If you are at all curious about the invisible flow of on-line information you need to see and hear this TED talk by Eli Pariser. It will make you take a second look at the Internet and your place within the new world it is shaping.
Oh and I should also note that I stumbled across this video in my Facebook feed today. Trust me, after you watch the video this seemingly minor bit of information will become much more than just a personal aside.
The people at oBizMedia have made a nice video / infographic that asks: what would the world look like without Facebook?
They conclude that in a cruel, Facebook-less, world we would not have an easy way to share pictures with our friends. Nor would we have an effortless way to invite friends to parties.
Thank goodness for Mark Zuckerberg and co.
oBizMedia does a better job dressing up interesting Facebook facts. Did you know that the average Facebook user uploads around 90 things a month? That means that the 600 million Facebook users are happily plugging information into Facebook three times a day on average.
Chew on the numbers presented and get ready to marvel at the giant that is Facebook. It will be interesting to see if Facebook can sustain the momentum without alienating existing users.
What happened to GM? It used to be said that “what’s good for GM is good for America” (actually, it was a rather arrogant former CEO of GM who said it but I don’t have the time to mythbust). Of course, now it seems that GM is just symptomatic of everything that has gone wrong with America over the past 50 years. Is there a chance things at GM could turn around? Is there a chance they can re-learn all the leadership lessons they once taught the world? In what I think is an incredibly detailed, informative and concise video, Fortune’s senior editor at large Alex Taylor III not only breaks down the last 50 years at GM and also gives us a peek into what might be a much brighter future.
Leadership is not all about getting your company into the Fortune 500 or selling the most widgets. At its heart, Leadership is about becoming aware of what needs to be done and doing it. It’s about helping those in need of guidance to overcome obstacles and ultimately succeed. It’s about knowing that nothing will get done unless someone takes on the responsibilities of leadership. In many cases, leadership is not just a matter of profits and year-end bonuses, it’s about living and dying. Jon Bul Dau, one of Sudan’s famed Lost Boys, just might be the perfect example of a true leader. A person who has taken it upon himself to lead because a leader was needed. This powerful and challenging clip from the 2006 award winning documentary God Grew Tired of Us which focuses on Dau, just might be the perfect example of leadership on its most elemental level.
When speaking of leadership we often talk about vision and passion, and the dramaturgy of presentation. But more important than any of these, is a well articulated sense of sincerity. In the final analysis, leadership is about personal credibility. It’s about your ability to convey to people not only the feeling of “been there done that” but also a sense of being able to convey to people that you have:
• Positional Authority: That you speak from a place that gives you the right to talk to the issue
• Personal Integrity: That you are speaking beyond self interest
• Expertise and Knowledge: That you really know what you’re talking about
• Time and Opportunity: That you know that this is the right time and right arena to speak to the issue
(chart and following text from Get Them On Your Side, Samuel B. Bacharach 2006)
“In order to establish personal credibility, you must use language and personal presentation. How do you let others know, without shoving it down their throat, that you are credible? What language should you use to initiate a supportive response? Keep in mind that if you become overbearing, it is unlikely that you’ll develop deep support. If you try to make yourself credible simply based on your position, you’ll be viewed as confusing power for credibility. If you constantly try to push your personal integrity, you may be quickly dismissed as wallowing self righteousness and will become an irresistible target for cynics. If you overplay your hand by maintaining that you have the needed expertise, you may be written off as arrogant. Finally, if you claim to be credible because you are at the right place at the right time and have a sense of urgency, you may be viewed as being frantic. Try to communicate a balanced picture of credibility. Let them know about your expertise and knowledge, show them your personal integrity, hint about your positional authority, and remind them that you are at the right place at the right time. Most important, don’t overplay any single factor and communicate with self-assured subtlety.”
No matter what your position is regarding gay marriage, a wonderful example of the practice of leadership through the language of integrity may be seen in a video I stumbled across the other day featuring an impressive young man by the name of Zack Wahls. Take a few minutes and watch and listen to Zack and see how he truly personifies leadership and the language of integrity.
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