The video above might just be a preview of the way we interact with virtual spaces in the very near future. While the iPhone, MS Surface and other cool ways of interacting with machines as I’d previously illustrated are already capturing our imaginations, the biggest shift yet is the one at the speed of our thoughts.

I’m a big fan of the ideology that our thoughts create our reality, and as we head into a world where we blur the lines between real and virtual, it takes on an entirely more profound meaning.

The idea that advertising is content was not just my rants like this one, but actually coming true here with the Geico Cavemen and characters from your media entertainment spaces having footprints like this in our mental realities. That, with a real marketplace for virtual goods are just more indicators that the physical and metaphysical are indeed becoming one and the same.

Though I’m not a big believer of following a linear logic to the future, it’s likely that the influence of brand stories in today’s transitory semi-meta virtual existence might translate quite seamlessly in our more immersive mind spaces in the very near future. As traditional advertising models of awareness=relevance dies its much deserved death, the brand stories that move us might just be driven by our own imaginations.

What do you think? (double meaning obviously intended)

To adapt ahead of change, we need to know what does not change. Though the common wisdom says that we have a set of governing core beliefs to maintain the integrity of our brand, what we know always changes what we believe over time. Our ability to anchor our thinking in principles while adapting new challenges requires a set of understandings, not beliefs. Here’s what I understand to stay relevant regardless of change:

1. Thought shapes reality.

2. Nature is the design manual.

3. Value is the only currency.

4. Everything is connected.

5. Every choice is self defining.

6. Motivation is rooted in (the perception of) survivability.

7. Activity should never be confused with understanding.

Some people are making a big deal about Markus Frind who was smart enough to ask the most important questions first and capitalized on the corresponding answers:

Q: What’s missing from online dating sites?
A: Free Services!

Q: How can I capitalize on it?
A: While advertisers still bet on “page views” to be a viable conversion tool, it's a no-brainer : Online Ads!

To me, as I’m sure to many of you it’s blatantly obvious. The question though, is that is it obvious now that I’ve pointed it out, or that Markus is making serious money, or both?

As The Black Swan points out, we often see the logic of solutions after the fact and deduce that “the logic” we reconstructed may be the formula for future success. It’s not! The four dimensional paths of intersecting possibilities made the apparent success real only seem unidirectional after the fact!

However, asking what matters first (like having a engaging story line) may guarantee a better return than this type of a multi-million dollar doozey...but that’s another topic for another post...

When sites like this pop-up, who becomes the visionary in organizations? The "leader" or everyone?

Circa 2007



Circa 1962

-Do you respect and grow the talent of your peers, or do you leverage it so you can shine?

-Do you have transparency with your vendors, or do you try to squeeze every drop of value from them until they move on and you find someone else?

-Do you feel good or bad when you’ve clearly exploited someone’s position to your benefit?

-Do you weaken or strengthen the power of the people around you?

-Do you still maintain relationships where you benefit much more than you contribute?

These are but a few questions that define whether or not you can play a more significant role in the global business ecosystem you participate in. As the world becomes more connected and thus transparent, the rules that apply to biological ecosystem apply here as well.

The big difference though is that in nature, parasitic, symbiotic and dynamic relationships are played by the same players without the possibility of moving up or down the change (apart from evolution over time). With people in business, the evolutionary cycles are faster and more immediate than ever, and growth is dependent on the ability to adopt to new mind shifts from “small timer” to major player.

The real question then is about your mentality. I’d written earlier about Landlord vs Trader mentality, but this is far more fundamental. It’s about nobility. The best definition of nobility I’ve hear to date is:

Nobility is not about how much better you are than someone else, but rather, how much better are you than your former self.

So now, truthfully ask yourself:

Are you just a bottom feeder, a leach, a coattail rider, a predator, or can you shift your mentality to be an integral part of the business ecosystem you play in? Your survivability in the bold new world might just depend on it.

Techcrunch article on the same here... As I was saying sometime back here and here.