enoZ-efiL

Who wants to read more about Twitter??

Probably, at this point, no one.  Twitter has received an abundance of press recently, discussing everything from its growth, to who is tweeting on behalf of celebrities, to how the site will ever make money.  While overwhelming, this chatter is probably justified given the site’s tremendous growth over the past year (see below).

There is clearly no questioning the growth of Twitter, however I know many users that struggle to find value in the site or resist the movement of even more social communication.  Let’s address these one at a time.

First, the value of Twitter.  The common question I get is “what makes this different than Facebook status messages?”  Fair question.

My perspective is that, when used properly, Twitter allows you to cut through the noise of Facebook and truly keep up with what those you are following are sharing, thinking, and asking.  Notice I did not mention “doing,” as Twitter asks; this was intentional.  I find the most value in Twitter by finding useful (e.g. informative, amusing, etc.) links shared by those I trust and value enough to follow, asking questions of those who follow me, and keeping a real-time pulse on the thoughts and feelings of those I am closest to.

Most of these people I know offline.  Some I don’t.  Regardless, they bring something valuable to my community that I have created and, by virtue of this value, I choose to continue to follow them.  The number of folks I follow is increasing regularly, but thoughtfully.  To maximize the value of Twitter, the “less is more” principle applies.  For a case study on that, see the following post from ryanagraves.com.

To draw an analogy, Facebook is a crowded bar with all your friends, acquaintances, work colleagues, rec softball team, roommates, and a bunch of strangers.  Twitter is (or SHOULD BE) a party at your apartment.  In the former you have brief conversations with everyone, but don’t remember any of it the next day (not because of the booze, just the volume!); in the latter you use the arena to drive deeper engagement, asking follow-up questions, initiating a dialogue, and following up the next day.  Its the same reason I find house parties to be the best venue to meet girls – look for more on this in a future post.

The other key difference between Facebook and Twitter is access.  With Facebook, you have to accept my friendship.  While I truly doubt that President Obama is “friends” with 5,993,692 people (as of 3/28/09 2:19pm CDT), this utility still requires mutual interest.  Twitter, on the other hand, allows free-reign following.  I find you, I follow what you post.  Its that simple.  This has provided an unprecedented stage for celebrities, brands, and me to broadcast to the entire community.  It also complicates the “less is more” precept; as such, follow carefully!

Next, why Twitter is not the next step in the demise of interpersonal communication.

To illustrate my point, see if you agree with this statement:

“the more you learn about someone, the closer your relationship with them becomes”

So, we’ve got some heads nodding now, I hope.  Its inherent that as you get to know someone better – through communication, knowing their interests, what is important to them, how they spend their time – that you become closer to them and, generally, want to learn more.

To me, this further speaks to Twitter’s strength.  As I read the questions you tweet, the links you share, and your reactions to daily life, I learn more about you.  As I learn more about you, I want to dive even deeper and, ideally, choose escalate this conversation.  I may tweet a follow-up or bring it up the next time we hang out.  We can discuss the article you shared, add greater depth to an online conversation, or simply talk about a common interest discovered via our following of one another.  Regardless, real, genuine, communication has occurred, driven by Twitter.

In short, contrary to the belief that the web has destroyed interpersonal communication through its substituted goods of email, IM, blogging, and social networking, I would argue that it provides a greatly enhanced ability to communicate with more frequency, timeliness, and, when taken offline properly, greater depth.  Don’t believe me?  Ask your parents how often they talk to their friends and how attuned they are to their daily challenges and successes.  If they aren’t utilizing the above-mentioned tools, I’d wager to say they may lag behind your connectivity.

In conclusion, I have a confession.  I joined Twitter, just this past February, because of the buzz.  I work in strategy consulting for entertainment and media companies and the buzz had become so strong that I had to learn more.  Like many, I entered with much skepticism and continually refine my thoughts about how I want to use Twitter.  While, I am not sure I have fully refined my use-case yet, I now am confident that I am:

1) More focused in the social networking space (less time reading Facebook status’ of my roughly 700 friends),

2) More deeply connected to those friends of mine who I follow on Twitter – both online and offline, and

3) Making efforts to add value to those who choose to follow me.

If nothing else, take the old “try before you buy” challenge.  Sign in, start reading (with these guidelines in mind, of course!), and see if you agree.

Tips to maximize Twitter use:

1. Less is more – be selective about who you follow.  This doesn’t mean it has to be a small number (but, this is a good sanity check – tough for 500 people to truly add that much discrete value), but if they don’t add value to your time spent reading their posts, unfollow them and keep up via Facebook.

2. Take advantage of the access.  Think Dwight from The Office is funny, follow him.   Curious what John McCain has been up to since his November “L”, follow him.  Its democracy in action, folks!

3. Use it to learn more.  Be an participant.  Post, reply, ask questions of followers, take online conversations off-line.  Don’t make my praises of social media’s positive impacts ring hollow.

Follow me on Twitter: @AllenPenn

Is there a word that currently has a worse connotation?

If you were to listen to all the media noise that has been streaming from the web, airwaves, newspapers, and the talking heads who’ve somehow landed their own show, credit (and our “abuse” of it) caused the Second Coming of the Great Depression.

Not only would I argue this is not true, I postulate that credit is also the Great Enabler – a source of hope and future, a leg up out of poverty, and the instrument through which ALL people can prosper.  Let me explain myself.

In the 1970’s a man named Muhammed Yanus, a Bengali economics professor had a very simple idea, that small amounts of unsecured credit to the poorest of poor will enable the recipient to dramatically change their life.

The overwhelming majority of the world’s poor* are self employed.  Entrepreneurs, if you will.  [Note from Allen: During my travels in Tanzania this fall, I identified this same primary occupation.  In the absence of big box stores, it is amazing the opportunities for small, retail businesses].

Roadside stands on the highway from Dar to Morongoro

However, they are often tasked with trying to run their businesses without of the two imperatives for entrepreneurial success.  I believe there are two main drivers to entrepreneurial success:

1. A great idea (or sometimes just a good one, or a needed one…)

2. Capital to fund it

I assure you, Silicon Valley has no monopoly on great ideas nor does the United States, the West, or Developed countries.  In Banker to the Poor (“BTP”) Mr. Yunus states “I believe that all human beings are entrepreneurs, ” and I would argue that nothing inspires creativity and entrepreneurship like desperation.  Many of the (primarily) women described in BTP generate their income from running small businesses that spanning trades from weaving and embroidery to farming and telephone services.   These stories are both inspiring and motivating for they represent the best of the human entrepreneurial spirit.  However, for a single reason many of these entrepreneurs’ businesses are precluded from generating income sufficient to push them above the levels of the very poor.

The story of Sufiya Begum, a 21 year old woman who weaves bamboo stools for resale, describes quite succinctly the reason why many of these businesses never lift their owners out of poverty.

“‘Do you own this bamboo?’ I asked.

‘Yes’

‘How do you get it?’

‘I buy it.’

‘How much does this bamboo cost you?’

‘Five taka.’  At the time, this was about twenty-two cents.

‘Do you have five taka?’

‘No, I borrow it from the paikers.’

‘The middlemen?  What is your arrangement with them?’

‘I must sell my bamboo stools back to them at the end of the day as repayment for my loan.’

‘How much do you sell a stool for?’

‘Five taka and fifty poysha.’

‘So you make fifty poysha profit?’

She nodded.  That came to a profit of just two cents.

‘And you could borrow cash from the moneylender and buy your own raw material?’

‘Yes, but the moneylender would demand a lot.  People who deal with them only get poorer.’

‘How much does the moneylender charge?’

‘It depends.  Sometimes he charges 10 percent per week.  But I have one neighbor who is paying 10 percent per day.’”

Mr Yunus sums up this predicament as follows:

“I was trying to see Sufiya’s problem from her point of view.  She suffered because the cost of the bamboo was five taka.  She did not have the cash necessary to buy her raw materials.  As a result, she could survive only in a tight cycle – borrowing from the trader and selling back to him.  Her life was a form of bonded labor, or slavery.  The trader made certain that he paid Sufiya a price that barely covered the cost of materials and was just enough to keep her alive.  She could not break free of her exploitative relationship with him.  To survive, she needed to keep working through the trader.”

The problem is not the institution of credit.  Quite the opposite, the problem is the requirements, the bureaucracy, and yes, sometimes, the greed of banking institutions.  The one thing that would break this cycle in Sufiya’s business and, thus, life is the availability of a very small amount of credit.  Without the capital to take charge of her own business, she is forever locked into a subsistence only occupation that provides no opportunity to scale her business and escalate her profits.

Mr. Yunus recognized this predicament and decided something had to be done, leading to his formation of Grameen Bank, a bank devoted to providing the poorest with minuscule loans.  As an Economics professor in Bangladesh, he had grown increasingly frustrated with the chasm between the economic theories he taught in the classroom and the reality outside its doors in his province.

From initial research within his university’s town, he determined that a small amount of lending (micro credit) could yield enormous gains towards boosting the standard of living of the very poor.  He also determined that, somewhat surprisingly, “the repayment of loans by people who borrow without collateral has proven to be much better than those whose borrowings are secured by assets.”  In fact, more than 98% of Grameen’s loans are repaid.  The reason is simple, borrowers know this is their only opportunity to break out of poverty – if they screw it up they will have lost their one and only chance to get out of the rut.

The results of this work have been staggering.  Grameen has provided over $3.8 billion to 2.4 million families in Bangladesh to date and more than 250 institutions in nearly 100 countries operate under the Grameen methodology.

In recent years, micro credit has received additional attention as organizations like Kiva and Opportunity International expand the pool of resources from which to provide micro credit and, allow individual citizens to participate in the process.  I received news today that my loan to Abdul Masoli, an entrepreneur in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania was fully funded and disbursed.  I’m excited to watch Mr. Masoli’s business grow!

Please share any experiences you’ve had to micro credit, be they in the field or funding loans through Kiva or Opportunity International.  If you haven’t had the chance to fund a loan in this manner, I would strongly encourage you to visit one of these sites, read the stories of these amazing entrepreneurs, and consider supporting credit for them.

* Poor:

P1 – the bottom 20% of the population

P2 – the bottom 35% of the population

P3 – the bottom 50% of the population

It has now been more than 6 months since I have posted on this blog.  However, there seemed like no better occasion to fire the old enoZ-efiL engine back up than in support of Democracy.

Look, regardless who wins, regardless what each of these four have said about each other in the last 6 months, regardless of how much SNL makes fun of Mrs. Palin, Mr. Obama, Mr. Biden, or Mr. McCain, all four of them agree on one thing: that the United States is the still the land of opportunity and a source of hope, not just for the 350MM Americans living here, but for countless others around the world.

Yes, we have made mistakes.  Yes, many of us are watching our savings recede, have seen our jobs cut, our grocery bills rise, and have great fear.  However, compared to many parts of the world, where starvation is routine, where 6% unemployment would be a panacea, where the price of your post-vote Sausage McMuffin meal would constitute a week’s wages, we still represent that freedom and opportunity to aspire to.

So, have an opinion.  The most destructive force in this country is apathy.  The worst thing that can happen (worse than, depending on your perspective, 4 more years of Republican rule, or Obama reaching the White House) is American’s to stop passionately believing in and passionately acting on behalf of their country.  I just returned from voting and was delighted to wait in line for 25 minutes despite arriving 5 minutes before the polls opened at 6am.  Regardless of the outcome, I believe Mr. McCain and Mr. Obama have catalyzed the country and renewed interest in our political process.  Catch the fever, take some time out of your workday (I know in Illinois you employer is required to allow you time to vote!), and cast a ballot.  God Bless America!

Pardon me if I harken back to days of neverfar; a time when wild berries grew on every street corner, a time when men wore monocles…I digress – and give props to Will Ferrell:

Anywho, in these days, porches were king.  Think about small town America, Main St. USA, even the movie “Friday.”  Everything went down on the porch.  Thus, to reverse the karma from my whining on SAD, I give you the ode to the porch.

It’s quite refreshing to just sit and watch traffic pass, people walk by, life move along.  It is a splendid people-watching post and one that really imparts a neighborhood feel.  I have seen more of my neighbors in the past two hours (yes, due to wonders of wireless, I’m posting from my porch) that I did in the first 3 months I lived here.  I would argue that most anything is better done on a porch.  I know the deposition I read earlier was better, but so is checking email, listening to music, having a beer and stealing a kiss.  Think about it…back in high school (or middle school for you ballers) walking the girl/being walked to the door and knowing that when you hit the porch it was showtime.

In honor of front porches, check out the two following country songs that sum it up:

1. “If the World Had a Front Porch” – Tracy Lawrence (I really need this shirt!)

2. “My Front Porch Looking In” – Lonestar

Here’s to treating your neighbor like he’s your next of kin.

When you think about it, its a bit disturbing how much the weather impacts our moods.  I mean, realistically, I spend maybe 15 minutes outside per day, unless I choose to be outside to run, dine, porch-sit, etc.  Its essentially my commute…yet, the sheer fact of rain or shine, clouds or sun has a drastic impact on my mood. 

I’m no scientist, but I have dubbed this condition “Seasonal Affectiveness Disorder,” or “SAD.”  Perhaps you, or someone you know has a case of SAD.  It is particularly common in winter, although, in the Northern Hemisphere it is now officially spring and I had a case just today.  April 10, and it was gray, cold, raining…not exactly the ideal spring day.  I was lethargic, tired, and unmotivated to leave bed, leave work.  Clearly I need to move to a better climate.  Until that happens (and it will) try these tips on for size:

Tips for conquering SAD

1. Spend some time outside every day, regardless of weather.  Trust me, playing in the rain is more fun than sitting inside and whining about it.

2. Gear up.  Inclement weather is much more bearable with the appropriate accessories such as an umbrella, boots, gloves, scarf, (and yes, for those sweaters of you out there, perhaps an extra shirt or towel for the commute!)

3. Consider the alternative – the same weather everyday.  How boring would that be?  Also, what would you talk about during those awkward elevator/urinal/office coffee pot/first 2 minutes of a date conversations?

Fight SAD.