Can we see a bigger picture? Can we think about the way that we think? Can we see the problem of linear thinking in a world made up of circles? Great questions posed by Nora Bateson in An Ecology of Mind — a daughter’s loving film portrait of anthropologist, biologist, and psychotherapist Gregory Bateson.
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It’s Father’s Day, my 20th as a dad. Helping raise two beautiful young women who are compassionate, caring and generous is by far my greatest achievement. The world needs more people who arm themselves with love, wisdom and kindness. The world does not need more successful people. The planet desperately needs more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers and lovers of all kinds. — Dalai…
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Ben Franklin Circles are a fun, innovative way to build and strengthen community in an increasingly disconnected and digital world. They are about asking two simple questions: How can I improve myself? And, how can I improve the world?
Interesting idea.
Via David Gurteen.
David Byrne, writing for the MIT Technology Review:
For us as a society, less contact and interaction—real interaction—would seem to lead to less tolerance and understanding of difference, as well as more envy and antagonism. As has been in evidence recently, social media actually increases divisions by amplifying echo effects and allowing us to live in cognitive bubbles. We are fed what we already like or what our similarly inclined friends like (or, more likely now, what someone has paid for us to see in an ad that mimics content). In this way, we actually become less connected—except to those in our group.
In a similar vein to yesterday’s post, David Byrne also has some thoughts on a world shaped by technology. The possibility of a world with even less human interaction is a scary thought.
Leigh Blackall:
I aim to acknowledge the unhappiness created by technology and propose humanism to ward off technocratic tyranny and to discover what technological happiness might be.
Leigh’s inquiry into technology and humanity, and his personal reflections on his role in this “technocratic tyranny” is compelling. It’s well researched and written, and I agree – we need to re-orientate ourselves to humanist perspectives.
The Guardian reports:
Robert Pirsig, author of the influential 1970s philosophical novel Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, has died at the age of 88.
I’m late to post this, partly because I jumped right back in and re-read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance for the third of fourth time. And after doing so, I still wanted to acknowledge his passing.
I love Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance for a number of reasons. The autobiographical story about a man who takes a motorcycle trip with his boy is a great story by itself. I’m also fascinated by his intellectual ideas around the unification of spiritual feeling and technological thought. And, the use of a first-person narrative, which is used to unfold the meanings of the book, is brilliant.
I’m sure that after a period of failing health that … “things are better now. You can sort of tell these things.”
Gapingvoid:
We share. We copy. That is how we learn, love and get things done. Not as one, but as part of a big dance.
Meredith Bennett-Smith writing for Quartz:
On the flip side, there are plenty of reasons to embrace grumpiness for grumpiness’s sake. Indeed, research suggests that while positivity may make us more productive, irritation and cynicism have plenty of benefits as well.
Amen.
Claire Lew:
Empowerment means you’re transferring power to someone else. You think someone else needs you — your permission, your influence, your talents — to do something. And I don’t ever believe that’s the case.
A counterpoint to yesterday’s post. On reflection, I dislike the word ‘empowerment’ too and what it implies.
Brent Gleeson writing for Forbes:
While I normally try to stay away from overused business buzz words, I do think that in today’s ever-changing and more complex business environment that giving a broader range of people more power to drive organizational change is tantamount to success. Inspiring the team is one thing, but physically and psychologically giving them more autonomy to participate in the transformation process is critical.
I couldn’t agree more. I would argue that engaging people has always been crucial to the success of organisational change. As the old adage says: people support what they help to create.