The Attention Factor

Recently I was engaged in a conversation with an executive who wanted answers concerning social networking in the Relationship Economy. Not unlike many executives this individual wanted answers without taking the time to understand the process. During our conversation he put me on hold three times, brought in another executive to the call, interrupted my explanations almost every time and in the background I could hear his cell phone ringing and his blackberry buzzing. When we were engaged you could feel his sense of urgency to want the answer but his attention span limited him from hearing the answer.

Most of my responses to his rapid fire questions were well that depends on during which time I was never able to finish the explanation. His objective was to start a social network in conjunction with the release of a major product offering and subsequent massive media coverage on the product. He told me he had 45 days before the release of his new product and how could he get a social network up in time. I told him it was possible but there was a lot of details that needed to be thought out and planned so that his network created value long term. He ultimately said, OK, how much will you charge me to get a prototype up in 2 weeks?

My responseWithout your commitment to spend the time planning and thinking about hundreds of related issues and interactions what your asking for it is impossible. His response was I can give you no more than an hour a day and he said the other executive on the phone could also give about an hour a day. They simply dont get it! They suffer from The Attention Factor and what I will label as Continuous Partial Attention or CPA.

When I told him that his time commitment was not enough to insure a successful plan his response was OK, how much do I have to pay you to fill the void. He still didnt get it! Earlier he had asked what I charge per day for strategic advice and my response was That is based on your perception of value, I dont typically quote a daily rate. He was somewhat perplexed by my answer and came back to the same question four times during the interrupted conversation. My response remained the same which just further frustrated him and created a cramp in his brain.

The Values and Processes of the Relationship Economy will Disrupt our Thinking! What this person didnt understand is the very essence of the emerging Relationship Economy. With so much information surrounding us and our trained passion for quick answers we miss the value of learning and creating relations. Those that have learned to optimize our attention already have a significant advantage over others. Our attention is really the driver to getting massive personal leverage. Social Networking is the means which enables massive personal leverage, you can reach and give to a mass or swarm verses a few or a small gathering. Those who can accomplish the greatest mass of personal leverage will be those that gain the most in The Relationship Economy. Those that adopt, or I should say, transform their thinking and trust in the essence of human relations will perpetuate value faster than ever before. The dynamics we are all facing becomes the Paradox of Choice, which I will elaborate on in future post.

Your world is changing. Are you ready to embrace the change or fight it? What say you?

Jay is one of the few really deep-thinkers about both the socio-cultural implications of social networking as well as the practical business application across a range of industries and sizes of business. Jay challenges me to up my game. July 21, 2007 Scott Allen, Coauthor, The Virtual Handshake: Opening Doors and Closing Deals Online, http://www.TheVirtualHandshake.com

Mr. Deragon is consider one of the leading experts in the emerging market of social networking market. He has studied numerous platforms, features, functions and the markets behavior. His analysis and findings conclude that this space has tremendous potential for individuals, companies and entire industries. There is an art and science to social networking that requires constant learning as the market matures. To read more about my discoveries go to http://www.relationship-economy.com

Mr. Deragon has executive leadership experience in numerous industries and has built and sold four companies from a wireless media firm, a consulting practice, a training company and an insurance services firm.

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