Standing Ovation Model!

I learnt this model of analyzing social behavior, a few months ago while taking a MOOC. The first thing it makes you understand is that 'Macrobehavior' is not necessarily the summation of 'Micromotives'.

It helps understand this concept with the simple illustration of how individual behavior is influenced in any social setting. This could be as simple as audience' reaction at the end of a stage show(event), which may or may not be a standing ovation.

The basic model has few assumptions:

1. Event's quality is 'Q'.

2. Each person receives a signal, 'S' = Q + 'e'(error, different for each person)

3. One stands if 'S' > 'Threshold' or more than X% of people stand.

To learn more: https://sites.google.com/site/standingovationmodel/

This means more and more people will stand if either the show quality is quite high or if the threshold is too low.

I just noticed the same live in action while waiting for a traffic signal to turn green. There were around 15 of us waiting at the signal at the time it turned red. Since the waiting time was approximately a minute, a guy, tired of waiting(with no vehicles on the opposite side), simply ignored it after waiting for approx. 20 seconds. Followed him, a few more people and before it could turn yellow, there were only around 7-8 people left. And the process just did not stop, people continued following others and around 10 seconds before it turns green, there were only two of us. I would confess that I too did break the signal only a second or two before it was time for the signal to turn green. I guess, I ended up doing that unknowingly(as far as I remember now, the first time ever) because everyone else did (that's no excuse for sure :-( ).

Have you encountered any such incidents that establishes Macrobehavior NE Micromotives? It would be interesting to learn them. Thank you!

On Time - All the Time!

I was amazed to read this:

“Punctuality is the virtue of the bored.” - Evelyn Waugh

And a few seconds later, I read this:

"The while we keep a man waiting, he reflects on our shortcomings."  - Unknown Source

and

"There's never enough time to do all the nothing you want.” - Bill Watterson

Personally, I like to be in/on time for all my meetings, especially at workplace. I can still count on my fingers, the number of times I was late for something, which had a long-lasting impression of not being able to deliver on my own expectations.  I hate it, to be late, not that I am judging you but my own-self. But often times, I feel like the person in the animation below:

I am not a big fan of people who in general show-up late for almost all confabs and then take pride in that.

I know of a few people who are busy bees. I totally understand that sometimes, it becomes too hard to keep track of time. It’s like sand slipping through your fist. They acknowledge it, instead of running away from it. No one can be perfect, good at everything in the world and that’s fine. I totally respect it.

However, there are some people who either show up late or would fail to turn up for a meeting at all. On the top of it, when you text them inquiring of any emergencies, they do not really feel the need to communicate of their unavailability, feeling sorry about it, is totally out of question. This sends signals which I can’t imagine anyone would ever like to.

Anyways, I will conclude it with this quote.

 What's your opinion? 

Help : Offer & Ask For!

‘Help’ is a very powerful word, it paves the way to purpose & makes our existence much more meaningful. ‘Purpose’ is the sole thing we all strive to spot on, in our lives.

Be Generous, Offer to Help People: One of the best advice I received in 2013, was to attempt helping others. And to do this, go above and beyond what you could easily do. While walking down this street, it also turned out to be the best way to build strong ties with people.

Taking it a step further, try to find out what keeps people awake at night. If you can solve one of these challenges for somebody, you are already better off the rest of the crowd. This will eventually help you succeed; they will consider you as somebody who is smart, thoughtful and understanding.

Ask For Help: While helping others make you stand out of the crowd, be enterprising enough to let others avail this opportunity too. Don’t try to do everything all by yourself. Nobody, quote this word, ‘Nobody’, can sail a huge ship alone. It takes a crew to fight away the tides by all odds.

People like to help and that’s what makes them feel valued. Let them discover their worthfulness, don’t be shy to ask for support when you need it, be open and reach out to people. Take advantage of people’s strengths and capabilities, advantage does not imply that you exploit them. But do leverage it for a collaborative success.

I will just conclude my thoughts on this with this quote:

When you’re drowning, you don’t say ‘ I would be incredibly pleased if someone would have the foresight to notice me drowning and come and help me,’ you just scream – Jon Lennon.