Rethinking Connection — Humanity & Technology
What is Connection?
If you would ask anyone around you what Connection is all about, you would probably get a reflection on how the world is an ever-increasing connected place.
It is true that new technology has enabled us to access a myriad of social networks and other communication channels from virtually anywhere — a remote coffee shop in the Brazilian Northwest coast or our bed on a rainy Sunday. We are now able to keep in touch with friends & family, get the latest updates from personalities we admire or even create and share content with a given audience — like Dare to Think aims to do.
We would like to look at this perspective a bit deeper. Is the recent tech-driven connection the “real one”, or is there something more to it?
Brene Brown, the American scholar who dedicates her research to the topics of vulnerability, courage and shame, believes we need to be careful as “Technology (…) has become a kind of imposer for connection, making us believe we are connected when we are really not — at least in the ways we need to be.” We believe so as well.
For us, building relationships based on love, compassion and generosity is the real thing. Doing so, and sharing it widely, is what will allow these relationships to positively impact the world around us. But how can we do it authentically in an ever-increasing Digital world?
Let me introduce you to the concept of Dāna. Dāna is a Sanskrit word and in Hinduism it refers to the practice of cultivating generosity. It can refer to the act of sharing a bowl of rice with a hungry man as much as the selfless service one should foster towards humanity. Historically Dāna was seen as a form of donation or charity but here we want to explore an extension of the term with a broader set of implications. We call it Connection.
Connection is the intangible energy that brings people together to support each other in some form and, in its purest shape, happens effortlessly. It is not only about helping someone in need, but truly letting energy flow freely so it can find where to go.
This happened to me many times during the last few years. I remember meeting a new intern for coffee in my previous company and, after a 10-minute discussion, we created a mentor/mentee relationship that lasts through today (many times in reverse😊), but the basis for a lifelong friendship of learning.
More recently, after moving into my new apartment, I found an old lady with serious memory challenges living in front of me. Although knowing that when she knocks on my door the story I hear will likely be the same, I still open it consistently to see her bright sparkling eyes.
Now imagine that each of us is able to cultivate this energy at a wider scale. With technology as a tool and not as an end we are able to share experiences that help others grow and build products that positively impact lives. In a tech-light version we can simply be there for someone in need.
Taking ownership of connecting to the world around us is our choice.
Do you accept the challenge?
