Thursday, 2 November 2023

Seth's Blog : Commonplace technology

Not all tech is new tech. The ballpoint pen was a revelation, and a bit controversial. Now, it's disposable and obvious. Different industries go through tech spurts. My desk is covered with items I use every day (a mouse, headphones, a solid-state ...
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Commonplace technology

Not all tech is new tech.

The ballpoint pen was a revelation, and a bit controversial. Now, it’s disposable and obvious.

Different industries go through tech spurts. My desk is covered with items I use every day (a mouse, headphones, a solid-state drive, transparent tape, and even a Star Trek communicator) that were risky breakthroughs, and now they are simply commonplace (though we now call the communicator a phone).

When tech is coming at us too quickly, it’s tempting to simply wait. It’s risky to be an early adopter.

But once the pace slows down a bit, once our peers and competitors are benefitting from a productivity breakthrough, our aversion should be more intentional than that. Perhaps it’s time to reconsider the tech we once said we were too busy to bother learning.

We get to choose our tools, and the tools we choose alter the work we do.

    

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Wednesday, 1 November 2023

Seth's Blog : Two ways to defend the status quo

Neither is true, helpful or generous. Both happen all the time. Call it out when you see it.
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Two ways to defend the status quo

  1. Deny the problem. Minimize it, make up data, distract from the conversation, make people feel like hypocrites, and emphasize the convenient and persistent elements of what is in place.
  2. Acknowledge the problem but point out that it’s now far too late to do anything about it.

Neither is true, helpful or generous. Both happen all the time. Call it out when you see it.

    

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