In his classic book, Austin (1978) distinguished four levels of serendipity or chance. They can apply to individuals, but a team provides more opportunities for them to happen – look for the similarities with what happens on social networks.

Have a read and then let me know your thoughts – how do you leverage your networks to improve opportunity?

Chance 1 – ‘blind chance’ or accident. By sheer luck you just happen to find yourself in the right place at the right time. Nothing to do with your lifestyle, though you had the presence of mind to take the opportunity when it appeared.

Chance 2 – wide-ranging exploration. A wide-ranging, energetic, enquiring lifestyle will tend to generate opportunities for useful chances to happen (though it can also result in lack of focus – you have to achieve a balance). As Charles Kettering, the engineer, put it: ‘Keep on going and the chances are you will stumble on something, perhaps when you least expect it. I’ve never heard of anyone stumbling on something sitting
down’ (quoted in Austin, 1978).

Chance 3 – the prepared mind. ‘In observation, chance favours the prepared mind’ (Louis Pasteur). Specific, highly developed interests and background make you more likely to notice chance events relevant to that background. 3M’s Arthur Fry had been looking for uses for Spence Silver’s semi-sticky glue, so when the bookmarks in his choir-book kept falling out, his ‘prepared mind’ made the link to the idea of the now ubiquitous Post-it note.

Chance 4 – individualised action. This combines Chance III with an enhanced version of Chance II – you not only have a ‘prepared mind’, ready to respond to relevant opportunities that emerge, but also have a lifestyle that makes ‘relevant opportunities’ more likely to happen. This may be, for example, because you increase your networking and communication, or put yourself in more places where you are likely to be exposed to input you can use.

(Thanks to the Open University Business School).

Impressive stuff from Twitter as they adopt a new approach (still copying the old and tired apple-esque video format though!)

Amplify’d from twitter.com

Meet the new Twitter.com

An easier, faster, and richer experience.

New design You will now find @mentions, retweets, searches, and lists just above your timeline – creating a single, streamlined view on the left of the screen. On the right, you can see the features you’re familiar with, including whom you recently followed and who recently followed you, favorites, and Trending Topics.

View photos, videos, and other media content Now, it’s easy to see embedded photos and videos directly on Twitter, thanks to partnerships with Dailybooth, DeviantArt, Etsy, Flickr, Justin.TV, Kickstarter, Kiva, Photozou, Plixi, Twitgoo, TwitPic, Twitvid, USTREAM, Vimeo, Yfrog, and YouTube.

Discover related content When you click a Tweet, the details pane shows additional information related to the author or subject. Depending on the Tweet’s content, you may see: @replies, other Tweets by that same user, a map of where a geotagged Tweet was sent from, and more.

Mini profiles You can click a @username to see a mini profile without navigating from the page, which provides quick access to account information, including bio and recent Tweets.

Rollout timing

These changes will roll out as a preview over the next several weeks. During the preview, you'll be able to switch back and forth so you have time to grow accustomed to the way things work. Eventually, everyone will have the updated version of Twitter.com.

Follow @Twitter Read more at twitter.com

We talk a lot about Serendipity on Twitter.

In his classic book, Austin (1978) distinguished four levels of serendipity or chance. They can apply to individuals, but a team provides more opportunities for them to happen - look for the similarities with what happens on social networks. How do you leverage your networks to improve opportunity?

Chance 1 – ‘blind chance’ or accident. By sheer luck you just
happen to find yourself in the right place at the right time.
Nothing to do with your lifestyle, though you had the presence
of mind to take the opportunity when it appeared.

Chance 2 – wide-ranging exploration. A wide-ranging,
energetic, enquiring lifestyle will tend to generate opportunities
for useful chances to happen (though it can also result in lack
of focus – you have to achieve a balance). As Charles Kettering,
the engineer, put it: ‘Keep on going and the chances are you
will stumble on something, perhaps when you least expect it.
I’ve never heard of anyone stumbling on something sitting
down’ (quoted in Austin, 1978).

Chance 3 – the prepared mind. ‘In observation, chance
favours the prepared mind’ (Louis Pasteur). Specific, highly
developed interests and background make you more likely to
notice chance events relevant to that background. 3M’s Arthur
Fry had been looking for uses for Spence Silver’s semi-sticky
glue, so when the bookmarks in his choir-book kept falling out,
his ‘prepared mind’ made the link to the idea of the now
ubiquitous Post-it note

Chance 4 – individualised action. This combines Chance III
with an enhanced version of Chance II – you not only have a
‘prepared mind’, ready to respond to relevant opportunities that
emerge, but also have a lifestyle that makes ‘relevant opportunities’
more likely to happen. This may be, for example, because you
increase your networking and communication, or put yourself in
more places where you are likely to be exposed to input you
can use.

(Thanks to the Open University Business School).

Create your own version of the fantastic google ads - view mine here!

Amplify’d from www.youtube.com

Digital Engagement and Social Media

See more at www.youtube.com