Attention Economy

[gothwalk]

This idea's not mine; it's from a copy of Wired Magazine from a few years ago, when Wired was still new and shiny and offbeat.

Basically, it goes like this. We're approaching an economy where money, subsistence-stuff, abstract-of-labour, is not that important any more. If the world was organised right, we could all live perfectly comfortably doing about four hours work a week. Obviously, that's not the case, but the fact remains that in the West, we just don't have to put in the amount of sheer EFFORT that our ancestors did.

People still need a medium of exchange, though. For a long time, money has been more than a way to get food and shelter, it's been a way of keeping score. We're starting to see the switch, for score-keeping purposes, from money to fame. We equate one with the other - someone rich MUST be famous, someone famous MUST be rich. We ignore the fact that we're talking about two different kinds of wealth here, as nobody knows the name of the guys who have the Swiss bank accounts, and celebrities declare bankruptcy all the time.

The way we measure this wealth is in attention, in eyeball-minutes, if you like. Somone looking at me (or my work, or my journal, which is me for purposes of this) for an hour is more valuable than someone who looks for a minute. Sixty people looking for one minute each may be more valuable, especially if some of them mention me to friends.

Then there's the second tier of attention, which is based on the fact that the attention of attention-wealthy people is better than the attention of attention-poor people. If you discover that Neil Gaiman is reading your journal, or Warren Ellis, you're far more pleased than if you discover that Sean Nolan is. It's more valuable because they reflect attention onto you. We can see this in Oprah's book club, when it existed. Oprah (one of the attention-wealthiest people in the world) said "I'm reading this", and thousands of people went out and bought the book. She could have directed that attention at any book, down to Ann & Barry Go To The Sea, and people would have bought it in droves.

This means that the people to whom we pay attention benefit from it. They gain attention-wealth - not just one eyeball-minute, but if we're any way famous, in the small way that journallers can be - ten, or a hundred.

So, what I'm finally driving at is: by responding to people, by thinking about them, by giving them attention, you're making them wealthy. And I want to think a little more about who I want to pay that attention to, sometimes.

Comments

[azurelunatic]

Interesting. And I paid attention to you because shadesong paid attention to you.

[technoshaman.livejournal.com]

Same here.

Only problem is, for most folk, that and $2.10 plus tax will get you a latte. The real issue is how to turn street cred into something you can use at the Food Way.

'Tis a most interesting concept. Bears thought.

[iroshi.livejournal.com]

You can't. Not at the Food Way. But you know...I pointed out to elance and wibbble that when they go on their touring of America for their extended honeymoon, some years from now, that they'll pretty much only need gas money and money for munchies on the drive, and the occasional *desired* hotel room -- they both know enough people around America that they'll ALWAYS have somewhere to stay where someone WANTS them to come stay a few days. They could vacation their way around America and not pay a dime for places to stay.

On attention value.

Hm.

For that matter, if it weren't for my husband's paranoia...I probably could, too.

*smile* That gives me warm fuzzies.

[technoshaman.livejournal.com]

Hmmm. Innnnteresting. Bears thought.

[(Anonymous)]

they both know enough people around America that they'll ALWAYS have somewhere to stay

I did just that many years ago. Two nights in a hotel in two months travel (and one of those nights was because of a communication breakdown). Fascinating stuff.