This week’s reading “prescribed” 5 minds that we need to navigate the future workplace. They include the disciplinary, synthesizing, creating, respectful and ethical mind. Definitely one that I’m trying to work out right now is the disciplinary mind because how do you know what to focus on or to be your craft? I’ve always thought I would never be able to fit into just one box/discipline/job. I think he is saying that we should master or specialize in something to be able to have a competitive advantage. However what able been a multi-disciplinary mind? I feel that our generation is moving towards the “jack of all trades” type rather than being “masters” of just one. Also being across disciplines would help with cultivating a synthesizing mind which his the ability to integrate ideas from various fields and spheres into a whole. Also with the emergence of the “portfolio career” people are more equipped with a diverse set of skills.

This video sums up his 5 minds for the future:

This week’s reading was a game of pace telling us to slow down in our technology heavy lives. Our research paper topic is narrowing down more but I asked a question to my group yesterday which was “Can we still have a high level of engagement without technology existing in the environment?”. I immediately glanced at the several laptops and phones that were placed on the tables or within eye sight around the room. An insight that I pulled out of the reading was that “neither the smartphone nor even the sheer volume of e-mail traffic drives the speed of work” or our lifestyles. The reading argues that we reach for other devices to relieve the stress and pressure that the devices MAGNIFY and thus it already exists.

Also, I always wondered which was leading the way, technology or us. Adams argues that we are co-creating it together. That technology exists as a mirror of us and society.

This is an interesting TED talk that explores what jobs we will be losing due to technology.

Cal Newport starts off with differentiating between two different approaches to thinking about work: the craftsman mindset and the passion mindset. Newport defines a craftsman mindset as a focus on what value you’re producing in your job as opposed to a passion mindset which is a focus on what value your job offers you. Newport argues that the craftsman mindset is the foundation for creating work you love.

I think the reading positions the two mindsets to be on opposite ends of the spectrum and not exclusive of one another however I think its possible to combine them both. For me I think focusing on what you can offer through your craft is following what you are good at or what your are interested in which can grow into passion. This is in line with his theory. He writes that you should just focus on creating meaningful work. My interpretation is that if you are in passion mindset you are too focuses on if this is the ‘right’ work you should be doing but if you shift your focus on how can I make this great then you naturally be cultivating a “passion”.

However on the last page he writes that your why is not as important as the how. However doesn’t your why drive how you do your work and your end goal? What drives you when you are facing struggles with your craft or your art? I think the why and the how are interconnected so it isn’t about shifting from why to how but more finding how they inform each other.

Elizabeth Gilbert offers a ‘softer’ approach to creativity and that is to follow your curiosity. It may lead to your ‘passion’ or not but you will be doing something you are interested in.

“Do content farms and freelancer sites exploit writers and erode the working standards of the writing profession? Or do they provide a previously non-existent opportunity for amateurs to get paid?”

This question stuck with me throughout the reading. I found this reading not as well structured as the others have been a little more dated. I would say that the answer to that question would be yes to both.

This is a more recent example of writers being exploited by a media company. Tracey Spicer spoke out about allegedly writers at the Guardian to write a 1,000-word column on women’s financial empowerment for ANZ for $140, which would come to 14 cents per word. She later goes on to state that many media companies trade writers their work for exposure and low pay. However she says that “the problem is it demeans the role, the task, and the job of being a writer”. Thus it would most likely produce lower quality writing. Also is the transition from freelancer to full time worker a leap? I wonder how many writers or even media creatives are actively choosing to work freelance or that is just a more feasible option when you are starting out?

John V. Pavlik (2015) Transformation: Examining the Implications of Emerging Technology for Journalism, Media and Society. Athens Journal of Mass Media and Communications. 

This paper examines and proposes how the changes in technological advances particularly how they are becoming more ubiquitous and low cost is shaping the future of journalism and the media news landscape mainly through four key areas: participation, working method, content and organizational structures. The paper goes into details about certain technological advances such as mobiles, AI, drones etc. Since we are focusing on how it is changing the actual content and/or storytelling itself the paper highlights that ‘interactivity, immersiveness and three-dimensionality are among the ways storytelling is changing’ also that ‘Video games and other media forms are increasingly finding online, community-based usage’ (pg 12). This paper provides broad overall background about emerging technology that is influencing overall media which could be useful in pinpointing a more narrow focus for our research paper.

Janet Balis (2015) 3 Strategic Questions the Media Industry’s Future Depends on. Harvard Business Review, <https://hbr.org/2015/10/3-strategic-questions-the-media-industrys-future-depends-on>. 

In this article Balis outlines three questions that all consider balance in our current and future media industry.

• What is the right balance between humans and technology across the full media and advertising ecosystem?
• How do we maximize our creativity as an industry while integrating data-driven approaches?
• When and how do we shift our businesses from legacy operating models to ones that better reflect the future?

The article discusses more marketing and distribution in the industry as opposed to storytelling. However marketing nowadays is very story focused as stated in the article ‘ storytelling is the means by which we connect messages to audiences in resonant, meaningful ways’ and this applies to marketing, advertising and news journalism. This article highlights how technology is changing distribution to becoming more personalized and targeted. This may not transform how we are telling stories as much but to who, how and when we tell the right stories to the right audiences.