Disruptive Innovation & SM

Before my latest class at Lake Forest, I was not familiar with the concept of disruptive innovation. Disruptive innovation is the creation of a new product or process that disrupts or replaces a current business model. For example, how the iTunes and the iPod changed the music industry, or how tablets and e-readers have shuttered bookstores.

It got me thinking about all of the tech disruptive innovations that have occured in my lifetime. Casettes, compact discs, the PC, fax machines, digital photography, email. But, I would have to say the biggest innovation I've witnessed is the birth of the internet. The implications are so vast I could't begin to name them all. How quickly it has evolved to become so mainstream. It amazes me how technology and information have permeated human lives. This can be said for the new landscape of Social Media. 

Although social media platforms are only a few years old, they affect billions of people. I think the Arab Sping that just occurred will be remembered in history as the turning point when the internet changed the course of human history. Just this week Twitter announced a beta project that would create instant translations. Aside from the cool factor, the implications are far broader. Humainty is on the cusp of being able to communicate with, and instantly understand any other human on the planet. Technology is a new language, a global language. And social mdeia platforms are becoming a primary medium of communication. 

It be interesting to see how social media evolves and continues to shape the human condition. 

Planet alignment

Ever notice when you pay attention to something, you begin to see it everywhere? Case and point: Social Media. Since the class started three weeks ago, I've started to realize its impact in my day to day life.

Just a few things from this week:

• PBS Newshour interviewing a well-known female blogger in Syria about the uprising. 
• Pinterest. Never heard of it before and this week several friends mentioned they are now addicted. 
• Leaving the office today and notice our graphic designer is on Flickr and shows me her portfolio.
• Presidential campaign twitter activity. David Axelrod and the Obama campaign going after the Romney. Good stuff.
• Whitney Houston death minute by minute on twitter.
• A new project at work adding multiple pages to the company Facebook page.
• Chicken Picatta receipe supplied by AllReceipes on my iPhone. 4 star user rating
• Updating LinkedIn as part of my 2012 intitatives at work
• Notice a good friend checks-in at a restaurant the same time I'm eating there. We have dinner together
• Great new info currator on twitter - Brian Solis
• Just finished a Go-To meeting with classmates. We run an on-line simulation from Harvard School of Business.

I guess these things aren't unusual. More common than anything, but my perception of social media has sharpened. Listing all of the ways it affects me, it is hard to imagine living without it.   

And, 1, 2, 3, action...

White space on the screen can be intimidating. The first words are always the hardest, so I'll start in the middle of the story and work my way back. There is a story. Trust me. I've decided to blog about my experience of going through graduate school and what awaits for me on the other side.

What started as a fairly straight-forward goal of improving my career potential has morphed into something more personal. In short, I find that my self-perception is changing. The rigor of work and school, mixed with "where is all of this going, and whats next?" make for an interesting story. So, I will attempt to write it down. Free form, and in no particular order. I'll be talking about work (the boring and the juicy), classroom insights, goals and decisions, my friends, what I ate for lunch, the funny stuff, and what made me think.

The basics:
44 y/o single male, North side of Chicago (Andersonville), Marketing Analyst, raised in Texas, world traveller, master gardener, scooter rider, dog lover, coffee drinker, healthy eater, news junkie, liberal thinker, and garage sale shopper. Anything else is purely an accident.

Getting started....

First blogging assignment.... Getting signed on and dialed into my new Social Media Class. Looking forward to the opportunity to explore social media options with other LFGSM students.