Everything is interconnected

Everything in life is interconnected. People are connected via social networks, family ties, organizations, and their employers. The economy is a global net that reverbrates with the slightest of changes. We are connected to the same economy as consumers and through corporations as employees. We share the same ecology, and keep using and re-using the same ingredients through the carbon and nitrogen cycles. And after all, we are all star stuff.

But most importantly, everything effects everything sooner or later, and for every action there is a consequence. Kall it karma, or TANSTAAFL, or cause and effect. Regardless, this forms an interesting basis for morality. As human beings everything we do has consequences and we should keep those in mind. Because sooner or later there will be payback for all of our actions to either ourselves, or to someone else. And since everything is interconnected, the consequences of our actions impacting ourselves is just a matter of time. It is easy to miss this though, since feedback loops can be long.

The missing link between business need and software development: product design

I gave a talk about improving IT systems with participatory and user-centered design at the Wildcard 2013 conference in Latvia the other day. Here are the slides and video.