Finding Trust by Becoming Trustworthy

A venture capitalist once told me, “It’s better to invest in a company with a ‘C’ level idea and an ‘A’ team than a company with an ‘A’ idea and a ‘C’ team.”  After watching Nerds 2.0 and seeing how Robert Metcalfe was backstabbed by Microsoft in the 3Com deal, I began to think, “It’s better to team up with a ‘C’ team that you can trust than an ‘A’ that you can’t.” How can we find individuals that we can trust in our professional lives?  As I ponder this question, a bit of sage dating advice from my single years comes to mind: “finding a marriage partner isn’t about merely finding the right person, it’s about becoming the right person.” A similar approach can be applied to developing trust.  It’s not about merely finding the people you can trust; it’s about becoming a trustworthy individual yourself.  

Stop and Think!

Clifford Stoll’s autobiographical account describes tracking down a hacker in one of the first cyber-attacks in history. From reading Stoll’s book one asks how nobody foresaw danger in the gaping security holes in the government systems that existed in the early years of computers. The hacker was able to gain access to various top secret US military and government systems by simply guessing common passwords and sometimes even logging in as “guest” with no password requirement.  It seems to me that mankind rarely takes preventative measure unless we, or someone we know personally, experiences the danger first hand. Perhaps that is why those that are most zealous about not using a phone while driving are those with friends or family who have been harmed in a cellphone related auto accident, and maybe that’s why lots of us don’t start preparing for disaster until hurricane Katrina hits. 

                How can we overcome this danger-prevention-lethargy that is in our human nature?   My answer to this question is to merely think! Far too often we simply accept things at face value without stopping to ponder their deeper implications. George Bernard Shaw--a world famous writer and a founder of the London School of Economics—noted, "Few people think more than two or three times a year; I have made an international reputation for myself by thinking once or twice a week." Let us all take time to stop, think and ponder our life’s surroundings.  

Compliance Vs Self Expression

Vladimir Putin recently announced that if Facebook and Twitter want to remain online in Russia, then they must comply with local censorship and storage laws.  While many criticize Putin for this action, it is my opinion that these two social media websites shouldn’t be given special exemption from local laws. Before I am accused of supporting tyranny, let me first explain.

Just as Clay Shirky conveyed in the video we watched in class about self-expression and the internet revolution, I fully believe in the goodness and power of freedom of expression.  I find that Russia would enjoy greater liberty, self-respect and stability if it discontinued the restrictive censorship that currently exists.  However, if all other media organizations within Russia have to comply with laws of the land, than why should Facebook and Twitter be exceptions simply because they are based in the cloud?  

https://gigaom.com/2014/09/26/russia-orders-google-facebook-and-twitter-to-comply-with-local-storage-and-censorship-laws/