We’re a mess over here.
AND YET SOMEHOW I DID NOT KNOW ABOUT THE CHORE WARS!!!
(Source: diarrheaheartfailure)
I feel like I’ve seen this graphic before, but I just saw it on this AVC post on bitcoin and it struck me anew. Wondering if the same (or similar) curve is in place for social impact innovations and/or any sort of viral/sexy business model. And of course what that means in the world of social impact funding and fundraising.
by Therese Borchard
Today I have the pleasure of interviewing Douglas Eby, M.A./Psychology, who is a writer and researcher on the psychology of creative expression, high ability and personal growth. He is creator of the Talent Development Resources series of sites (including HighlySensitive.org)
at http://talentdevelop.com. I know many of you are “highly sensitive” and enjoy articles on that topic, so I am excited to pique his highly-sensitive brain today!
Question: If you had to name the top five gifts of being highly sensitive, what would they be?
Douglas:
1. Sensory detail
One of the prominent “virtues” of high sensitivity is the richness of sensory detail that life provides. The subtle shades of texture in clothing, and foods when cooking, the sounds of music or even traffic or people talking, fragrances and colors of nature. All of these may be more intense for highly sensitive people.
Of course, people are not simply “sensitive” or “not sensitive” — like other qualities and traits, it’s a matter of degree.
Years ago, I took a color discrimination test to work as a photographic technician, making color prints. The manager said I’d scored better, with more subtle distinctions between hues in the test charts, than anyone he had evaluated.
That kind of response to color makes visual experience rich and exciting, and can help visual artists and designers be even more excellent.
2. Nuances in meaning
The trait of high sensitivity also includes a strong tendency to be aware of nuances in meaning, and to be more cautious about taking action, and to more carefully consider options and possible outcomes.
3. Emotional awareness
We also tend to be more aware of our inner emotional states, which can make for richer and more profound creative work as writers, musicians, actors or other artists.
A greater response to pain, discomfort, and physical experience can mean sensitive people have the potential, at least, to take better care of their health.
4. Creativity
Psychologist Elaine Aron, author of The Highly Sensitive Person, estimates about twenty percent of people are highly sensitive, and seventy percent of those are introverted, which is a trait that can also encourage creativity.
As examples, there are many actors who say they are shy, and director Kathryn Bigelow, who recently won an Academy Award, has said, “I’m kind of very shy by nature.” The star of her movie The Hurt Locker, Jeremy Renner (who was reportedly shy as a child), has commented that “in social situations she can be painfully shy.”
5. Greater empathy
High sensitivity to other people’s emotions can be a powerful asset for teachers, managers, therapists and others.
Question: And, if you had to name five curses, what would they be? And how best do we overcome them or co-exist with them?
Douglas:
1. Easily overwhelmed, overstimulated
The biggest challenge in high sensitivity is probably being vulnerable to sensory or emotional overwhelm. Taking in and processing so much information from both inner and outer worlds can be “too much” at times and result in more pain, fatigue, stress, anxiety and other reactions.
An intriguing neuroscience research study I came across that may explain some of this said people with nervous systems having decreased latent inhibition are more open to incoming stimuli. Which can be a good thing, or not so good.
Actor Amy Brenneman once commented, “I’m too sensitive to watch most of the reality shows. It’s so painful for me.”
That kind of pain or discomfort can mean we don’t choose to experience some things that might actually be fun or enriching. Though I don’t mean reality shows.
2. Affected by emotions of others
Another aspect of sensitivity can be reacting to the emotions — and perhaps thoughts — of others. Being in the vicinity of angry people, for example, can be more distressing.
As actor Scarlett Johansson once put it, “Sometimes that awareness is good, and sometimes I wish I wasn’t so sensitive.”
3. Need lots of space and time to ourselves
We may need to “retreat” and emotionally “refresh” ourselves at times that are not always best for our goals or personal growth. For example, being at a professional development conference, it may not be the most helpful thing to leave a long presentation or workshop in order to recuperate from the emotional intensity of the crowd.
4. Unhealthy perfectionism
There can also be qualities of thinking or analyzing that lead to unhealthy perfectionism, or stressful responses to objects, people or situations that are “too much” or “wrong” for our sensitivities.
5. Living out of sync with our culture
Living in a culture that devalues sensitivity and introversion as much as the U.S. means there are many pressures to be “normal” — meaning extroverted, sociable and outgoing.
Dr. Ted Zeff, author of The Highly Sensitive Person’s Survival Guide, points out that other cultures, such as Thailand, have different attitudes, with a strong appreciation of sensitive or introverted people.
Jenna Avery, a “life coach for sensitive souls,” counsels people to accept or even pursue being “out of sync” with mainstream society, and be aware of other’s judgments of people as too sensitive, too emotional, or too dramatic.
And if we are sensitive, we may use those kinds of judgments against ourselves, and think, as Winona Ryder said she did at one time, “Maybe I’m too sensitive for this world.”
Certainly, there are extremes of emotions that are considered mood disorders, for example, and should be dealt with as a health challenge.
But “too emotional” or “too sensitive” are usually criticisms based on majority behavior and standards.
Overall, I think being highly sensitive is a trait we can embrace and use to be more creative and aware. But it demands taking care to live strategically, even outside popular values, to avoid overwhelm so we can better nurture our abilities and creative talents.
Akira Morita of DesignKompany asked if I could write down some thoughts on scale, since I’m not available to be a panelist at tomorrow night’s event. Here they are:
Scale is an interesting thing - for some it is almost a holy grail while for others it is a dirty word. For the former, scale has connotations of large-scale impact, the ability to change systems and disrupt the status quo. For the latter, scale has connotations of bloated structures, excessive executive compensation, and being out of touch with the communities and consumers that are being served. If it isn’t yet obvious, I’ve primarily looked at this from a non-profit perspective, but I think these impressions are just as salient in the traditional business world.
In framing the question of scale, one key distinction is between “scaling out” and “scaling deep”. Scaling out is what people typically think of when discussing scale, and it means getting larger geographically - serving more people and moving from local to regional to national to global. Scaling deep is an approach favored by folks who believe that social innovation is inherently linked with the community in which it resides - and therefore geographic scaling does not make sense. In the non-profit realm, scaling deep would mean taking your knowledge of a community and offering additional services related to mission. In a traditional business it might mean serving existing customers with new products. Put simply, when Starbucks adds new stores they’re scaling out and when they start selling bagels along with their coffee they’re scaling deep.
There are a multitude of voices around the issue of scale. As the internets and other tools keep bridging geographic and cultural boundaries, it becomes easier and easier to reach audiences. Kevin Kelly’s concept of “1,000 True Fans” resonated with niche businesses well beyond the artist and musician communities, and gives a wonderful blueprint for becoming successful in creating a lifestyle business.
One of my favorite businesses is B’s Barbecue in Greenville NC, where they do no advertising, don’t even have a telephone, and serve food until they run out each day (usually around lunchtime). I have a great love for indie bands, filmmakers and artists and much of the stuff that resonates most fully for me will never find a mass audience. However, I really wish that it would, and am glad when it does. For those who equate scaling out with selling out, I would direct you to Dave Eggers’ great rant against the phrase and concept of selling out from 2000. I would also point to his work growing McSweeney’s and the 826 charities as great examples of things that were built to scale out and have done so in a smart, measured fashion with a continued focus on mission.
Discuss.
How Dan Harmon Drives Himself Crazy Making Community | Magazine
Great article, gave me a new sense of respect for one of the few good things to inhabit the television.
(via michaelikesit)Great article, great show.
(via michaelikesit)
I became aware of Unbranded by Hank Willis Thomas a couple years ago, and it’s one of my favorite pieces of contemporary art. http://hankwillisthomas.com/#/2008/Unbranded%20/1/thumbs I just visited http://hankwillisthomas.com and I see that he has a couple newer series called Rebranded and Branded which also blow me away (even moreso, actually). Above is one of the images from Rebranded entitled “Now That’s Funny.”
Knismesis and gargalesis are the scientific terms, coined in 1897 by psychologists G. Stanley Hall and Arthur Allin, used to describe the two types of tickling. Knismesis refers to the light, feather-like type of tickling. This type of tickling generally does not induce laughter and is often accompanied by an itching sensation. Gargalesis refers to harder, laughter-inducing tickling, and involves the repeated application of high pressure to sensitive areas. (via sleevia)
“Happiness as a byproduct of living your life is a great thing,” Barry Schwartz, a professor of social theory at Swarthmore College, told me. “But happiness as a goal is a recipe for disaster.”
Lori Gottleib has a recent article in The Atlantic which is nominally about parenting, but really more about the intersection of psychology, modern American culture and the human condition. Read it at: http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/07/how-to-land-your-kid-in-therapy/8555/
