Just the other week many questioned American Idol’s crowdsourcing technique of asking audience members to text their vote for their favorites when Pia Toscano was voted off. Crowdsourcing was also in question with President Obama’s “Open for Questions” initiative when questions on the nation’s drug reform were at the top of the public agenda. In fact, the number one issue–not once, but twice–was the legalization of marijuana. And again, when Change.org held its crowdsourcing contest “Ideas for Change,” the legalization of marijuana also floated to the number one spot.

Before you say crowdsourcing is so 2008, give me a second. This may be an oversimplification–but I can’t get the thought out of my head. I understand the benefits of crowdsourcing–but there’s also a time and purpose to applying a crowdsourcing approach.

Here’s the leap: Is voting a form of crowdsourcing?

Having recently joined the army of weekday commuters, I just finished listening to Arianna Huffington’s Third World America on audiobook. (Note: Bush’s Decision Points is next on my “to read” list as I want to study differing viewpoints and perspectives.) Despite Huffington’s obvious leanings and strong (and sometimes distracting) language, she does make some interesting arguments. One of which is her look at education and its role on our economic and political structures, specifically, the American public’s access to quality information.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hu8QDhNeNdQ&

Have you read Third World America? What were your thoughts and reflections upon reading it? And, is voting a form of crowdsourcing? One of the messages I appreciated most from Huffington’s book was her call for increased civic engagement from citizens ourselves as she did balance her argument asking for both policy changes as well as increased individual accountability.

Though I would have liked to hear more about the solutions she proposes to the problems she outlines, she does encourage people to visit: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/third-world-america, as a hub for getting involved and taking action (a smart move on her end I must say).

Additional Resources:

• Third World America: Why I Wrote the Book and What We Need to Do to Save America’s Middle Class by Arianna Huffington
• Editorial: Obama’s Third World America, Washington Times
• How You Can Prevent America from Ever Becoming a Third World Country, Huffington Post

“Seek knowledge. Ask questions.”

I’m not implying that these are the only things you look for when hiring or even that they correlate to how you or I vote. But, they do provide a focus and help us cultivate an internal culture, mindset and attitude towards our work.

My Four Non-Negotiables:

Initiative

People with initiative are rare–and when you come across them, you can develop not only a mentorship relationship, but also a reverse-mentorship relationship. In other words, like iron sharpens iron, working together makes you both better at what you do and what you know. A person with initiative does not always have all the answers–but they know where to get them. They are resourceful, pro-active and self-thinkers. For example, I once was in an interview where the person asked: If I was hired, what could I do before now and then to prepare for the position? Is there anything you’d like me to study or any skills I should refine? This is initiative. Check.

Commitment

From my experience, those with initiative often possess commitment. Commitment comes in many shapes and forms–maybe it’s in the form of certain ethics and values, maybe it’s a deep passion or belief in what one is doing. Maybe it comes from a personal experience that resonates with the individual or a desire to contribute to the team or be a part of something greater than oneself. Often, commitment is the seed for both initiative and accountability. As, people with commitment tend to be life-long learners. People who are willing to “Do, Learn, Improve and Repeat.”

Accountability

They say that few people can admit when they are wrong. What may be more rare, are people who are willing to admit that they don’t know something (but then have the initiative to discover it). To me though, accountability is more than this type of black and white definition. There are shades of accountability, that when you can find hints of it in someone, it is easily recognizable. This is because accountability can also be referred to as servant leadership. I first learned of servant leadership from my dad. In sum, servant leadership is when the leader serves others–rather than others serving the leader. I believe leadership can come at any level in an organization. And one who is a servant leader is the cream of the crop.

Writing Ability

In marketing, we write…a lot. Whether it’s email, marketing plans, research reports, presentations, blog posts, tweets, etc., writing and overall communication is at the core. Writing can be a detailed yet creative process. It gives you insight into how someone thinks and arranges thoughts and ideas and how someone approaches a task. Maybe it’s my own love for writing that gives me this bias, but you can tell a lot from someone’s writing–it can be a canvas for change.

Your Challenge

So–What are your non-negotiables? Consider putting together your team or organization’s non-negotiables. Make it a team brainstorm over lunch. Even if just as an exercise, I think you’ll find it telling about the culture you work in and the direction you’re headed. And that holds great importance in achieving your team and organization’s mission and affecting positive social change. If you do this, please share how the experience goes with the rest of us by posting a comment.

flickr credit: Jose Betancur