Monday Memo #27
Close triangles.
The Monday memo is food for thought to fuel your week.
Hi everyone,
Today I want to talk about closing triangles.
Closing triangles is a concept from social networking that I learned from my friend, social network researcher and consultant Valdis Krebs.
The concept is very simple: Imagine that Axel knows two people, Beck and Cora. But Beck and Cora don’t know each other. By connecting Beck and Cora, Axel can close the triangle.
Let’s say you have a gathering, and you’re inviting a lot of people that you know. You know all of them, but they don’t know each other. At the beginning of the event, the social network looks like a star, with you at the center. You are the one common thread that links them all together. But if you focus on closing triangles, people are going to meet each other, they’re going to connect. They are going to learn new things about each other, they’re going to find common ground, they’re going to explore possibilities. And by the end of the event, if it’s successful, your guests will have more connections with each other than they have with you.
The star network which started with you at the center starts looking more like a brain, which is essentially what it is. A densely-connected social network is more robust, more resilient, and more intelligent. And happier. Friendships thrive on interconnection, and when your friends all know each other it feels more like a community.
Exercise.
Here’s your exercise for the week. Think about closing triangles. Think about what triangles you might close. Who do you know that might benefit from meeting someone else in your network? You don't even have to know. You can simply open up a call and let people close those triangles for themselves. That's what a gathering is all about. And a successful gathering is one where triangles are being closed, new connections are being formed, and new friendships are being formed.
Give it a try.
Upcoming:
Our next Collaboratory co-host is Jorge Arango, author of the new book Duly Noted. He will focus on Tending your knowledge garden — how we can turn the flotsam and jetsam of everyday life into a garden of ideas and references for better thinking, reflection, and creation. This Collaboratory is happening on Wednesday, June 19th, from 9 to 10:30 AM Pacific, (that’s Noon to 1:30 PM Eastern, 5 to 6:30 PM BST). You can buy a one-time ticket to this Collaboratory for $25, or become a member today for free access.
To kick off July we will hold a URL Roundup, hosted by
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