Friday, November 9, 2007
Connecting With Connectors
If you’re only six degrees separated from everyone in the world, it’s because some people know a lot more people than others do. They are super connectors. Here are four examples of super connectors: restaurateurs, headhunters, politicians and journalists.
Such people should be the cornerstones of any flourishing network because being connected to them means you are also loosely connected to many more people, often from many different worlds than yours, which can be valuable when you need expertise not possessed by your close friends.
Your “weak ties” are important. Most of your strong contacts live in the same world as you. But your weak ties are hanging out with different people, often in different worlds, with access to a whole inventory of information that’s unavailable to you and your close friends.
Once you become friendly with a super connector, you’re only a couple of steps away from the thousands of people whom that person knows.
Such people should be the cornerstones of any flourishing network because being connected to them means you are also loosely connected to many more people, often from many different worlds than yours, which can be valuable when you need expertise not possessed by your close friends.
Your “weak ties” are important. Most of your strong contacts live in the same world as you. But your weak ties are hanging out with different people, often in different worlds, with access to a whole inventory of information that’s unavailable to you and your close friends.
Once you become friendly with a super connector, you’re only a couple of steps away from the thousands of people whom that person knows.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT
Got the after lunch blues? A survey of 1,000 British office workers conducted found that more than half of female and more than a third of male workers suffer an afternoon slump in energy that affects their memory and performance. The study blames the food and beverages workers consume for lunch and snacks, and a lack of exercise.
For example, eating a lot at lunch sends more blood to the gut to aid in digestion, leaving less to supply other body parts including the brain. The kinds of food eaten also affect energy. High sugar foods such as white bread sandwiches and buns deliver a quick energy kick, followed by a slump.
A nutritionist suggests brown rice, salad or whole meal sandwiches with peanut butter or hummus, plus three servings a week of oily fish, which are rich in omega-3 fatty acids and help regulate neurotransmitters, and eggs and dairy foods to supply vitamin B-12, which produces memory-boosting acetylcholine.
The worst snacks for alertness are chocolate, cookies, and highly processed snacks. Instead, eat apples, dried apricots, yogurt, bananas or peanuts.
As for drinks, sodas are a no-no. Instead, drink fruit juice and sip water to the tune of two quarts or so per day. And although coffee can deliver a quick boost, six or more cups will leave you drained.
Exercise is the third part of an energy maintenance program. A 10-minute walk at lunchtime will help you feel more energetic, and a 20-minute daily walk improves mental health.
For example, eating a lot at lunch sends more blood to the gut to aid in digestion, leaving less to supply other body parts including the brain. The kinds of food eaten also affect energy. High sugar foods such as white bread sandwiches and buns deliver a quick energy kick, followed by a slump.
A nutritionist suggests brown rice, salad or whole meal sandwiches with peanut butter or hummus, plus three servings a week of oily fish, which are rich in omega-3 fatty acids and help regulate neurotransmitters, and eggs and dairy foods to supply vitamin B-12, which produces memory-boosting acetylcholine.
The worst snacks for alertness are chocolate, cookies, and highly processed snacks. Instead, eat apples, dried apricots, yogurt, bananas or peanuts.
As for drinks, sodas are a no-no. Instead, drink fruit juice and sip water to the tune of two quarts or so per day. And although coffee can deliver a quick boost, six or more cups will leave you drained.
Exercise is the third part of an energy maintenance program. A 10-minute walk at lunchtime will help you feel more energetic, and a 20-minute daily walk improves mental health.
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