There has been a lot of discussion in the media on the reduced role of conversation in society with the increasing use of digital tools. In addition in this hectic world people may be concerned that conversations may be non-productive or simply not interesting/fun. Surprisingly some of these biases may be unimportant in practice (here’sContinue reading “Isolation And Conversation”
Seeing Things From Another Angle
I’ve written a few articles on the skill of better noticing things (in business and everyday life) and then, if relevant, joining up some areas/dots in an impactful manner. As an extreme visual example of noticing I found this (above): vertical panoramas of churches. Usually when you visit a church you look straight ahead withContinue reading “Seeing Things From Another Angle”
AI And The Information Market
From Tiago Forte: “You may never have conceived of information as a market, but it absolutely is. You invest your time, attention, and effort into collecting, organizing, and utilizing information, and you expect a certain return on those investments, whether that’s measured in income, business results, creative fulfillment, or social status. Information is a market,Continue reading “AI And The Information Market”
Brave And Different Voices
From Simon Kelner on the passing of the provocative but always stimulating broadcaster and journalist Rod Liddle (paywall): “And with his passing goes another bulwark against the homogenisation of public life. I’m not talking about the ability to cause a media storm – anyone with a smartphone and an opinion can do that. And weContinue reading “Brave And Different Voices”
Impressive Examples Of Serendipity
Sheldon Lee Glashow, Nobel Laureate in Physics (see also here), has written an interesting ‘abecedary’ of scientific serendipity that has had significant global impact. The key to all of them was noticing the unusual and then taking action. A few that caught my eye were: C is for Cisplatin, the trade name for a chemicalContinue reading “Impressive Examples Of Serendipity”
Natural Innovation
I decided a couple of years ago to change my lifestyle, mainly by having a more diverse group of friends (giving a wider outlook on life) and to be less screen focused (increasing thinking time and reducing distractions). One aspect of this was to spend more time in nature as luckily I have country parksContinue reading “Natural Innovation”
The Paradox Of Good Advice
From Scott Berkun: “The paradox of good advice is that the best advice is harder to hear. So we avoid it. Better advice costs us something. There is a price for getting what we want. It might be a sacrifice of time, facing a fear, waking up out of denial, or admitting that we don’tContinue reading “The Paradox Of Good Advice”
Fun Or Boring Conversations?
An interesting aspect of the evolving science of conversation is that experiments are now being performed to provide evidence to support or counter anecdotes and small scale experiences. What is especially interesting is if the conclusions are sometimes counter-intuitive. As an example, a recent news release from the American Psychological Association states (my emphasis inContinue reading “Fun Or Boring Conversations?”
Little Openings And Yellow Doors
Recently I wrote about how an interesting conversation can be sparked through a surprising and specific question (rather than a default polite but boring one) and then keeping that topic going. It seems it was an example of passing through a so-called yellow door. From author Daniel Coyle in Big Think: “Most of us moveContinue reading “Little Openings And Yellow Doors”
Humility And Curiosity
The previous two posts highlighted the practical role of wisdom and taste in environments where AI was able (with checking) to provide significant knowledge assistance. This got me thinking about other aspects of ‘wisdom’. As an example the talented musician Nick Cave eloquently offers two key attributes (‘pillars of a fulfilling life’): “The first isContinue reading “Humility And Curiosity”
Steps & Leaps 