Thanks to all the new readers for signing up for The Reliants Project newsletter! Here are some nuggets about how networks shape your wellbeing, relationships and community to help you actively cultivate yours.
The podcast has launched!
Today the first 3 episodes of The Reliants Project podcast are live! It’s a mix of interviews with both academics and practitioners. We talk about how you can apply what they’ve learned about networks to your life. Here they are:
#1 Scott David on Connecting Insights to Action and How Knowledge Graphs Can Help
#2 Janice McCabe on How Your Friend Networks Impact Your Success
#3 Marc Ventresca on the Importance of Diverse Networks for Social Innovation
One of my favourite moments yet is one of my guests describing their mother as a “weak tie-generating machine!”
Wellbeing
Racism is a social disease and a public health crisis. We know that discrimination significantly impacts people’s mental and physical health, but that relationship wasn’t always so clear. One of the pioneers of this research is Sherman James, Professor of Public Policy at Duke University, who has studied the effects of discrimination on health for decades. In this video, he talks about his journey and how he developed the landmark “John Henryism” hypothesis. He was also interviewed by The Atlantic last week in How Racism Kills Black Americans, where he shared:
“…social, economic, and political marginalization—maybe it would be more accurate to say domination—make black people especially vulnerable to stress-related diseases.”
Relationships
Many people have been asking me about how to build and maintain relationships during this unusual time. In Connecting During COVID, I share some clever ideas to both strengthen your existing relationships as well as find ways to meet new people from home. One of my favourite ideas is this:
“Noah Askin, a guest on my upcoming podcast, announced office hours on LinkedIn with a link to his calendar that allowed anyone to book in 15-minute meetings over a couple of hours every Thursday afternoon. To his surprise, all 24 slots were taken in just 3 hours and the meetings were all worth the investment of time.”
Community
The Wisdom and/or Madness of Crowds is a fantastic, interactive experience that helps make the ideas of network science more tangible through a series of simulations. It’s been a tough few weeks, to say the least. We’ve seen crowds gathered from New York to Hong Kong protesting injustices. This interactive experience brings to life the importance of bridging cultural and political divides to build community. Nicky Case, the creator, reminds us of this important sentiment:
“Most of the great triumphs and tragedies of history are caused not by people being fundamentally good or fundamentally evil, but by people being fundamentally people.” —Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Like what you read? If so, please share this with someone you think would benefit:
About The Reliants Project
Reliant is my word for a person that someone depends on, an essential component of our social networks. With each edition, I’ll share useful nuggets about how networks shape your wellbeing, relationships and community to help you actively cultivate yours. Whether you want to cultivate your relationships, make better introductions, or activate networks to make an impact in the world, let me help you reach your goals.
You can find more about The Reliants Project here.