Sony’s cofounder Masaru Ibuka wanted to listen to opera on his long-distance flights. He asked the Sony engineers to create a portable player, so he could listen to his cassette tapes while traveling. And…the Walkman was born.
The Walkman was an instant hit, and stores couldn’t keep it in stock, even with the steep price of $150 in 1979.
Sony was so concerned about the isolated, solo experience the Walkman created that the first model had two headphone jacks and a button to talk to the other person also plugged into the Walkman. They were worried it would cause hermetic loneliness! The cofounder later wrote that the company was hesitant to release a product that could be considered selfish.
One CBS record executive said it was the end of meeting people; another critic lamented that it was just another way to fuel our growing desire to not deal with one another. Woodbridge Township, New Jersey, banned the Walkman from being worn in public—this law was active until 2016! (Source: The Sirens' Call by Chris Hayes)
Now, we look back at the Walkman with feelings of nostalgia. We don’t identify it as the reason we stopped communicating with one another.
We live in a world where there will always be a new device that sucks up our attention. Each new invention adds a layer of noise and distraction, making communication even more challenging.
The need for direct, human-centered communication is stronger than ever. It’s on all of us to create opportunities for intentional interactions. While it’s tempting to email a colleague, consider calling or stopping by their office. Pick up the phone and call a friend instead of texting back and forth for 45 minutes. I’ve challenged myself to leave my phone in my purse while waiting for my coffee order; instead, I try to smile at a stranger or make small talk with the barista.
These human-focused interactions may feel awkward or less efficient, but the sense of connection is worth it.
Coast fi? lily padding? yacht rock?
I’ve been stumbling upon some new words that I thought were worth sharing. (I was clueless about some of these terms!)
Coast FI (Financial Independence) – When you have enough investments saved to fund retirement; it’s a variation of the popular retirement movement Financial Independence, Retire Early (FIRE). It’s not necessarily about retiring early, but about knowing when you are free to take a lower-paying job, start your own business, or “coast.”
Venmo-Ghosting – Basically, it’s repayment avoidance. If a group of friends goes out and one person covers the bill, they agree the others will Venmo their portion. Or, they won’t…hence Venmo-Ghosting.
Lily Padding – When you hop from job to job to build new skills and chase a higher income.
Merriam-Webster also added a new batch of words to its dictionary. Here are a few of them:
Yacht rock – A style of soft rock music originating in the 1970s and 1980s.
Sunday scaries – Feelings of anxiety or sadness that arise on Sunday from the knowledge that the weekend is almost over.
Mandela Effect – A phenomenon in which many people collectively misremember a specific fact, event, or detail in a consistent manner; the experience of many people having the same false memory.
Looksmaxxing – The practice of taking one or more sometimes extreme or dangerous measures intended to increase physical attractiveness.
Rickroll – to trick someone into hearing the song “Never Gonna Give You Up” by Rick Astley. (It’s really in the dictionary now! This cracked me up!)
A MUCH-NEEDED LAUGH!
INSPIRATION
George Dantzig arrived to class late one day while in graduate school at the University of California, Berkeley. There were two problems on the blackboard, so George assumed they had been assigned as homework. He copied them down, but it took him a few days to complete them. He apologized to his professor for needing extra time and asked if he could submit his homework late. Professor Neyman told George to put them on his desk, and he’d get to them.
Six weeks later, George woke to loud pounding on his door. Professor Neyman was grasping some papers in his hand, and he was excitedly saying, “I’ve just written an introduction to one of your papers. Read it so I can send it out right away for publication.”
George was confused at first. He finally realized that the problems that he had solved from the blackboard were two famous unsolved problems in statistics! His professor submitted a paper, highlighting one of the problems and the solution, crediting George. George was also recognized for solving the second problem; a later publication credited him.
George eventually joined the faculty of Stanford University in 1966; he taught and published as a professor of operations research until the 1990s. In 1975, George received the National Medal of Science from President Gerald Ford.
George was once quoted as saying that had he known the problems were supposed to be impossible, he might not have attempted them at all. I keep thinking about that statement. How many of us don’t try things because it seems impossible?
May we all be influenced by George Dantzig and attempt the unthinkable!
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