OPEN

“Interpersonal relations have had thousands of years to develop. Online, there’s been no time.

“There are people who tweet in a way that rubs you the wrong way. Marketers who build businesses that seem scammy to you, or build websites that feel wrong. I get plenty of email from people that just doesn’t feel right, whether it’s in ALL CAPS or just difficult in tone or approach.”

This is a really nice thoughtful piece about how people choose their social network avatar pics and what they say about them:

“”What we reveal mostly is our values, says John McArthur, a Queens University of Charlotte assistant professor of communications, and another expert on social media.

“The photo represents whatever that person is currently measuring success as,” McArthur says. If you pose with your baby, you’re sending a clear message about your current priorities. “Someone who is using Facebook as a dating tool will use a very flattering photo.””

Umair manages to hit the nail on the head about short-termism’s toxic effects on buisness, using newspapers as a prime example:

“An obsession with near-term profitability is how news destroyed itself. Managers shouldn’t make the same mistake twice. Yes, every business must profit. But a business obsessed with near-term profit is a poor shepherd of tomorrow — and news is a perfect example.”

“EVER wondered why the pundits who failed to predict the current economic crisis are still being paid for their opinions? It’s a consequence of the way human psychology works in a free market, according to a study of how people’s self-confidence affects the way others respond to their advice.”

“there are several simple steps we can all take to increase creativity, such as traveling to faraway places (or even just thinking about such places), thinking about the distant future, communicating with people who are dissimilar to us, and considering unlikely alternatives to reality.”