What Would Google Do_ - Jeff Jarvis [128]
The curmudgeons also argue that this level playing field is flooded with crap: a loss of taste and discrimination. I argue instead that only the playing field is flat. To stand out, one must rise on worth—as defined by the public rather than the priests—and the reward is attention. That is our culture of links and search. It is a meritocracy, only now there are many definitions of merit and each must be earned.
We have believed—I have been taught—that there are two scarcities in culture: talent and attention. There are only so many people with talent and we give their talent only so much attention—not enough of either. But just as the economy is shifting from scarcity to abundance, so is the culture. There is an abundance of talent and a limitless will to create, but they have been tamped down by an educational system that insists on sameness, starved by a mass economic system that rewarded only a few giants, and discouraged by a critical system that anointed a closed creative class. These enemies of mass creativity turned abundance into scarcity. Google and the internet reversed that flow. Now talent of many descriptions and levels can express itself and grow. We want to create and we want to be generous with our creations. We will get the attention we deserve. That means crap will be ignored. It just depends on your definition of crap.
When we talk about the Google age we are talking about a new society. The rules explored in this book—Google’s rules—are the rules of that society, built on connections, links, transparency, openness, publicness, listening, trust, wisdom, generosity, efficiency, markets, niches, platforms, networks, speed, and abundance. This new generation and its new worldview will change how we see and interact with the world and how business, government, and institutions interact with us. It is only just beginning. I wish I knew how that change will turn out. But I’m thrilled to be here today with you to witness its birth.
Continuing the conversation
Our discussion is just beginning, I hope. You no doubt have seen rules of the Google age that I missed. You have corrections to make, facts to add, experiences to share, and opportunities to explore. I hope you will come online to my blog, Buzzmachine.com, to continue the conversation and keep answering the question, WWGD?
The Googlification of the world affects not only companies, industries, and institutions but also individuals. It brings new means and expectations for how you can advance your career, lifestyle, and agenda. If you want to be Googley and take advantage of these new opportunities, then you need to understand how Google values creation, openness, connections, uniqueness, collaboration, and invention. I’ll share suggestions, links, and tips for getting started with blogging, linking, Facebooking, Flickring, and more in Five Steps to a Googlier You, which you can find at Buzzmachine.com/tips.
If you forget the address, no problem. Just Google me.
Acknowledgments and disclosures
First and foremost, I must thank my blog friends—those who have read, commented on, and linked to Buzzmachine.com—for their invaluable, insightful, and generous help with this book. They inspire and teach me. They correct and challenge me. They give me ideas and push mine. Those friends are too numerous to name. I am grateful to them all.
I am grateful to my editor, Ben Loehnen, for every time I cursed him (as in, “Damn, he’s right”). Even as I questioned the old means of publishing, he proved its value with his intelligent, perceptive, and always-encouraging editing. And my publisher, Collins, surprised me with its openness to finding new ways online. (When it came to the digital strategy for this book, they said I was the one who wasn’t being brave enough.) At the Collins Publishing Group, I thank Carla Clifford, Hollis Heimbouch, Larry Hughes, Matt Inman, Angie Lee, Shawn Nicholls, Carolyn Pittis, Catherine Barbosa-Ross, Steve Ross, and Margot Schupf for their work to make this book a success.