Which is why the Wall Street Journal’s report “The Simple Idea That Is Transforming Health Care” caught my eye this morning. Asking health questions through the lens of ‘Quality of Life’ provides different answers and different perspectives than ‘How Can I Fix You.’  Curative issues still rise to the top, but how they are addressed may fundamentally change in ways that may save money or may simply change lives.

Thought it was worth more than a tweet…

And thus the image that covers the FrogBlog.biz header and that you are seeing in various places:

I certainly don’t like everything I see on the internet. I am at various times annoyed, disgusted, and angered. But it is important to remember when things that are distasteful leak through, this is also the technology that helped bring some of the most totalitarian regimes left on earth to their knees.

When free nations choose to censor what disgusts them, they are also providing cover to the regimes who chose to censor simple political discourse. For that reason alone any legislation that proposes to ‘fix’ the free wheeling style of the internet must be designed and passed with utmost care.

Freedom of speech is a delicate thing. John Adams and the Federalists passed the Sedition Act back in 1798 and the push and pull of speech and power has never stopped. Even Thomas Jefferson – supporter of the First Amendment’s right to free speech — used the act to prosecute opinions he did not like.

Freedom of Speech is taken as an absolute right by most in the United States, but the truth of the matter is more complicated than that.  There are limits with fuzzy boundaries. WikiLeaks being a good current example. Whether you agree with the site or not, it should run a bit of a chill down your spine that government accusations were enough to have financial lifelines cut worldwide without judicial due process. Oh, what the Nixon administration would have given to have such power over the New York Times back in the days of the Pentagon Papers.

How does this relate to business?

Much of the current legislation appears to be driven by commercial interests who are dealing with the very large problem of piracy.  In the quest for mechanisms that easily block sites that reportedly break copyright rules or deny internet access to individuals who are accused of sharing what they shouldn’t, we run the risk of creating an entire structure of heavy handed punishments that operate outside of judicial review.

The internet has made it easy to start and grow a business, locally and internationally. Easier than it has ever been in the history of the planet. This has meant wealth creation both here and abroad, raising standards of living and producing services that I for one love. To be honest, it has also involved the destruction of older ways of doing business. While the internet makes this feel like a new problem, it’s not. Just ask a textile worker from Alabama, an auto worker from Michigan, or a typesetter from Chicago.

The trick is figuring out ownership rights and commercial models that do not disrupt the free-flow of ideas and speech that the internet has enabled. (Imagine losing your internet access for something you linked to via Facebook if you want a real worst case scenario.) This is a teeter-totter moment for the internet – anyone who thinks it will be simple is kidding themselves.

What would I do if I couldn’t Google?

Censorship on the internet has the potential not only to stop words, but also ideas, business models and more. It is not perfect, but it is delicate. So efforts to ‘fix’ it need to be initiated with utmost care.

>>>>Update: Removed the temporary ‘censorship’ code from the post so the FrogBlog header is no longer covered.

It appears the entrepreneurial spirit is bubbling here with places opening and closing, businesses being bought and sold.

Monday night we ate with the new owner of a small pizzeria downstairs. He offered to help us order when it became obvious that the instructions we had received were insufficient for the occasion.

He ordered ‘the lady’s’ first request – but chose something ‘spicier’ for the ‘gentleman.’ Pride of product. Pizza with uniquely Croatian sausage. Yum.

Owner for little over a month, he was learning the ropes of his new gig, thinking about changes and additions. Appeared young, yet not his first place – his first was a bar when only 22. A serial entrepreneur. A veteran. Eighteen hour days were exhausting, expected, maybe cherished. His own thing.

Friendly.

Wonderful.

I’m wandering knowing little more than ‘Hvala’ (thank you), and yet the people I meet are friendly, understanding, and outgoing.

This morning I was taught how to correctly purchase bananas and a tomato from the local grocer. “Teach?”  you might think, kindly not mentioning your concerns aloud.

Reaching my tomato at the bottom of my basket, the checkout lady  looked irritated (there was a long line) and asked something or other.

By something or other I believe I could roughly translate to “Why didn’t you do this right?”

I smiled, “English? Help?”

She laughed. Time was no longer an issue. She walked me to the scale where I should have weighed and labeled the produce. She did the tomato. I had to go back with the bananas myself, but immediately another shopper was helping me pull the label and push the buttons needed.

As there was a line I’d have expected grumbling. Instead smiles and hello. Pleasant.

Zagreb is a city that seems on the move.

During the flight over from London I conversed with a mechanical engineer who had left Croatia back in the 80s for D.C. and recently returned. He had missed the war and subsequent rebuilding and said the changes had been extraordinary, almost to the point of making the place unrecognizable. Scattered among conversation about the future of hydrogen power generation, business models, and places that we should not miss along the Adriatic, he mentioned that his countrymen were learning the ways of business quickly.

“But we know it is the United States that knows how to change the world with business. That is where we learn.”

Heady thought. Bit of a responsibility being an idea of opportunity, not just the place. Reminder that many in the world still look to the US, deficient as we may be, as the place where wonderful things can happen.

Last night fish was on the menu, a specialty here at a neighborhood favorite. Not be missed according to several.

We were there late, just before closing. A table of men off in one corner talking softly. A longer lasting date in another. White table cloths with private spaces created by small sails. Quiet. Romantic.

I’ve been last in to places before. Memories of being rushed.

Our waiter helped us decide. A nudge towards specialties and away from mistakes. There was pride when he presented each plate. Concern that we enjoyed, that we approved. Space to enjoy, take as long as we want. Fabulous close to the day.

And then the table across the room broke into song.

Wonderful, polished yet rustic tunes.

Years ago my good friend and I joined a barbershop quartet society. Breaking into song when we gathered became normal fun. Fond musical memories.

The fellowship was recognizable even if the melodies were not.

Funny how close to home one can feel when so far away.

“If we all did the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves.”  Thomas Edison

That’s a great quote to wake up to.

LaMar’s.

Kansas City staple.

Glazed donut of the gods.

Warm when you pick them up and as they go down.

TJCinnamons was the only short term challenger for ‘perfect morning meeting food.’ That didn’t last long and is a whole different story.

Every time I live in a new city, I must search for the perfect donut.

Every city seems to have their own local donut hero. LaMar’s worked out of a converted gas station for years. You’d pull up on almost any morning to cars parked four deep. Like there was a gas shortage but for donuts.

This appears to be a real thing. Hadn’t thought about it before.

Growing up we were a Dunkin’ Donuts family – that’s where I acquired my addiction to the slightly more difficult to make french cruller. Delicate enough that you had to know when to order them. Even though Dunkin’ was a large chain, to me it was a counter, mom’s coffee and my french cruller. A chain store can be local when it is run well.

But in high school there were arguments in favor of Amy Joy. No violence, just an excuse for taste testing. Amy Joy had the benefit of looking like a local donuts shop, nice but worn. A funky sign. A place you want to stop at even though part of you is saying keep going.

My wife grew up with Jack’s Donuts in New Castle, Indiana. These things are huge, weighty and slathered in maple frosting. Good, solid, keep you going through the day, farm-country donuts. I’ve never been to Jack’s to get donuts. They magically appear at breakfast when we are visiting.

In Bloomington there’s a family argument actively percolating between Cresent Donuts with their marvelous blueberry cake and Square Donuts with the most amazing bavarian cream I have ever experienced.

I tend to give the edge to Square donuts. Cresent aaaaallllllways seems to be out of blueberry. Square made me a bavarian when they were out, special, just for me. I am now loyal. For those of you who haven’t noticed, this is a lesson in branding.

So in Oakland/Lake Merritt I’ve found Colonial with a sturdy, nice cruller. It has the bonus of being near the bottom of the hill. Somehow the donuts have the magical property of making me forget I’ve got to walk back up the hill.

I’m not sure what kind of donut city San Francisco is yet. With their focus on coffee (Peet’s is a marvelous change of pace) I would think there would be donuts everywhere. Maybe not. Round things roll down hills.

What’s your favorite donuts place?

Coffee shops and a killer french cruller within walking distance. Sounds of human life drifting in on morning breeze. Alternate Tuesday street cleaning and parking tickets…

My wife and I started out on the Plaza in Kansas City. Relaxed compared to hard core Chicago city life, but a great all night coffee shop for late night talks between newlyweds. Waitresses that let you nurse a cup knowing your tip would rent the booth.

Been a long time since kids and yards came calling. Since our focus shifted from ‘worldview’ to ‘family view’ where teacher meetings, softball, and scouting beat a night out every time.  Our move to the Chicago of skyscrapers and jazz clubs became real life with neighbors and life-long friends.

Quiet nights of Mancala. Long walks on dark streets. A dog, two cats.

Sometimes loud, laughter filled nights of Euchre.

The move to Bloomington and university life last year short circuited our risk of empty nest syndrome and we’ve been adapting to the town’s little-city-big-city lifestyle. Things to do, small distances to travel. Nice.

But Bloomington is not urban.

For now I’m waking up in Oakland in the delightful Lake Merritt district.  The reasons I’m here are unfortunate – my daughter fell down a flight of stairs and broke both her elbows – but I’m enjoying being with my kids and getting back to city life. Miss my wife dearly, but she’s tied to a desk while I’m tied to the internet.

Amazing how locationally independent those routed electrons can make an old working stiff.

The news is good for my daughter. Always an overachiever, she was told by the doc a few days ago that ‘if you’re going to break your elbows that’s the way to do it.’ No casts, no surgery, just rehab. So my job is simplified. I’m back to being dad, driving my son-in-law to where he teaches and my daughter to her directing gigs. (That’s right – I’m back to driving kids to school and practice. )

It’s nice to see how they’ve adapted to their new home.

A reminder of how adaptable human beings can be. Life changes, so do we. Some of us go complaining, others go searching. When you stuff us close together you either get smiles and the best of humanity working together or you get snarls and the worst of it.

I’ve not quite caught the urban beat, but I can hear it pounding and it makes me smile.

Thought my reply might be of interest because it applies to writing in general and business writing in particular:

One question I ask when reading a paper is: “Could the writer have found anything that distracted from their primary points to cut?“  My experience indicates that the answer to this question is usually yes when the paper falls within length guidelines and almost always yes when it runs longer than guidelines.

This is not to say that what you might need to cut isn’t interesting or in some way important. Or that you won’t have to rewrite a sentence you like to be shorter. It’s a question of streamlining – removing extraneous information so that your key points come across more clearly.

I personally hate editing my own writing. Takes a lot of effort to get the points down on the page.  Unfortunately, I’ve also learned over time that my work tends to improve If I assume that the first edit should target a 30% cut in words.  Very painful – but it does force a thought process that is necessary when you think about the one truly limited resource you are dealing with – the reader’s attention span.

So – is there an automatic penalty for going over the limit? No. I always will admire a point well stated regardless of length. However, it would probably force me to go in and show you what I would have cut…

Of course, the above deserved further editing itself. Ah well. 

What I’m seeing up close now is the impact new tools have on the ability jump-start ideas.  Wasn’t that long ago that the VC’s of Silicon Valley were the enlightened financial doorkeepers to the innovation community. They’re still driving – but new tools are bringing the ability to drive entrepreneurship downstream. Moving from a technical focus to all things business.

A few years ago I described Cardboard Theatre, a production my daughter helped initiate. She’s at it again this time using the latest start-up tool on the net – KickStarter.

Three things I’ve noticed about KickStarter:

• It’s a great pre-order tool – allowing start-ups to get the customers they need before investing in production.
• It’s a great Creative’s Tool – Many art and theater projects are finding funding through the site. It’s provides ‘patrons’ for performances just getting off the ground.
• It’s a great social tool – The goal is to raise money for something you would like to see happen. Sometimes there is a deliverable (a product) sometimes a happening, always a thank you.

By creating a way for interested parties to invest in an idea – with clear indications about what they can expect if it is accomplished – a whole new world is opened for getting imaginative projects off the ground.

Sarah’s latest project is the Stillwaters Street Theater Project (Kickstarter link) - bringing voice to the millennium generation.

“A generation shaped by the advent of Myspace, Facebook, blogging, and twitter we [the millennial generation] find ourselves surrounded by a wealth of opportunity to communicate.  Suddenly supporting a cause is as easy as hitting a “like” button and just as easy to forget.  Where generations before us had to step onto the streets to express their voice ours does it from the safety of a computer keyboard.  Our voices merge into the deceptively still waters of our generation.

The purpose of the Still Waters Street Theatre Project is to explore the depths of this generation in the public forum of the streets of the Bay Area through original works created by the voices of this generation.  We have three great shows by three great playwrights.”

Advanced communication explored through the oldest form of communication where the revolution began. I find it to be an interesting confluence of ideas made possible by an advanced method of funding.

Cool. Hi-tech cardboard creativity.

“My positioning statement is two words: “Empower people.” What’s your’s?” Guy Kawasaki, Enchantment

Bringing about change is a lot like swimming upstream.  Everything and everyone pushes you to run fast with them promising safer, faster, easier waters via alternative compass headings. But changemakers in the world not only swim against the current, they pull thousands upstream with them.

Motivating movement with the force of an idea.

Guy Kawasaki takes on this force in his latest book Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions. I’ve long enjoyed reading Kawasaki for his ability to present ideas that can help you move mountains in ways that are both motivating and realistically grounded.  So I was delighted to receive a pre-release copy from his publisher last month to review if I felt so inclined.

You have to enjoy a book that wraps up with a chapter on how to avoid being wrongly captivated by individuals who use the Enchantment techniques just outlined against your better interests.  Reminds you that in this world of ours there is always someone looking to sway and influence — You are the only gatekeeper who can wholly own the decisions of what is in your own self interest. An important item to remember so that you honestly evaluate the opportunities that come your way as well as avoid becoming cynical about techniques that used honestly can improve your ability to understand, communicate, and motivate.

Communicating passion is hard for many.  We fall into the trap of listing benefit and feature bullet points that don’t get at the heartbeat of why we believe in what we are doing. Kawasaki describes the idea of immersing people in your cause (chapter 5):

“When you captivate people this way, they lose track of time, suspend their cynicism and skepticism, and may also break into a sweat.” Guy Kawasaki, Enchantment

So much better than yawning through a powerpoint deck.

This is a book about embedding enchantment into your organization, whether start-up or existing. Kawasaki balances the need to be personally enchanting with the need for having an enchanting cause. In other words, it’s fine to be a likable, trustable person, but there has to be depth to what you want to do well beyond just, “trust me.”  This depth can provide an employer with tools to motivate with more than just money:

“Motivating people is not as simple as feeding money into employees and getting out results as if they were vending machines. Providing an opportunity for employees to achieve mastery, autonomy, and purpose (MAP) is more important than money.” Guy Kawasaki, Enchantment

Which brings up why I’m a seed. Hard to miss reviews of Enchantment around the web. Easy to see he has taken his own advice to plant many seeds:

“This is a strategy of big numbers: The more seeds, the more nobodies you’ll reach, and the more likely they turn into somebodies for your cause.” Guy Kawasaki, Enchantment

Of course, he means nobody in only the most positive way,

I enjoyed the read and can recommend it. It provides ideas and techniques in a comfortable context that makes you feel they can be integrated into what you are doing today. So in the best of worlds, it may just help you change your world and that’s a good thing.

Until midnight on the 7th you can get a copy of his previous book Reality Check free with the purchase of Enchantment. Details are here.

“Literary intellectuals at one pole—at the other scientists, and as the most representative, the physical scientists. Between the two a gulf of mutual incomprehension—sometimes (particularly among the young) hostility and dislike, but most of all a lack of understanding.  They have a curious distorted image of each other. Their attitudes are so different that, even on the level of emotion, they can’t find much common ground.”  (The Two Cultures and The Scientific Revolution, The Rede Lecture, 1959 by C.P. Snow)

To me, the difference between artist and scientist is one of modes – or ways of thinking – in addition to underlying knowledge. Our education system forces decisions between the artistic and scientific early on. Declaring their difference. Daring you to cross between what appears to be a large cultural divide.

This is a false dichotomy. A fool’s choice. Never leave home with half a toolbox. Embrace the duality!

There are strong reasons to rethink how we look at the connections of art and science. The creative process depends on it. One of my biggest challenges in teaching undergrads has been to remind them of their own inner creativity-regardless of their focus.

Snow picks on the literary and physical sciences world intentionally.  I don’t think you’ll find two areas that view the world so differently. Their objectives are different. What they measure is different.

This is a natural outgrowth of focus. Disciplines develop what is a language of their own to describe the subjects and activities of interest.  Modes of thinking. It highlights their difference. It makes communication difficult. Understanding disagreeable.

“But at the heart of thought and creation we are letting some of our best chances go by default.  The clashing point of two subjects, two disciplines, two cultures—of two galaxies, so far as that goes—ought to produce creative chances. In the history of mental activity that has been where some of the breakthroughs came. The chances are there now. But they are there, as it were, in a vacuum, because those int he two cultures can’t talk to each other.”  (The Two Cultures and The Scientific Revolution, The Rede Lecture, 1959 by C.P. Snow)

It’s the difference that can create insight. Not uniformity.

So in answer to Brad’s query – are you marketing scientist or artists – I like to think of myself as both. Building the strength of both approaches I work to discover the insight and the change that will shake things up. (He’s running a science experiment at the moment – click here to figure out how to participate.)

As I was doing a bit of research I came across an Australian band: Art Vs. Science. Sorry, but I simply can’t pass up the chance to add battling mimes into the discussion…

What do you think?