It's amazing what we're trying to do now. At least what some are trying to do.
Today's college football quarterbacks need to take a football snapped from the center, drop back a few steps, look over about a hundred square yards of grass, and decide what to do with the ball. They have about three seconds to make up their mind and execute the plan...or improvise....or get crunched. That's a lot quicker than 10 years ago.
Heck, I'm from Texas. I have trouble saying a simple sentence in three seconds. Don't even ask me to put "philanthropy" in that sentence.
College teams all over the country are spending big bucks for simulators from companies like Gridiron Technologies or Visual Edge to get their qb's into a better place mentally to make quicker decisions. The Air Force Academy allegedly has their football players jumping on trampolines and reading two eye charts, one inches from their face and one 10 yards away.
Is this a trend for social capital in the 21st Century??? Wikipedia describes social capital as the "advantage created by a person's location in a structure of relationships."
College football is all about having an advantage in the relationships on the field. The game is faster than ever. There are more options than ever. The relationships are more complex than ever. The costs are higher, and there's more money at stake than ever before.
This holds true for the rest of life as well. Relationships are the common denominator. What you do to maintain healthy relationships and prepare for change in a rapidly changing world is vital.
Sure hope my bifocals stay on when I'm on the trampoline.
Showing posts with label social capital. Show all posts
Showing posts with label social capital. Show all posts
Friday, August 31, 2007
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Diversity is Dead!
Long live diversity!
Who ya gonna believe? Google "diversity" and you'll get 93.1M hits. It's an idea, a system, an industry, a hope, an argument in waiting.
Lately, it's getting even more interesting. Is it alive or is it dead? This all started recently at The Saguaro Seminar. In a nutshell, according to renowned Harvard social scientist Robert Putnam, diversity doesn't really build better communities. His studies show that the more ethnically and religiously diverse a community is, fewer people vote; less volunteer; fewer give to charity; and less work on projects for the good of the community.
But wait, there's more. Along with a decline in civic engagement, you get an increase in economic and creative innovation. This is actually kind of funny watching the conservatives and liberals switch sides of the diversity table.
For a really good summary of this new look at diversity, immigration, and social capital see Michael Jonas's story in The Boston Globe , "The Downside of Diversity" on August 5, 2007. Is this a new incovenient truth?
This Putnam guy is one of our nation's best when it comes to studying and understanding people. He's met with both Presidents Clinton and Bush. Putnam virtually coined the concept of "social capital" aka "social networks." His contention that when social networks of friends and associates are in good shape whether in church, around your home, at work, wherever - then you will have a greater number of voting citizens living in safer, healthier communities.
Hmmm....there's a key. Social networking. Wonder if that concept will ever take off in the 21st century?? In Dallas, The Williams Institute has some very interesting research on social capital and what makes a city healthy and whole.
Maybe the best (and shortest) read on Putnam's findings is by Daniel Henninger. See "The Death of Diversity" and make up your own mind.
So what's to be learned with all this new information? Things aren't always as they seem.
Who ya gonna believe? Google "diversity" and you'll get 93.1M hits. It's an idea, a system, an industry, a hope, an argument in waiting.
Lately, it's getting even more interesting. Is it alive or is it dead? This all started recently at The Saguaro Seminar. In a nutshell, according to renowned Harvard social scientist Robert Putnam, diversity doesn't really build better communities. His studies show that the more ethnically and religiously diverse a community is, fewer people vote; less volunteer; fewer give to charity; and less work on projects for the good of the community.
But wait, there's more. Along with a decline in civic engagement, you get an increase in economic and creative innovation. This is actually kind of funny watching the conservatives and liberals switch sides of the diversity table.
For a really good summary of this new look at diversity, immigration, and social capital see Michael Jonas's story in The Boston Globe , "The Downside of Diversity" on August 5, 2007. Is this a new incovenient truth?
This Putnam guy is one of our nation's best when it comes to studying and understanding people. He's met with both Presidents Clinton and Bush. Putnam virtually coined the concept of "social capital" aka "social networks." His contention that when social networks of friends and associates are in good shape whether in church, around your home, at work, wherever - then you will have a greater number of voting citizens living in safer, healthier communities.
Hmmm....there's a key. Social networking. Wonder if that concept will ever take off in the 21st century?? In Dallas, The Williams Institute has some very interesting research on social capital and what makes a city healthy and whole.
Maybe the best (and shortest) read on Putnam's findings is by Daniel Henninger. See "The Death of Diversity" and make up your own mind.
So what's to be learned with all this new information? Things aren't always as they seem.
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