Straightlinethinkingstopshere!Thetruepossibilitiesofthenetworkedsociety

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RebootingBritainAlanMooreSMLXL

Therealvoyageofdiscoveryisnottoseeknewlandscapes

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Itisindeedtolookupontheworldwithfresheyes

Socomewithmeonashortjourney,anditallstarts,withafriendofmine.SteveWattsisawealthyCalifornianbusinessman.RecentlyhedecidedhewouldtakehisfamilyonholidaytoEurope.Hedecidedthatitwouldbeagoodideatotravelen‐familiethroughoutEurope,bytrain.Indeed,anelegantwaytotravelhethought,alongstraighttracksandclockworklikeschedulesavoidingthetrialsandtribulationsofairandcartravel.HischildrenimploredhimtotakethisopportunitytoreadtheHarryPotterbooks,astheythoughthewouldreallyenjoythem,asindeedtheyhaddone.Stevedecidedthathewouldleapintothedigitalage–buythelatestiPod,anduploadHarryPotterbooksasaudio<iles.

Donningtheiconicwhiteheadphonesasthe8amfromRometoTurinmovedoutofthestation,StevelookedoutofthetrainwindowandbegantotakeinthesceneryandthestoriesofHarryPotter.Attheendoftheweek,sittingdowntobreakfast,Steveannounced,muchtothehorrorofhischildrenthathethoughtHarryPotterwasseverelyoverrated–wellinfactmorethanjustoverrated,HarryPotterwasjustplainrubbish.Hiskidslookedperplexed.Obviouslyhischildrendisagreed,so,Steveexplainedthattherewasnostructure,noplotline,andthecharacterscameandwentinrandomorder,constantly.

Steve’skidspickeduphisiPodandlookedatitandthentheylaughed–infacttheylaugheduntiltheywereintears,muchtotheconsternationoftheirfather.Why?BecauseStevehadbeenlisteningtoHarryPotterallweekonShuf<le.StevedidnotgetShuf<leandsothissimpleeverydaystorysitsattheveryheartofNoStraightLines.Becauseformanyofus,wehaveonlyeverexperiencedalinearlifeandalinearculture,Steve’sinabilitytocomprehendeventhepossibilityofShuf<leisasimplebuttellingexampleofthatfact.

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CarlotaPerezinherbookTechnologicalRevolutionsandFinancialCapital–saysthattherecomesapointintimewheretheoldinstitutionsarefoundwanting,theoldframeworksinsuf<icient.

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Alinearapproachtowhatwe

make,howwemakeit,whowemakeitwith,howweshareand

communicateisaframeworkifyouwill,oralensthatsetsustolookuponourworldandactinaveryparticularfashion.Shuf<leisanexampleofanon‐linearapproach,ameansbywhichwecanaccess,curateandinterprettheworldina

differentway.Butforsomeisveryhardtograsp.

Let me explain

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Thinkaboutitlikethis–theonlystraightlinesmadeinnaturearemadebyman,andsimilarlyourindustrialworldhasbeenbuiltwith

thesamestraight‐linelogicand,philosophy.Yetnatureisnotlikethat,

ithasnostraightlines.Nature<lows,natureismoreconnected,grassrootsandinterdependent.

Itsuggestsadifferenttypeofprocessandlogicatplaythatisnot;centralized,bureaucraticorin<lexible.Thisistheworldofnostraightlines.

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Forstraight‐linethinkerstheworldofnostraightlinesisakintolivinginaforeignland;thecustoms,language,symbolsetc.,aredis‐lo‐cating‐lyalien–theyareoutsiders,unabletofullyparticipate,astheydonothavethecomprehension,northeinsight,orthenecessarycapabilitytofullyengage.Theyhavebecomeconcussedobserverstothevitalworldaroundthem.Thevisceralshockhowever,is,thatthisishappeningtous,notinsomeforeignland,but,intheirownbackyards.

Thehighestandbestformofef1iciencyisthespontaneouscooperationoffreepeople.WoodrowWilson

Ourworldofbusiness,media,andcommunicationsisevolvingfromthestraight‐linesofanindustrialeratothemorecomplexandnetworkedworldthatmimicsnature.

Thisinteractivenetworkedworldisn’taboutverticalsilos,traditionalnotionsofproductandservicecreation,mass‐productionandmassmediaandmarketing.Itisaboutthemassive<lowsofpeople,whoareconnecting,collaborating,organisingandcreatinginamannerthathasnothingtodowithalinearapproachtoomuchatall.Thisistrulyanengagedandparticipatoryculture.

YochaiBenklerintheWealthofNetworksarguesthatforover150yearsoureconomies,cultureandsocietyhavebeenshapedbyastraight‐linelogicproducingconsiderableeconomicsuccess.However,inthedawnoftheNetworked‐Society,astraight‐linelogicofgettingstuffdonebecomesabarriertoprogress.Why?Because,thechangewroughtbythenetworked‐societyisstructural–challenginghowmarketsandorganizationshaveco‐evolvedoverthelast150years.

Communication - Community -

Communion

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Thiscreatesadilemma.Andthedilemmaisthis–Howcan<irmsandthepeoplethatworkinthose<irms,developcoherentstrategies/productsandservicesthatarepremiseduponNo‐Straight‐Lineprinciples–whentheyhavebeenversedonlyinStraight‐Linethinking–atleastfortheover35’s–frombirth?

Therearenosuchthingsasconscripts‐thereareonlyvolunteers,saysEuanSemple,hesaysyoungpeoplearecomingintotraditionalorganizationshavingspenttheentiretyoftheiryounglives:collaborating,networkingandgettingstuffdoneinverydifferentways.Theyareconfrontedwithanalienworldof:linearity,silos,hierarchiesandtheegooftitle.Thefrictionispalpablebecausetheoldorganizationalmodelscannotcopewithortakefulladvantageofthenewpotential,unleashedisaprofoundtransformationinthewayofdoingthings,ofgettingstuffdone.

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Makenomistake–wearecurrentlyinthemidstofacommunicationsrevolution–andonceyouhavestormedtheBastilleyoudon’tgobacktoyourdayjob.

Weareatthebarricades<ightingforaparticipatorycultureasthemodernworldhasstrippedushumansdowntounitsofeducation,productionandconsumption.

Infactwewantto,recoversomethingofthespiritoftheEnlightenmentontermsappropriatetoourtime.AndthisiswhatRebootisallabout:whetheritsLeeBryanttalkingaboutPeoplePower,AndyHobsbawmlookingathowwecreateSocialGoodfromSocialMedia,TomSteinberggivingusarealalternativevisionofaparticipatoryandtransparentDemocracy–throughmySociety,PaulMillerofferingusavisionastohowwecancollaborateandinnovatetogetherbetter.Wewant,Nowedemandthesharedabilitytoconnecttoothercitizensoncommonground.Becausewehavebecomevictimsoftherulesweallliveby.ReplaceeverymemberofParliamentbutaskthemtoworkwithinthecurrentsystem–andyouwillgetexactlythesameoutcome–It’sasystembreakdown.

Communicationstechnologycanbewieldedasapowerfulagentofsocialandpoliticalchange,todayitisbeingwieldedwithgreatmightandgreatferocity.

communicationstransformation

Intheageofmassmedia,thepresswasabletode<inethesphereoflegitimatedebatewithrelativeeasebecausethepeopleonthereceivingendwereatomisedbutconnected“up”toBigMediabutnotacrosstoeachother.AndnowthatauthorityiserodingsaysJournalismProfessorJayRosen

WehaveturnedawayfromaReadOnlytoaReadWriteculture–Nokiasays25%ofallmediawillbecreatedbyusby2012–YouTubeuploads13hoursofaudio‐visualmaterialeveryminuteofeverysingledayoftheyear.Thisisfolkcultureforthe21stCentury–albeitonsteroids.

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Butwhatisdrivingthiscommunicationsrevolution?

Isitthattechnologyhasjustappeared?Isita<luke?Anaccident?Thesimpleanswertothatisno.Technologyisahumancreationinthe<irstplaceanditsucceedsornotthetheextentthatitmeetsfundamentalhumanneeds,humanbeingshaveaninnateneedtoconnectandcollaborate,throughcommunalandcooperativeactivitywe<indcontextandmeaninginourlives.Rightnow,wearedirectingcommunicationstechnologytoachieveveryspeci<icthingsforsociety.AsCarlJungsaid….

“I”Needs“We”

totrulybe“I”

Noisyghostsinthemachinecalledlife

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_dan_in_bristol_uk.html

Butourindustrial,massmedia,massconsumersociety,stripsusofwhatmakesuswhoweare–wehavebecomeunitsofproductionandconsumption,batteryfarmed,andraisedinaworldwherewefeellittlepersonalaccountabilitytoeachother.Wehavedeconstructedhumanityalmosttothepointofdestruction–sceptical!?Askanypracticingpsychologistwhowilltellyouoftheverycomplexpsychologicalproblemsmanypeoplehaveastheystruggletoconstructtheiridentities.

Sadlymanyofushavebecomeverynoisyghostsinthemachinecalledlife.IntheUKEvery3in5peoplesufferorhavesufferedfromamentalhealthproblem

Thecrisisofourmodernageisthecrisisofmeaning,thesearethedeepdriverstowhatallthespeakersatRebootareconcernedwith–whatRebootdirectsyoutoishowwecanrediscoveroursenseofourselvesandindoingso–RebootBritain.

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“Humannatureisnotamachinetobebuiltafteramodel,andsettodoexactlytheworkprescribedforit,butatree,whichrequirestogrowanddevelopitselfonallsides,accordingtothetendencyoftheinwardforceswhichmakeitalivingthing.”

JohnStuartMill–OnLiberty1859

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Anewcommonsenseforthenetworkedsociety

Participatoryculture–folkcultureforthe21stCenturyInalatemedievalcarnival,forexample,everyonehadaroletoplayandachancetodistinguishthemselvesindividuallybythebrillianceoftheircostumes,thewittinessoftheirjokes,ortheirtalentsasdancersorathletes.BarbaraEhrenreichinherbookDancingintheStreets,ahistoryofcollectivejoy,saysthatthecapacityforcollectivejoyisencodedintousalmostasdeeplyasthecapacityforerotichumanloveofonehumanforanother.Wecanlivewithoutit,asmostofusdo,butonlyattheriskofsuccumbingtothesolitarynightmareofdepression,arguesBarbaraEhrenreich.Today,themostprescribeddrugsintheworldarethosefordepression.

Wewanttoco‐create,share,collaboratetogetherinthiswaywe<indcommonmeaning.

HOSHumanOperatingSystem

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TheOpenSocietyGeorgeSorosworrieddeeplythatunfetteredcapitalismwascreatingaclosedsocietywhichonlyonethingcounted–materialsuccess.Hearguedforanopensocietyanewtypeofoperatingsystemthatwasnotbuiltuponmarketfundamentalism,dogmaandavarice.IwouldarguethisiswhatwemightcallaHumanOperatingSystem.Thissocialoperatingsystemlooksbeyondmaterialismtosomethinggreater‐toliberateusfromclosedsystemssothatwecanallre‐engagewiththeworldtofeelandbeaccountabletoeachotherandexperienceandenjoytherichnessoflife

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@RebootweareshowingeachotherwhatthisOpenSocietyreallymeanssystems,platformsandservicesthatenablepeopletobettercooperatetogether,moreeffectivelyandenjoyably.Wegofromfastertocloser–fromcontexttodeepercontext.AndasJohnThackarasaysacultureofcommunityandconnectivityhastobefunaswellaschallenging,aswellasresponsible.

The“opensociety”iscreatedbytheunfoldingof;ideas,languageandcreativitythatbringsusnewwaysofdescribingandcomprehendingourworld.

TheOpenSocietyshouldNOTJUSTSATISFYUS.Noitshouldinspireus.

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IwanttosharesomewordswithyouthatIwantyoutore<lectuponandindoingsotothinkaboutwhatdothesewordssuggestaspossibilitiestoyou?Andperhapsasyouspendyourdaywithusall@Rebootapplythislanguagetoyourcompany,yourorganisationandimaginewhatthatlanguagemeans?

lightweight

<lexible

adaptive

creativecommons

opensource

deepcontext

life‐longlearning

embeddedsociability

individual&collective

accountability

mobile

grassroots

craftmanship

permeable<lowsof

information

blendedreality

networkedeconomics

collaborative&

participatory

socialinnovation

i+we

networked

trust&

transparency

sharedcollectivejoy

read&write

collectiveintelligence

mashable

hyper‐local&

superglobal

technologiesof

cooperation

understandsthemoralityof“enough”

Collaboration,participation,co‐creationCo­creationTheco‐creationofcultureandthesharingofculturecreatessocialcohesion.

CraftsmanshipinthenetworkedsocietySocialphilosopher,RichardSennett'sbookTheCraftsman,isanexplorationintotheideaofcraftsmanship,hebeginsfromthebasicsoftechniqueandpersonalexpressionandappliesthattoaphilosophyofhowcraftsmanshipmightbeattheveryheartofsocialgoodinmodernsociety.ItisSennett'scontentionthat“nearlyanyonecanbecomeagoodcraftsman”andthat“learningtoworkwellenablespeopletogovernthemselvesandsobecomegoodcitizens.”Thislineofthoughtdepends,amongotherthings,upontheEnlightenmentassumptionthatcraftabilitiesareinnateandwidelydistributed,andthat,whenrightlystimulatedandtrained,theyallowcraftsmentobecomeknowledgeablepublicpersons.”Thecraftsmanismorethanjustagoodtechnicianheisabringerofpeaceandamakerofcivilisation,heuseshistoolsforthecollectivegood.

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EmbeddedSociabilityEverysinglecasehistoryandpropositionatRebootactuallyhassociabilityimplicitlyembedded.RebootrecognisesembeddedsociabilityaspartoftheDNAofthenetworkedsociety–itisafundamentalrequirement.http://www.<lickr.com/photos/an_untrained_eye/1195966967/

Permeabilityoforganisations

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organisationsneedtobepermeable,withtheabilitytoabsorb<lowsofinformation,andpeople.

Thismeansusingmoretransparentmethodsofcommunicationfrominsideoutandoutsidein.

Italsomeansbeing<lexibleandadaptive,moreorganicinthoughtanddeed.

Theorganisationasavillage

Peoplehavelivedandworkedinvillagessincethedawnofcivilization.Thecorporation,arguesCharlesHandy,isayouthfulconcept,littlemorethanacenturyold.Onecouldargue,too,thatthenotionofalivelyvillage—withitsunabashedhumanity—isamoreappropriatewaytolookatwhatthecorporationshouldbeinthe21stcenturythantheconstrainedandimpersonalentityithasbeen.

Villagesaresmallandpersonal,andtheirinhabitantshavenames,characters,andpersonalities.Whatmoreappropriateconceptonwhichtobaseourinstitutionsofthefuturethantheancientorganicsocialunitwhose<lexibilityandstrengthsustainedhumansocietythroughmillennia?

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Takingbackthepublicrealm

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Wedon’ttakebackthepublicrealmbymoreCCTV‐Tryingtocontrolthepublicdomainremotelyisnevergoingtowork.WhyisitinJapanthatyoucanleaveyourbicycleleftunlockedindownTokyo–becausesocietyhasapowerfulsenseoftheinter‐relationshipbetweensociety–thepublicrealmandtheindividual.

Creatingcommunityisonlymarginallyabouttechnology.Whatmattersistheemergenceofsharedmeaningasweinteractwitheach‐otherinmeaningfulactivities…Forhundredsofyears,whenthemajorityofthepopulationwasilliterate,participatoryritualandperformancewerethemainwaysthatbeliefsweresharedwithinaculture.

ThelearningageStephenHeppellconsidersthe21stcenturytoheraldthe‘learningage’.Inthe20thcentury,heargues,webuiltbigthings(railways,universities)butthefocusforthe21stcenturyis‘helpingpeopletohelpeachother’.Inhisview,“Theoldstuffwon'tdoanymore”.ThefourCsareHeppell'skey…

{1}Creating

{3}Collaborating

{4}Communicating

{2}Critiquing

Learningshouldbeapartofallourlives–anopen,livingbreathingsystemwhereintelligenceandknowledgeis

sharedanddistributed–

Deschoolingbusinessschools–anewcapitalism

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Contrarytopopularopinion–businessisinfactasocialscience–soperhapsourbusinessschoolsshouldbemorelikethis–theEdenprojectThepromiseofthisnewworldcannotcomeaboutuntileducation/business/politicsetc.,adjuststohumanneednottheotherwayaroundbyconnectingpeoplewithcommoninterests,unlockingcreativetalentamonggroupsthathaveapassionateinterestorandesiretoexchangeinformationglobally,andasaconsequencenewcontentandsolutionsemerge.

IbelievethatbyofferingcollaborativetoolsforinnovationatthegrassrootswedramaticallyincreaseproductivitybecauseasIhavepointedoutasimpletruthpeopleembracewhattheycreate.

TheeffervescentbeautyofsystemsthinkingStraightLineThinkersalsofailtothinkofthewholesystemorpathwayofhelp,whichleadsinsteadtofocusingonbitsofthesystem,withtheresultthatalthougheachbitmaybedoingitsbit,theoverallresultisawful,asonepartclashesagainstanother.

JohnSeddon,arguesthatthisdynamiciscurrentlyendemicinBritain’spublicsectorleadingtovaluelessactivity,meaninglessmeasurement,andeverpoorerservice,atevergreatercost.YouandIastaxpayersarepayingheavilyforthisstupidity.Thesolution,SeddonadvocatesisaSystemsThinkingapproachwhere[1]individualscome<irst,[2]wasteisreduced[3]responsibilityreplacesblame.It'sanapproachthatisproven,successfulandrelativelycheap‐andonethatgovernmentsaroundtheworld,andtheiradvisers,needtoadopturgently.

Itisthedifferencebetweeneffectivenessvs.ef<iciency

simplexity

Wecreatecomplexitybynotthinkingthroughsolutionsde<inedbysimplehumanprincipals.Thisisasrelevanttoourdailylivesasindividualsandasprofessionals.Weforgettolookbeyondtheobviousandstepbackfromsituationstoenableustoalterourpreconceptionsoftakingandmaking

solutions.Andbydoingso,wetumbleintocomplexity

TheBillBaileyPrinciple

OneofthewaystosimplexityisthroughtheBillBaileyprinciple.Billisacomedianandheisaskedhowhecomesupwithhisjokes

Billsays–wellIstartwithalaughandworksbackwards.WhatdoIneedtodotocreatethataboutoflaughter!!Wherewestarttothinkaboutsolvingproblemswilldeterminewhereweendup.

JamesDysonstartedbyaskingaquestionandfocusedthereafteron<indingtheverybestanswer/experiencetothatquestion.Hisfocuswasoneffectivenessnotef<iciency.Funnythat–healsohas50%ofthevacuumcleanermarket–globally.

ButwealsoseethesameapproachforMyPoliceandinthereisasuggestionofacompletelydifferentapproach,aprocessthatprovideverydifferentresults.

Isuggest,thatratherthan<iddlingaroundwithbitsofthesystem,weraiseoureyesandmindsupwardsandyearnforthevastendlessseaofpossibilityofwhatoursocietycouldbebeyondthecon<inesofStraightLinethinking–EmbraceandusedailywhatHowardRheingoldrightlydescribesas“TechnologiesofCooperation”.

Whatyoucallthingsisimportant,asIhavealsoexplained,weneedanewlanguageandframeworktoenabletoustosucceedasasociety,and,weneedtoputcommerceinitsrightfulplacewithinthehumanfabricofthenetworkedsociety.

Weneedasystemrebootintoanewsocialparadigm.AsRichardSennettarguedintheCraftsman

Wewantto,recoversomethingofthespiritoftheEnlightenmentontermsappropriatetoourtime.

Wemayneedaformofdualismforawhile,understandingthatweareintheprocessofmakingajourney,spiritually,socially,andeconomicallyfromonewayofseeingandbehavingintheworldtoanother.Thesourceofthesolutionliesin<indingonceagainthe‘being’inhumanbeing.Thefundamentalneedwehaveisto<indsharedmeaning,becausewithoutsuchcommunalmeaningorbelonging,webecomebricksinthewall,livingmeaninglesslives.

WeneedtoRebootthesystemandweneedtoRebootitnow.

Thankyou

SMLXL:Contact:alanm@smlxtralarge.com

Twitter:alansmlxlwww.smlxtralarge.com

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