This is an enlightening way to look at online interactions.
A somewhat similar revelation came to me several years ago after I became disheartened and complained to an older relative that, on average, only 250 people read my blog posts. Her reaction realigned my thinking: “That’s great!” she said. “Imagine that if this were in the real world, you’d have 250 people showing up at a lecture hall twice a week to hear what you have to say!”
Of course, getting more of those 250 to participate or even buy something is another discussion, but I’m sure the 1% or Pareto Principle factors in there, too.
A younger relative (my daughter) said something similar when I was whining about my couple hundred subscribers - she said what if they were all outside the front door - thats a mob!
This is a very interesting reflection, thank you very much for sharing (and really full of ideas in view of the elections just passed). I think that the theme of the "silent majority" and its influence "behind the scenes" is really worth exploring. A very interesting thing is that in the so-called "knowledge communities" AI could change the dynamics of content diffusion. And some interesting first evidence has also arrived, I hope they can be useful or inspiring: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-61221-0
I can certainly vouch for this effect! Every day, nearly 2000 emails go out (a little over 1800, just making the math ultra-easy), and something like 500 of those get opened that day (maybe a few more in the next week or two). Of those 500 opens, I suspect maybe around half are actually scrolling through the email to read: I imagine there is some non-zero group of people who feels pretty good about just opening every email they get.
Of the couple hundred or whatever who actually read the thing, you can bet I'm gonna have around 10 people commenting, and 4 or 5 of those are everyday commenters. That tiny fragment is where I have my actual conversations about these ideas, so my brain trust is actually pretty small (from a personal input perspective).
Thank you for being a one percenter, and for having an excellent first name!
Your articles are great conversation starters and you typically pose something interesting to comment on towards the end (which is where I got some bravery to start asking the same like in this post) but there is a lot of lurking and browsing and swiping which is totally cool but the math is a little bonkers
It really is. It helps me to remember that those who believe they are going to change the world are the ones who are gonna change it. Only like 1% of humans have this belief, I think.
We are crazy if we compare our Substack subscriber count to Richardson, Reich and others in the 100,000+ club. They are tapping into popular topics with top shelf expertise. I'd be happy with a niche following. The big shots are anchor stores in a busy plaza. Me? I'm a small time baker on Main Street USA.
100% of peeps think Lola is cute 🥰
This is an enlightening way to look at online interactions.
A somewhat similar revelation came to me several years ago after I became disheartened and complained to an older relative that, on average, only 250 people read my blog posts. Her reaction realigned my thinking: “That’s great!” she said. “Imagine that if this were in the real world, you’d have 250 people showing up at a lecture hall twice a week to hear what you have to say!”
Of course, getting more of those 250 to participate or even buy something is another discussion, but I’m sure the 1% or Pareto Principle factors in there, too.
A younger relative (my daughter) said something similar when I was whining about my couple hundred subscribers - she said what if they were all outside the front door - thats a mob!
Great article. Never heard of this before.
This is a very interesting reflection, thank you very much for sharing (and really full of ideas in view of the elections just passed). I think that the theme of the "silent majority" and its influence "behind the scenes" is really worth exploring. A very interesting thing is that in the so-called "knowledge communities" AI could change the dynamics of content diffusion. And some interesting first evidence has also arrived, I hope they can be useful or inspiring: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-61221-0
That is a really interesting point Riccardo. Without the right weighting or prioritization AI will amplify the voice of the 1%
Mahatma Gandhi, “Speak only if it improves upon the silence.” Something to think about....
That is the perfect quote, I feel like Gandhi would be a liberal user of the mute button in certain online forums
I agree
I can certainly vouch for this effect! Every day, nearly 2000 emails go out (a little over 1800, just making the math ultra-easy), and something like 500 of those get opened that day (maybe a few more in the next week or two). Of those 500 opens, I suspect maybe around half are actually scrolling through the email to read: I imagine there is some non-zero group of people who feels pretty good about just opening every email they get.
Of the couple hundred or whatever who actually read the thing, you can bet I'm gonna have around 10 people commenting, and 4 or 5 of those are everyday commenters. That tiny fragment is where I have my actual conversations about these ideas, so my brain trust is actually pretty small (from a personal input perspective).
Thank you for being a one percenter, and for having an excellent first name!
Your articles are great conversation starters and you typically pose something interesting to comment on towards the end (which is where I got some bravery to start asking the same like in this post) but there is a lot of lurking and browsing and swiping which is totally cool but the math is a little bonkers
It really is. It helps me to remember that those who believe they are going to change the world are the ones who are gonna change it. Only like 1% of humans have this belief, I think.
and oh yeah, Lola is amazing. Much more of her, please.
Anybody who isn't interested in pics of Lola should seriously rethink their priorities.
Right! she is very expressive
We are crazy if we compare our Substack subscriber count to Richardson, Reich and others in the 100,000+ club. They are tapping into popular topics with top shelf expertise. I'd be happy with a niche following. The big shots are anchor stores in a busy plaza. Me? I'm a small time baker on Main Street USA.
Yeah and that's pretty good right? I can imagine owning a donut shop. Ok I need to stop thinking about that 🍩