The book that I chose for the second reading assignment was cognitive surplus by Clay Shirky.
1)
The general theme or overview of the book is
that after world war two, the USA shifted its work environment to one that
allowed for more free time. This was thought to be a good thing, however Shirky
goes on to say that people fill their free time rather than use their free
time. He claims that media has taken over most people’s free time and that they
could be much more productive. In addition, he makes a clear point that we need
to understand why, not just what we do and how we do it.
2)
I thought the book connected with a theme that I
have learned in this class thus far in that we can always be more productive
and use our time to learn and accomplish bigger and better things. It enhances
this lesson by using real world examples and explaining the progression of the
work environment from pre-war era to current time.
3)
The exercise would be explaining how the
workforce has progressed over time and how people’s mentalities have changed
over time. How has social media impacted opportunity? Why are people more/less productive
today than they were during war? As a whole, how have we changed as a society
in the last fifty years?
4)
My biggest “aha moment” was when it clicked that
social media has led to so many opportunities, yet will also be the demise, in
our society. It is a blessing and a curse. It has completely changed our
society in some good ways and some bad ways,, however as Shirky explains, it
has caused people to fill their time rather than actually use their time to be
productive.
Ben,
ReplyDeleteI like your reading reflection for this week. I feel like I should go read this book after reading your post. Social media has become one of the most important ways of communicating, and there are so many opportunities related to it. I talked about the WeChat business in China on my "Social Capital" assignment, and that's something related to your topic. Good job overall.
Hi Ben!
ReplyDeleteI loved reading your post. I can agree with your point that social media is a blessing and a curse. Although I love the benefits of the Internet, I sometimes find myself caught up watching Netflix instead of being productive. Your exercise would be very interesting to see the change in productivity over time with the introduction of technology and its major impact on society.
Hey Ben
ReplyDeleteGreat job and believe you picked out a good book to do your reading reflection. I am not sure which book to read next and your book sounds very interesting. I could not agree with you more that social media is a huge factor in business. All in all your post was good and you made good key points that help summarize your book.
Hey Ben,
ReplyDeleteI agree, media has absorbed the majority of the average person's free time. Sites and apps such as Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram are time wasters that are very popular in today's society. We could be so much more productive if we did not waste so much time on media sites. Your post was so interesting that I am going to read the book. Great post!