silent but says a lot. Liberal conservative. Cynical optimist. Things like that. Oh. And enlightened and conflict of course.
Contradictions are powerful. They create a chemistry ending in positive friction (when done right) and the fire for innovative thinking and thoughts. In general I believe they make life interesting.
Second. Conflict is part of life. Humans are neither passive nor stagnant. We move. We do. We think. Combine that fact with individuals are unique (although they may group together) and inevitably there is some conflict. It can simply be healthy competition or it can be staggeringly evil intended activity (i.e. there will be conflict because your point of view and thoughts shouldn’t exist and I am going to extinguish them).
Third. I believe conflict can be “managed”. Maybe call it competitive camaraderie. I call it enlightened conflict. I believe if people know more about stuff (I don’t really believe it needs a technical term) then conflict will be conducted with knowledge. Ignorance guides conflict toward evil interactions and knowledge guides conflict to responsible interactions.
Fourth. “Enlightened”. My focus in life, whether I have recognized it or not, has been overcoming ignorance. Fulfilling curiosity – either mine or anyone’s life I glance off of. But I would envision someone would argue I am fighting for some version of pluralism. Freedom to learn and think different thoughts. I love freedom of speech but it is less important to my thoughts globally. Possibly because I believe the less ignorant people are the more likely they are to speak out (therefore we will end up getting some form of freedom of speech as a byproduct of this whole thing).
In the end I imagine what I really care about are people’s actions. They can remain mute as far as I am concerned as long as their actions respect others opinions and lives and global responsibilities.
Summarizing my deal with conflict.
My theory is conflict will always exist (human nature). On all levels – from huge populations aligned for ‘whatever’ cause to an individual aligned behind a belief. And that is okay. The friction between beliefs and causes often creates the spark for something better. Yup. I am suggesting conflict and friction is good (I apologize to all the “why can’t we all get along” groups). Good conflict leads to positive friction and ideation and evolution of ideas. And I believe we should try to manage that conflict globally by developing kind of a ‘values’ rules of competition.
Simply it revolves around two thoughts
Positive friction.
Enlightened conflict.
The first is based on curiosity plus friction equals better ideas and thinking.
The second is lack of ignorance plus conflict equals respectful competition (and yes … unfortunately the competition can be war … but it is war understanding the repercussions on humanity and the toll it takes).
If I could do what I really want to do it would be to create a global program or educating a global generation of kids. I have written some fairly extensive thoughts on how to create a global program for kids (up to 8 years old) to help fight ignorance and create a more balanced global community with respect to individuals, their beliefs and the environment (it is not a math, grammar, etc. education program). Someday I hope to find someone who will ask me to implement it.
Until then? I will hope that I can impact the little corner of my world with positive friction for enlightened conflict.
“Enlighten the people, and tyranny and oppressions of body and mind will vanish like evil spirits at the dawn of day.”
“It is easy to go down into hell; night and day, the gates of dark Death stand wide; but to climb back again, to retrace one’s steps to the upper air – there’s the rub, the task.”
Virgil
=============
So.
There’s nothing like great literature to make a point about life. And Virgil was a smart guy.
Simplistically … I think this is his way of saying it sure is easier going down than up.
With anything.
But Life, in general, is a slippery slope which always seems to tantalize you to take a step down. I imagine we all take a step, or 2 or 3, down in Life at some point.
But that’s the thing.
No matter how far down you go, even to what feels like hell, you will have the chance to climb back out.
Okay.
Maybe I should say … you have a high probability you will have a window of opportunity to get out of hell <it may be a small window unfortunately>.
Regardless of the size of the window it takes some strength of character to do it but it can be done. Not suggesting it is easy … but it can be done.
Life has a habit of testing us on occasion <often>. One could argue that’s what makes life interesting.
I would actually argue that Life makes it much much easier to step down than up. And I would also argue that Life never hesitates to show you the down stairwell and is less forthcoming on encouraging you to find the up stairwell.
Regardless.
We will all take the down stairwell at some point in Life … and at that point?
Uhm.
To climb back again, to retrace one’s steps to the upper air – there’s the rub, the task.
I am a self proclaimed generalist. And proud of it.
But … I admit … it’s kind of tough in a world that has become quite enthralled with specialists. Or maybe better said “being really good at one thing.”
Unfortunately for me the one thing I am good at is a combination of a wide variety of things and experience. Some even contradictory things. (that is basically what a generalist is)
The hard thing about being a generalist is even if you give in to the specialist trappings (for example, “ok. ok. This is the one thing I am good at”) you get screwed because you aren’t a specialist. Therefore there will always be someone more of a “specialist” at what you are claiming (because you aren’t really a specialist). Whew. That circular discussion (doom loop) tired even me out.
I find that these are the types of discussions I get trapped in:
What’s the one industry you have the most experience in?
I can’t name one.
So why would we hire you if you don’t have depth of experience in our industry?
Because I am a generalist and I know how to apply learnings from “there” to “here”.
Don’t you think a specialist would be more effective?
I don’t know. I would imagine it depends on the situation and problem to be solved.
How come you never specialized in anything?
I don’t know. I guess I never had to.
Don’t you think specialists know what they want more than a generalist?
I don’t know. I am not a specialist. I would hate to put words in their mouth. But in general (as a generalist) I believe their choice has made them miss a lot in life.
Why would we choose a generalist over a specialist?
Breadth of experience and expertise? (I answer hopefully).
Don’t you feel at a disadvantage not having a specialty?
Well. I actually do have a specialty. That is transferring learning from seemingly unrelated situations to offer solutions to the situation I am posed with. But. I guess my only disadvantage is that no one wants to call that a specialty.
Ok. What is the one thing you are really good at?
(See last answer).
No, really?
Ok. At parties I can pretty much contribute to any conversation I am included in. Oh. And I am not unique … most generalists thrive anywhere they go conversation-wise.
We don’t have parties here.
Ok <note: I need a cocktail … strong one>.
So let me try this. You have worked at a lot of large advertising agencies so would you say your strength is advertising?
Well. That is tricky. I was in account service and strategy groups. We actually didn’t do a lot of advertising (although I do believe I can judge effective advertising) because other people did that. I actually know more about organizational behavior and product development and positioning companies in the marketplace and why people do things that they do than I do about advertising.
So. I guess the short answer is. No. I don’t believe my strength is in advertising.
But you have spent your career in ad agencies?
Yup. That is correct.
Well. I am confused.
Well. Interestingly so am I now. But. Let me tell you what I think.
I think you need a generalist for this role and frankly I think you want a generalist but you only know how to judge specialists.
Uh oh.
Generally speaking I don’t know what to say next.
Oh.
What I do know is whatever you ask me I bet I know enough about it to be able to give you a reasonable answer.
(Note: Unless you ask me why the sky is blue. I have always struggled with that one. But I do believe it has to do with light refracting off the nitrogen in the air or something like that).
So. I sign off for now … a specialist in generalism.