Artisanal Threads…

Weavers of Dots in Motion.

Muriel Ruykeser tells us the world is not made of atoms; it is made of stories. Yet what are stories made of? Dots in motion. Some of us are skilled at identifying dots; others are skilled at joining them. Dots in motion become threads. Our job as artisans is to weave them into something that matters.

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There are so many dots. The ideas, insights, people, materials, and energies we collide with seem endless. Outside of the mush that is social media, there are luminous, original gems that live in our inboxes or streams for brief moments, which, if not captured, either find someone else or decay into obscurity.

Overwhelm and a form of creative FOMO feel always present. Identifying signals amidst the noise is a constant challenge, especially when the multiplying noise sources seem to increase in volume. I abandoned social media long ago, and following an on/off relationship with LinkedIn, I have also abandoned that as its signal-to-noise ratio continues to decrease in favour of low-level attention harvesting.

And even now, Substack, Medium, and a range of other hand-picked sources give me more than I can reasonably digest with the respect their authors deserve. I have to reluctantly accept there will be signals I miss, which I would rather not.

This means weaving is best done in the company of others. Share what we see, confident that whatever I miss others may spot, and vice versa, and that we all will benefit, individually and collectively.

Where, then, can we find that company? Not in large groups—experience and research tell us that discussion groups of more than eight fragment and dilute attention, that once an organisation reaches fifty, bureaucracy is necessary, and that above one hundred fifty, hierarchy and its attendant politics inevitably start to show.

As size and scale lend efficiencies, we pay the price of the inevitable “people like us” tendency. No matter what DEI policies may be in place, process, protocol, and emergent dogma will overwhelm the benefits that belong mainly in consultants' “best practice” proposals.

Creativity needs the friction of differing perspectives and ideas concentrated in containers of mutual respect. Since the pandemic, I’ve learned how much more powerful the perspectives become when harnessed in a group.

We go from an individual OODA loop to a connected OODA Group. The impact of decisions and actions depends directly on the quality of observation and orientation, and the small groups I have been part of have demonstrated that beyond doubt.

When those of us who can make it tonight (5:00 pm UK) meet on Zoom, that’s that magic I hope to evoke and spread.

Here’s the Link:

And a reminder about an idea of our threads…

The Way it is. William Stafford.
There's a thread you follow. It goes among  
things that change.  But it doesn't change. 
People wonder about what you are pursuing. 
You have to explain about the thread. 
But it is hard for others to see. 
While you hold it you can't get lost. 
Tragedies happen; people get hurt 
or die; and you suffer and get old. 
Nothing you do can stop time's unfolding.
You don't ever let go of the thread.

See you tonight…..