Find a New Flock

Have you noticed that when people attend meetings, go to networking events or participate in training classes that they tend to sit with people they already know?  In academic circles this is known as homophily – the tendency to associate with people of “similarity” or familiarity. This is sometimes called the “birds of a feather” phenomenon.

When it comes to social media use, I will occasionally fall into this trap as well, tending to read the same authors and bloggers that I know well and whose work I’ve enjoyed in the past. Today, with the publishing of Dan McCarthy’s July Leadership Carnival at the Great Leadership blog, I decided to break out of that mold and seek out authors with whom I’m unfamiliar.  Happily, my foraging uncovered some excellent reading.

Meg Bear (@megbear) blogs for Talented Apps (@talentedapps). She’s a self-described Talent Management aficionado and has recently written a couple of great posts that explore gender in the workplace.  Check out When Understated Becomes a Liability and Are Your Leadership Competencies Biased?

Alice Snell (@Taleo_Corp) blogs for Taleo, a Talent Management solutions provider. As Taleo’s VP for Research, Alice is at the forefront of all things Talent Management.  I’m definitely going pay attention to her professional expertise and opinions.

Bob Lieberman (@bob_lieberman) who blogs at Cultivating Creativity, specializes in helping companies be more creative. (And what company couldn’t use a little more of that?!)

So, do yourself a favor and check out a different flock this week. There are 36 featured authors in Dan’s Leadership Carnival round up.  There will be plenty of great reading—both from familiar favorites and some new voices as well.

Photo credit istockphoto.com © Greg Nicholas