You are going to get notes on the where and when in this write-up on the Flow Society. The process is the point. The talking is the walk. That’s why.
You’ve seen the two first steps of capturing the conversation themes in this article series on the #FlowSociety.
The first article, a general intro, that mentioned the societal flow of communication as to have a first clue – using the “hydrosphere metaphor”. It also outlined how the articles will come out and about, method-wise. The reflection process before and behind the words – “enactive research”.
And the next article beyond that, taking and breaking the #FlowSociety theme up into four prospective sub-themes, outlined through the help of one entry level – the “Four Freedoms of the European Union” – the free move of people, goods, services, capital.
You guessed it – I will now take a focus on each and every one for the coming four, in separate articles pushed through in my #SMCEdTeam monthlies.
The times they are a’changing, and the answer is blowing in the wind. Or floating in the water ;). Ok, let’s cut to the chase.
The author Anders Abrahamsson – In the Flow
(in between writing Part Four and Part Five of this article)
Part One – on the #troffice in between Linköping and Norrköping – “Here comes the Flow Workers!”
[Earthlog 1230ish CEST, September 22]
– Situation – flow of events: I just checked out from a WordPress 101 class coming to its hands-on last loop to transform and empower long-term unemployed in the general deeds captured bySocial Web Guide / Digital Participation national campaigning, heading back from Linköping to Norrköping.
– Spiritual – flow of energy: Deadline on this article keeps my focus boosted while sitting on a train with a computational machinery on top of my lap.
In my last article, when mentioning The Flow of People in that dedicated section, I took a bias towards the view of “People” as the Flow of Workforce. Of course, we the people have always been so much more than that, but since work is such a central part of our means to keep ourselves alive, living and prospering at all dimensions – not to say the least existentially – I tend to find exactly that #FlowWorking is one of the most tangible and strongly experienced part of what the #FlowSociety can and will take us. I try to merge all the granular details of a society in transformation in all-so many levels, and paint a picture of a whole, with the changing face of “work” as something really profound happening in our contemporary world.
Part Two – in the #soffice at Casa Abrahamsson Johansson – “It’s not so much about ‘the where’ anymore”
[Earthlog 23ish CEST, September 22]
– Situation – flow of events: I got home from being a part of the arranging team of #TEDxNorrköping, where I was twit-jockying myself through the Magic/Epic Première of the event taken to my locality, themed ‘Motivation and Creativity’, taking place in Louis De Geer Concert and Congress conference facilities.
– Spiritual – flow of energy: Fighting a #TEDx post-delivery tiredness beyond the awesomeness, mixed with satisfied harmony beyond delivery, giving me the high spirit that comes from of a successful event – now getting some few lines more, sitting in my living room sofa, before crashing in my bed.
Here in Sweden, a couple of years ago, one of the brothers Härén, Teo, was publishing a book/launching the term “here-working” (‘härarbeta’), as being “work where you work your best”. Pointing at all devices and circumstances liberating us from a fixed geography called the “office”. This reality is here for more and more people. But I feel, with the flow of work in itself in society, I think it is of lesser degree of importance to put focus on the “where” of work. You can work with your laptop wherever nowadays – so what? That’s becoming more and more commonplace now. What I’ve experience is that the whole “finding, agreeing, delivering and evaluating” process of work and collaboration with teams and clients, with and on the social web, has made work more “self-organized”, and “easier synchronized” with online collaboration tools. And not to speak of the importance the web has in itself while socializing and finding your prospect turning into a deal – by just being there, in the web of flows, creating an arena and space for you to be struck with the powers of serendipity (‘meaningful discoveries’) and synchronicity (‘meaningful coincidences’).
Part Three – in the #troffice again in between Norrköping and Nässjö – “Getting supportive structures for ‘Creatives’ everywhere”
[Earthlog 0645ish CEST, September 23]
– Situation – flow of events: Up early, early, to catch the first regional morning train sout
hward bound to get my daugther to Norrköping from Växjö for the weekend.
– Spiritual – flow of energy: With a clear intention to finish the first editable draft of this article before this trip is over, putting my power to the last paragraphs of write-up. Very tired. Deep need of coffice, had no energy to get up in time to make my own presso at home at 5 am, so that have to wait until Nässjö when changing trains.
Many of the categories of the doings of these freelancing “free agents” are related to knowledge/skill intense service deliveries demanding a bunch of creativity in the delivery. “The Creative Class”. So, when it comes to attract these forces in the respective locality, it is of importance to have a supportive (infra)structure. There is more and more common to set up “Hub Working” offices where you use it part-time, and pay accordingly. But – any café with enough power sockets, free Wifi, not too noisy, and a hospitable, warm community of people surrounding you, is enough!
To find these spots suitable for the #FlowWorking, weather being a #coffice (Café Office), #loffice (Library Office) or why not try a #goffice or #poffice (Garden / Park Office) :), you need help to find them and get recommendations. I have sneaked out, and carefully begun to review these spots systematically on different platforms. Foursquare is one, and to come is also the swedish review site Reco.se and the app WorkSnug (an augmented reality application where you get reviews by pointing your mobile camera direct at the urban landscape and you get a layer of information about places suitable to work for the mobile tribe of flow-workers).
But, it’s not only the places of work that has become flexible – it’s with whom you work with and for, and the hours you choose to work. Depending on the project at hand, different missions demand different skills. So, before, in the #StructureSociety, you worked with the same people, over and over, in a fixed organization – and, especially, in a fixed way of organizing as well. Routines, often stifling innovation and creativity. Nowadays, you can put together a temporary constellation – often with the power of the net as well to find the skills needed. With the “nine to five” there no more. Night Owls and Morning Birds are both welcome – the importance is to deliver at deadline, not when at day (or night) you choose to place your energy in order to deliver. Not just work where you work the best, but when and with whom.
Part Four – a new #troffice from Nässjö to Alvesta – “Find your #YouFlow, then your #HowFlow to get by in your #NowFlow with a #WeFlow”
[Earthlog 830ish CEST, September 23]
– Situation – flow of events: Got that Cappuchino in Nässjö Station – #TGFC (Thank God For Coffee) ! Last half of the other train leg got drowned in a Power Nap. With this new train, coming to my last leg on my trip to Växjö.
– Spiritual – flow of energy: Adding a recorded DJ set from my gig at Augustifesten earlier this summer in my headphones (filled with progressive classics – right now a cool cover of Jaguar, the Underground Resistance classic – WOW! Goosebumps!), I get the musical counterpart to “flow” in my headphones, together with the Cappuchino now pushing me to the landing of the article – for sure! Yay!
In my summary/synopsis/abstract of potential big strands on conversation to grasp the Flow Society Concept with in my last article, I raised a flag of warning that there is a risk of an increased gap with those “In the flow” and those “Off the streams”. Both physical with access to the “cloud” in itself (still the dominating situation in the “developing economies”), and with a mismatch in skills, attitudes, values and experiences set to “get there”, a big gap to close for many before embracing the new logic of getting by to make the new ends meet. And that is not only on an individual level, it is also the organizations not finding new modes of working, to adjust accordingly.
Now, I would like to raise another warning as well. With this new attitude of doing stuff wherever/whenever, it is possible to drown yourself in new gigs and deliveries, with the abundance of possibilites arising when you really “get there”.
Firstly, you are your own boss – and there is an ever increasing threat to your “focus”. You really need to find your “inner flow” – what you are, what you stand for, where you want to go, what change you want to make in your everydayness. What is and will be your legacy? Beyond some deep meditation rounds and finding that inner voice, you begin with identifying your inner flow. This is a topic all too important just to mention in a paragraph like this. I will blog more extensively on this point of the “existensial dimension of ‘being’ in the #FlowSociety” – I call it finding your ‘YouFlow’ – in my own blog http://andersabrahamsson.org.
Secondly, with your ‘YouFlow’, you need to find your ‘NowFlow’ and ‘HowFlow’ as well – using supportive tools (Gotta <3 Evernote, I say it again!) and approaches (for me, an own remix of GTD, mostly “natural” with the “structural” of it in Evernote and the delivery through Pomodoro Focus Boosting), to leverage your power and potential. And that is for your singular tasks and missions – but we do things together as said – so you also need to find your ‘WeFlow’ – The Confluence of the Team.
In between my lines of expression here, in the log notes, you all see this coming through, surfaced. Identify and be aware of your Situation, and find your Spiritual “be” and “are” – The Mindfulness of Flow. To support, fill up, keep and increase your Flow of Energy to power up your awareness and presence in the Flow of Events.
Part Five – at the #stoffice in Alvesta – “Flow Sessions Over – Se
tting the Punch-line!”
[Earthlog 09ish, September 23]
Situational and Spiritual – Flow of Energy and Events:
With the happy skipping and jumping beat of “Jay Lumen – The Switch”, in an ingenious mix of the Swedish wunderkind Style of Eye, which I had in my ears and spirit when getting off the train in a swift move entering the Waiting Hall of Alvesta, waiting for the last short 15-minute piece of ride with the regional train from Alvesta to Växjö, I feel I am now ready to take this Flow of Words to an end, for a New Beginning of Something Else.
Integrated.
Message set, and lined out.
In Constant Flux – Yours sincerely signing off to spend time with his daughter.
Then, beyond that – Edit, Rinse, Repeat.
[Finally done in #coffice, #boffice, #troffice and #soffice Sept 25 in between 6pm and 11pm]
Submit.
[your voice inserted here – what do you respond?]
Love is All you Need (ad lib / fade).
—
Note wtih vocabulary, so far from B to T:
#boffice = Bus Office
#coffice = Café Office
#goffice = Garden Office
#loffice = Library Office
#poffice = Park Office
#soffice = Sofa Office
#stoffice = Station Office
#troffice = Train Office
…
[to be extended to embrace everywhere on Earth – you are invited to tag it up 🙂 ]