5 ways to kill your dream: Bel Pesce:

1.  Believe in overnight success.
2. Believe someone else has the answers for you.
3. Decide to settle when results are guaranteed.
4. Believe that the fault is someone else’s.
5. Believe that the only things that matter are the dreams themselves.

5 Ways to Kill Your Dream by Bel Pesce supports Larsen’s Cultural Images and Myths on many facets.

            1- Believe in overnight success.

Bel describes success as a process over time; she promises that if you put your hope in overnight success, you will inevitably fail. This claim supports Larsen’s myth of the Possibility of Success. This myth is the entitlement to success that some my feel, because they put in the work. Bel illustrates (literally) the need for constant effort toward your goal or dream.

            From a Process Premise perspective; Packard would agree that Ego-Gratification is a Compelling Need that would be satisfied as success resulted from diligent efforts.

            2- Believe someone else has the answers for you.

The second way to kill your dream is to believe that someone else has the answers for your. Bel Pesce talks about how people have an idea, or dream and others will tell them how that should look, or how they should accomplish it. This is similar to Larsen’s Wisdom of the Rustic, where wisdom is gleaned learning from ones challenges. Bel says to overcome the struggles and let them make you better.

            Here the fourth process premise of Cognitive Dissonance Theory plays a role in believing someone else has the answers for you. One source of dissonance is Uncertainty of Prediction. One might look for answers in another person, when they are uncertain of their own judgments.

            3- Believe that it is a good idea to settle when results are guaranteed.

Larsen’s Value of Challenge shows us how to achieve knowledge and growth through suffering and challenge. Bel argues that one of the most challenging points in a successful career is when you’ve achieved the success you desire. Don’t settle there, ask yourself; How do I reach the next peak?

            4- Believe that the fault is someone else’s.

Ownership and responsibility are difficult. Many people will go far out of their way to prove the fault is not their own. Larsen calls this Presence of Conspiracy Myth. Bel Pesce on the other hand calls this dream killer number four; belief that the fault is someone else’s.  She asserts one must take ownership of failures to achieve success.

            Process Premise Three: Attitudes, Beliefs and Opinions would support Bel in her declaration.  Taking responsibility is an attitude that we are not perfect, accepts that we will make mistakes and prepares the groundwork to move forward.

      5- Believe that the only things that matter are the dreams themselves.

Enjoy the journey, learn along the way, life is not about the goal themselves, its about the journey.

Eli Pariser: Beware online "filter bubbles"

Eli Pariser: Beware online "filter bubbles"
             “A squirrel dying in front of your house may be more relevant to your interests right now than people dying in Africa.”  (Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook).  Eli Pariser in his 2011 presentation: Beware online "filter bubbles" grasped my attention with this alarming comment. 

            Pariser's reference to Zuckerberg's concept paradigms a shift in interest among Internet users. This I could agree with. Eli Pariser capitulates that along with that shift of user interest is an even more disquieting shift. That is, the transference of Internet behavior towards the user.

Motivators

            Motivators apply to everyone; according to BJ Fogg’s Behavior Model there are 3 core motivators, with two sides two each. The core motivators, and their two sides identified by Fogg are: Anticipation (hope/fear), Sensation (pleasure/pain), and Belonging (acceptance/rejection).

            Eli Pariser definitely motivated me through this speech through the sensation of fear. The fear of the Internet having an algorithmic, robotic ‘gate keeper’ of information that filters information from my basic searches, even my Facebook posts worried me. I anticipated a solution on both levels; that of fear of consequence and hope for a solution that I could take part in.

           

Abilities

            One of the main elements to Fogg’s Behavior Model is Ability. According to Fogg a person must have the ability to perform the target behavior a persuader desires in order for the behavior to take place. Ability is the vehicle for change. Upon viewing this Ted Talks Video, I was initially disappointed in Pariser’s speech because he motivated me to change, but didn’t provide the ability to do so. Ultimately however, I discovered that his speech was directed to the engineer’s and developers of search engine protocol, such as Google. It is in-fact an effective speech.

Triggers

            The third element of Fogg’s Behavioral Model is Triggers. Triggers serve the same purpose in behavioral change as they do in firearms. They set the course in ‘action’, so to speak. The behavioral ‘trigger’ is compartmentalized into three types by BJ Fogg; Facilitator, Signal, and Spark. Facilitator is a trigger that exists in an environment where motivation is high, but ability is low. Signal, is a trigger that happens when both ability and motivation are high. Spark, is the trigger which works best when ability is high and motivation is low.

            Eli Pariser: Beware online "filter bubbles" was closest to a Facilitator trigger for me. I was highly motivated to participate in change; still, I had no ability to make this change. This presentation of his used media and rhetoric adequately enough to produce a Spark trigger for his target audience. Overall, this was a well put together presentation.