Comments on: The Power of Weak Ties on Facebook

By: Jeanette McLeod

Jeanette McLeod — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 11:04:57 +0000

Hey Shama – good quick video. I have made many useful and interesting connections through Twitter [even if I didn't 'get it' at first!].

By: Sandie Barrie

Sandie Barrie — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 02:00:07 +0000

Very good point, branching out can have more rewards than we can expect. Also like comment made by Scott. Makes a lot of sense to think broader than our local environments. Thanks for the continued great videos;-)

By: Scott Szur

Scott Szur — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 22:10:08 +0000

Shama,
Great job on the video….I enjoyed it very much.
Also, Malcolm Gladwell, in his book, ‘The Tipping Point’ had further elaborated on the specific reasons why ‘weak ties’ are so powerful.
In the book, Gladwell was discussing the research of Mark Granovetter. Granovetter had found that when people were looking for a job, their ‘weak ties’ proved to be much more important than their ‘strong ties’. The reason this is the case is that your strong ties tend to occupy the same world that you do. They are aware of the same opportunities that you are. However, for things like new jobs, new ideas, new markets etc.(essentially anytime you need to be exposed to something new), your ‘weak ties’ are more likely to be of help.
Gladwell writes that:
“Acquaintances, in short, represent a form of social power, and the more acquaintances you have the more powerful you are.”
Again – thanks for posting the video.

By: Gail

Gail — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 19:56:24 +0000

Good thoughts Shama… love your Blog look its great.