Santa, the true inventor of overnight delivery, is on the defense because of the kids. If they get even the slightest hint of the possibility of being on the Naughty side of the list, they ask for a recount. Their eyes are on the prize, just like any other business seeking new markets and clients and inventing in the process.
Since the invention of attention, the inventing part has greatly shifted towards content. Once people understood the power of storytelling through the media, it all became one glorious hunt for the next big thing, as if it were a giant white whale or an oil field. Welcome to the next chapter.
Points and Problems
“There are some enterprises in which a careful disorderliness is the true method.” – H. Melville
With people and AI producing new content every minute of every day, audience fragmentation has become a problem: there are so many platforms, so many eyeballs, and very few Tom Hanks movies.
If you think about it, separating a problem into a few Points rather than looking at it as a single point may leave you with solutions that are connected in different and unexpected ways, just like your attention.
With the internet flooded with quick bytes (pron. click·bait | ˈklikbāt |) of data available across multiple platforms, it has been difficult lately to see the full picture, even if you ask Google.
Everything you ask for is segmented to the granular level and distorted when needed or possible. Even this article is carefully separated into paragraphs and uses popular references to keep you engaged. You’re still reading, right?
Unlike this article, there are other ways to seek attention. Writing a book about a giant whale and waiting fifty years for it to become popular may not be your best path to attention. Tools like Facebook and TikTok (yes, tools) built to “commodify your personality” may offer those fifteen minutes of fame. For long-term success, you need some character. That would be Keanu Reeves in Cyberpunk 2077. And knowledge, tools, experience, and the right mix of aforesaid.
If You Don’t Fix It, It Becomes A Part Of Strategy
It’s not like the air bubble in toothpaste will ever get fixed. If you don’t fix it, it becomes a part of the strategy.
With technology so closely interwoven with fantasy, it’s no wonder they sometimes cannot be told apart. While technology may be part of the problem, it can also be part of the solution.
NYT looked at how the crisis can be abridged smartly with technology: “Innovations in home sale transactions have been widely embraced only recently despite being around for a while. The key here is that such innovations are likely to make home buying faster. Showing a home virtually, for example, eliminates the delay imposed by the need for a weekend open house, and a remote online notary can save time when local ones are in short supply.” The solution was right before us; we didn’t get to use it because we didn’t have to.
Dealing with obstacles and using available resources is the common thread in the examples above and is also the premise of many Tom Hanks movies. In this case, everyone was using the same technology, and the real obstacle was finding ways to communicate better and deliver, just like Santa. Let’s avoid obstacles by being creative.
Karma Is A Pitch
Technology is inseparable from our lives and what we create. It should be used accordingly as a tool and should not be ignored. The stones of Stonehenge reflect some of the earliest technologies related to calendars and the summer and winter solstices, for example. As we get the correct time and date through our devices (upper left or right corner of your device right now), we often forget all the stones that had to be moved long ago to get the time right.
Here’s the thing: we no longer push the stones to acquire knowledge. It doesn’t work with our busy schedule. The kids have a game at five o’clock. You forgot again. The knowledge we have was gently guided to us, and in most cases, we accept it without thinking about it much. Just like 10 or 20 years ago when Stonehenge was created (I know), plenty of knowledge is floating around, ready to be used. So, call Miller.
