Precipitating Thoughts

The cloud of unknowing

Research – a blue sky

Needs time for precipitation

To clear out the fuzzy grays

I wrote this short phrase back in January 2013, back when I was working for the law firm. I was seven months into my job and have already looked at over 20 industries in Myanmar, in addition to the marketing and business development work. I enjoyed learning, working on new and challenging projects but having to complete the research work with little or no guidance and short turn-around times felt like I was working my mind/brains like a factory - churning out pieces of information without properly analyzing what I was mentally consuming. I was reading and rephrasing facts, figures about Myanmar businesses everyday but didn't have the time to make the connections between the various bits and pieces of information I gathered, and see the 'bigger picture.'  My mind felt trapped. 

This is in contrast to the mental and intellectual freedom I had at Carleton [or even at the ICT consultancy firm I joined after college], where I could take a reading or a case, interpret it through different academic frameworks, have discussions with my classmates and professors in class and later think about these issues over long walks along the Cannon river after dinner.

The fact is, we consume information everyday and it builds up in our mental systems. Unless enough time is given to let the information 'settle,' the information will pile up and clog our mental processes/thinking. Just like the sky needs time to precipitate the rain clouds, clearing out the grays to [reveal] the azure blue sky, our minds need 'down-time' to stay fresh and alert. 

INSEAD professor, Manfred Kats De Vries wrote about the "Importance of Doing Nothing," arguing that the brain needs to slow down in order to incubate creative thought, reflection and to prevent psychological burnout. In fact, meditation - the act of seeking clarity through avoidance of thoughts - has become a big movement among the corporate world in the recent times [months/years, I do not know]. 

However, it becomes harder to precipitate our thoughts through [not-thinking] when our generation turns to social media as an outlet for mental escape reflexively [where online information is readily available at the click of a button or the tap of a finger]. 

Clouds at Dusk, Singapore. June 2014

----

Citation:

Manfred Kats De Vries, June 2014. "The Importance of Doing Nothing." Web:http://knowledge.insead.edu/talent-management/the-importance-of-doing-nothing-3422 

Contemplations on Introversion

The world of an introvert is expansive within. In exploring one’s own mental space, the introvert wanders into the various imagined scenarios, made-up hypothesis and, probable explanations on certain events that unfold in their daily lives – perhaps best referred to as ‘mental processes.’

I am an introvert. In observing the [evolution/mechanics] of my own mind, it becomes clear and apparent that there is an urge, a desire, to connect my mental processes to the everyday events –at work, with family and between interactions with friends. [I am not sure if this is true of most introverts.]

An introvert may have a tendency to live within and in turn develop a vast mental space to hold out these mental processes. No matter how vast this space may be, the introvert needs an outlet to convey or connect these mental processes back to the ‘real’ or ‘external’ world (of everyday events). This may come in the form of conversations (with close friends and families), poetry or art, or writing.

This post is a form of channeling my inner thoughts to the external world. My life is undergoing transitions on many different dimensions at this point – professional, educational, geographical, and in relationships with family and friends – and these transitions in turn raises many different questions, points of contemplation. I am aware that when this phase is over, I will not be in the position to explore my own introversion-oriented mental processes anymore (as the orientation of the mental state changes).

This is a post is a way of recording my mental state at present, so I may be able to look back and make sense of the multiple strings of thoughts running through my mind at this point in time. 

[DRAFT] - Lived vs. Learned Knowledge

In order to understand knowledge management, it is first and foremost important to [outline] the very ‘form of knowledge.’ Before we discuss and distinguish the processes of knowledge sharing, storage, application in depth, we need to start exploring the fundaments:  what knowledge is and how knowledge comes to be (how knowledge is acquired).  I intend to write about the first question—what knowledge is [and how it is different from information] — in a separate post.

When we talk about knowledge gathering on an individual level, I believe we can distinguish this process of knowledge acquisition into two general categories –lived knowledge vs. learned knowledge.

[More on lived vs. learned knowledge]

[DRAFT] - Distinguishing Information from Knowledge

Information has a definite/concrete form whereas knowledge is fluid and malleable. Knowledge can be shaped, molded and applied to different scenarios. It can be refined whereas information is rigid.

Let me borrow the language of physics to illustrate my line of thought more clearly. In physics, there are three states of matters –solid, liquid and gas—in different phases.  

[More elaborations]

• Information       à Solid State (unchangeable, concrete, has a definite form)
• Knowledge       à Liquid State (fluid, moldable, adaptable to the shape of containers/situations)
• Mental Process àGaseous State (weightless, transient) 

Information Management - Anecdotal

I had my lunch at 2pm today, 2 hours later than I normally would.

And no, it wasn't because I was busy at work. (These days, I am adjusting to cope with underemployment issues.) Instead, it was because the lunch delivery screwed up.

I usually order my from a Burmese restaurant. The shopkeeper insists that the staff at our office call before 11.30pm each day so she can deliver on time, by 12pm. In taking the phone orders, she also demands our names, imprinted on our (styrofoam) lunch boxes  - saves us (30-odd staff at the office) from arguing over which is whose.

Today, I had an 11am meeting and couldn't place the lunch order on time so I called up option 2 - the Chinese Restaurant. The person who answered the phone took the order but didn't take down my name. Being new, I didn't doubt the Chinese resto's system and patiently (and trustingly) waited for my lunch.

Soon, it was 1pm and my food has yet to arrive so I called the Chinese resto again to confirm my order. The person who answered the phone wasn't sure so he kept me waiting on the line to check with the chef. About a minute later, he returned to the phone and said he is not sure but he THINKS it is on the way.

I was hungry (and cranky) so I canceled my order and walked out to the Burmese resto (about 10-minute walk from the office to get my food). I came back to the office around 2pm and I am glad I didn't wait for the Chinese resto's food because it never came.

So, the moral of the story is - yes, I am trying to justify my rantings here- that information systems matter! Unless you have a proper system to inquire, record and apply the information, systems will not flow and operate smoothly. And operational reliability/certainty is crucial to organizations.

While there have been studies on the uses (and abuses) of IS in large organizations, such systems also matter for smaller commercial units - such as these road side food stalls - as my experience today demonstrated.

It didn't take a lot of time or complex info storage devices to set up the IS system like the Burmese resto owner, but it does make a difference. I, for one, know that I don't trust the Chinese resto and given a choice, will not be ordering from there again.

Exploring the Mind Mechanics

The human mind is a fundamental unit of knowledge management. Over the years, this function (of knowledge management) has been outsourced to automatic/pre-programed systems: for example, electronic data, computerized information systems etc).

Be it in organizations or societies, human beings make up the basic unit of these ‘organizational wholes.’ Thus, understanding the essence of knowledge management on the individual/human being level is crucial to the understanding of knowledge and information systems on the larger scale or context.

Today, I came across this excellent collection of essays by an anthropoligist (and philosopher) Gregory Bateson titled “Steps to an Ecology of Mind.” It was a rare and pleasantly surprising find. His essays articulate (with clarity of thought and intricacy of introspection) the questions that have been lingering in my own my for the past couple of years.

I have only read through less than a tenth of his essays and cannot claim to understand and rearticulate his thoughts accurately. However, the questions he raised are certainly worth pondering, to gain a deeper understanding of how the mind interacts with knowledge, information and ideas:

How do ideas interact? Is there some sort of natural selection which determines the survival of some ideas and the extinction or death of others? What sort of economics limits the multiplicity of ideas in a given region of mind? What are the necessary conditions for stability (or survival) of such a system or subsystem?

----

Citation:

Gregory Bateson, 1972. “Steps to an Ecology of Mind: Collected Essays in Anthropology, Psychiatry, Evolution, and Epistemology.” Web: http://www.edtechpost.ca/readings/Gregory%20Bateson%20-%20Ecology%20of%20Mind.pdf

Knowledge Management

It doesn’t seem far-fetched to claim that progress of human societies can be attributed to the practice of refining the existing knowledge acquired. One can argue that innovations are achieved by reassessing existing knowledge/systems in order to achieve improved/new outcomes.

While this process of innovation and advancement based on captured knowledge originated centuries (or millenniums ago), it was only in the last 20-25 years that the systematic study of knowledge management started (King, 2009).

Existing literature on knowledge management is commonly linked the use of knowledge management within the organizational context—most publications on this topic focus on how knowledge can be better managed to enhance systems and processes within organizations. 

Yet, the use of knowledge permeates our everyday lives and I believe this process [of knowledge management] inevitably expands to personal, cultural and spiritual spheres of our lives (as it is with political and economic spheres). Just as organizations capture knowledge for their operations, we – as individuals –rely on what we know of others in our communications and interactions. Similarly, societies founded on shared cultural values and histories make use of the common knowledge for their functions and to pursue common goals.

I start this blog with the intent of exploring the multiple and intricate ways in which knowledge management applies to various aspects of our lives –on the individual, organizational and societal levels; and interpreted through the varied approaches/lenses of anthropology, sociology, economics etc.

As I begin this journey of unraveling the topic of knowledge management, I anticipate many exciting discoveries await.

 

 

----

Citation

 

King (William),  2009. "Knowledge Management and Organizational Learning." Web: http://www.uky.edu/~gmswan3/575/KM_and_OL.pdf