I recently attended an unmeeting called The Overlap facilitated by Dave Gray in which attendance is kept to an intimate 50 people. This event, guided by a loose-leaf unagenda, brought together some extraordinary folks hailing from various disciplines from designers to entrepreneurs. Sprinkle that mix with a tai chi teacher and industrial anthropologists and you’ve got yourself one heck of an occasion to gather around the campfire and tell stories.
As we delved into the themes of prototyping, practice and play, the foggy peninsula of Monterey Bay California provided the perfect backdrop for a gathering of minds in which ambiguity permeated the unagenda.
From rapid prototyping and bodystorming (carrying out design sessions in the wild, instead of in the office) to the exploration of what makes us both comfortable and uncomfortable as human beings, what was interesting to me was the overlapping that ensued of ideas that served as cross-roads to the development of new ideas, concepts and plans.
Here is a mockup I created on the way home representing some of these overlapping themes that stood out to me:
The fusion of intellectual capital and various technologies at play during this event both energized and defused some common perceptions of old-style ways of thinking to a more creative and collaborative open-spaced style of problem solving.
During one of many exercises in innovation, I had the opportunity to discuss the implications of paper cup consumption as a social experiment dubbed “the Betacup”, a project led by Toby Daniels. We explored the common obstacles by which personal preferences, social circles and convenience affect the shift towards a more sustainable way of having that morning, afternoon and late night latte fix. It will be interesting to watch this project come to fruition.
Other collaborations included a revamp of the healthcare system in which transparency was the key to sharing medical records and history for doctors and patients alike, thereby negating the overlap of inefficiency that is all too common on both fronts.
Urban renewal through sustainable communities was the common element for one group which collectively shared their ideas and experiences concerning the decay and detachment that is plaguing major modern cities. These types of powerful breakouts and presentations provided a platform for in-depth conversations and the forging of new friendships and business partnerships.
This post represents a small sampling of the trailblazing concepts and insights that were circling around the Asilomar Conference Center last weekend. I heard it being described by more than one participant as being “life-changing” and I for one have certainly grown in many ways. It is not until we take the risks do we realize the rewards.
It was a privilege to engage with some of the brightest and certainly intriguing folks who are contributing to the social 3.0 community and I was inspired by the conversations and presentations alike. Thanks to all the other 49 people who made this a weekend of sharing I will be kicking around in my head for quite a while. My approval meter is reading green.
