Advocate & Amplify
To "advocate and amplify" is a focus area to help reinforce all of the other ones - any action, any good, any progress. It's all about making a fuss. Bringing attention to what's being done. It's also about standing up for causes and people where and when that's needed. Advocating for good ideas, for change, for justice, for vision.
There is a basic formula for creating tipping points - or viral spread - which is a key to the Shift the Country methodology. In it, the advocating and amplifying parts are reinforced with feedback loops that lead to exponential growth. There are ways to make that happen, and that's part of the formula for creating tipping points.
With or without that - advocating and amplifying can help us bring more attention, good, resources, funding, support, and so on to whatever we're doing. As an example, back in The Before when we would have protests to advocate for things - we would also need to make sure to amplify that protest. Doesn't do much good to have a protest if the media don't cover it, if it doesn't get talked about in communities in the real world and online, or if the organization / issue / company / politicians the protest is about don't know it's even happening. Now that we're in a pandemic, advocating and amplifying will be even more critical. We've got to come up with new ways to bring attention to all the things that need work (problem-solving). And there are a lot of things.
Here are the relevant blog posts and resources below are about advocating for something or amplifying, or go back to the Focus Area page.
Related blog items
Related resource items
From the site: "The good news is, all over the country people are fighting hate, standing up to promote tolerance and inclusion. More often than not, when hate flares up, good people rise up against it — often in greater numbers and with stronger voices. This guide sets out 10 principles for fighting hate in your community."
"Citizen You: Doing Your Part to Change the World," by Jonathan M. Tisch. The author's introduction to the book is in this article, and a one-page PDF interview is available here.
"Everybody Matters: My Life Giving Voice," by Mary Robinson. Also see the Mary Robinson Foundation - Climate Justice website.
"Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World," by Adam Grant. From the book jacket, "Using surprising studies and stories spanning the worlds of business, politics, sports, and entertainment, Grant debunks the common belief that successful non-conformists are born leaders who boldly embrace risk. Originals explains now anyone can spot opportunities for change, recognize a good idea, overcome anxiety and ambivalence, and make suggestions without being silenced."
Check out this book by Eben Alexander, M.D., "Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgeon's Journey into the Afterlife." Videos also available on the author's website.
"Rising Strong: The Reckoning. The Rumble. The Revolution." by Brene Brown, PhD, LMSW. Brene Brown also has a number of classic videos and TED talks that will be available on The Counterfear Toolbox videos page (coming soon) or on the Google.
"Stress-Free Sustainability: Leverage Your Emotions, Avoid Burnout, and Influence Anyone," by Adam Hammes, an Iowa author based in Des Moines. Interview here.
From author Chris McGoff in Part 1 of the book: "How do some people, organizations, and coalitions thrive in uncertain times? What enables them to appear so certain and take decisive action amid ambiguity about the future?" The PRIMES website says "The PRIMES are universal patterns of group behavior that outfit you to work with any group to solve any problem - especially the big ones." The PRIMES book notes "... Here's the deal. Almost all the tame problems have been solved. We get to solve the wicked problems. Wicked problems affect a lot of peple and it takes a lot of people, all with their own agendas, to collaborate and solve them. ... The people who, amid uncertainty, successfully lead large problem-solving groups share these characteristics. First, they are clear about what they are up to and how they spend their precious time. Second, they are intentional and willing to go first. Finally, they have mastered the art of enrolling others to join them." The PRIMES website also has short videos and info about each of The PRIMES. Another core counterfear resource is Chris McGoff's TEDx Rock Creek talk on "Quad4: Realm of Your Highest Impact and Highest Risk." The author's company The Clearing has done significant work on wicked problems in many counterfear focus areas.
"The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference," by Malcolm Gladwell. Gladwell also asks the question "Are You a Connector" in this piece. More here and here on Connectors, Mavens, and Salespersons.
About: "We empower philanthropists to leverage their resources and amplify their impact. Exponent Philanthropy is the country’s largest association of funders - nearly 2,200 members strong - and the only one dedicated to serving foundations with few or no staff, philanthropic families, and individual donors."
Beautiful movie on resilience, persistence, finding a way forward, building creativity, and connection. Stuff that matters.
What can be said? The Star Wars movie series may be the primary myth of our time. Episodes IV, V, and VI - the original series - are a foundation for finding the ways of The Force. Excellent Jedi wisdom and training from Yoda in Episode V, The Empire Strikes Back, and Episode VI, Return of the Jedi. Episodes I, II, and III are primarily useful as back story for the more deeply curious. Star Wars for a new generation came in with Episode VII, The Force Awakens. No spoilers here, but The Force Awakens truly is a myth for our time. It brings tools we need for the world we have in front of us. The myth and the metaphor are more powerful than we think. The newest Star Wars movie to be released is as fitting a myth for our time as The Force Awakens. Rogue One is powerful and unexpected. Myths and story bring to our consience the possible and the inspiration.
Finale song from the movie "Save the Last Dance." The music alone is an amplifier, but the final scene in the movie with this song is even more so. Excerpted lyrics below are from here:
"It's the chance of life, get ready, set, fly high.
Above the fear of your mind, go for it.
It's hit or miss, too late for you to quit.
You gotta show 'em how bad you really want this, so...
Live your dreams, it's not as hard as it may seem.
You gotta work to get the green, on your hopes you must lean
From your fears, you have to wean yourself.
It's all or nothing, give your everything...
...Are what you believe, you got to bring the dreams.
Set the pace, competitions take the lead.
This is it, all eyes on you.
So stay on point and prove,
that you deserve whats long overdue...
...My heart is still recovering,
From the heartbreak of another kind,
I'm still drying my tears.
Getting over my own fears in my life.
So I wanna make sure this time that I'm strong enough,
To give it my all...
...So you gotta live your dreams,
So don't you be afraid.
Just set the pace, and take the lead,
It's your time to shine.
Please believe."
Theme song from The Lego Movie. Intro lyrics from Google Play: "Everything is awesome / Everything is cool when you're part of a team / Everything is awesome when we're living our dream / Everything is better when we stick together / Side by side, you and I gonna win forever, let's party forever / We're the same, I'm like you, you're like me, we're all working in harmony..."
"Feel so close" - Calvin Harris. "I feel so close to you right now." If you are looking for a video of community and neighbors and fun and people taking care of each other, this is hard to beat. Fantastic. I learned of this video when I friend I was rooming with at an amazing convention woke up with the lyrics in her head from a dream. We Googled it, and this came up. We should have expected nothing less.
Official Lyrics Minions Version of Pharrell Williams' "Happy," from the Despicable Me 2 movie soundtrack. From the YouTube: "check out http://24hoursofhappy.com to experience the world's first 24 hour music video!"
Added 8/26/16. Lyrics here. "So I, I bet my life, I bet my life, I bet my life on you..."
You can't beat this if you need an inspirational-leaping-or-fighter-type song... "Livin' on a Prayer," by Bon Jovi. A sparkly diamond from the world of 1986.
Fantastic music & community/neighbor/people video. Michael Franti & Spearhead - "Say Hey (I Love You)." Try dancing around to this one for a while. If you need an extra laugh on top of all this happiness, try "Craig Ferguson Says Hey! I Love you!" There may be puppets. Just saying.
The "Top Gun" movie anthem, by Harold Faltermeyer and Steve Stevens.
Katrina & The Waves (not the hurricane) - "Walking on Sunshine." One of the best-ever quick-pick-me-ups -
"We Are Young," by Fun, featuring Janelle Monae. Disturbing opening lyrics in what sounds like domestic violence, which is not okay. The chorus resonates: "Tonight... we are young... so let's set the world on fire... we can burn brighter... than the sun..."
From their website: "Over 10,000 volunteers in every state (including Alaska and Hawaii) who have written over half a million postcards to voters in dozens of key, close elections." Excellent example of how to amplify.
Mission: "Resource Generation organizes young people with wealth and class privilege in the U.S. to become transformative leaders working towards the equitable distribution of wealth, land and power." This organization looks like an amplifier and a change agent.
Seth's Blog is an excellent resource for wisdom, inspiration, vision, motivation, and follow-through. It is also a great resource for further resources. Very worth receiving in a daily email or RSS feed.
"The Dream Corps was founded by Van Jones in 2014 to help cutting-edge initiatives grow big enough to impact millions of lives. Our slogan is '21st-century jobs, not jails.' We support economic, environmental and criminal justice innovators - all under one roof. Our shared platform helps leaders create synergies, leapfrog obstacles and maximize impact. Every day, we are reshaping 'what’s possible' in the field of social justice. The Dream Corps finds aspiring leaders who have the courage and determination to tackle America’s toughest challenges. Then we connect them to world-class partners, smart digital tools and national media platforms to help them succeed. We back initiatives that close prison doors and open doors of opportunity." Current work is on three programs, described on the "About" page.
Having "Community Conversations" is one of the core of the 15 civic engagement tools that can help Shift the Country. These conversations can be online or in-person or both, & single events or a series. They can help us with solving problems & building resilience where we are - like for the pandemic - and also things like re-imagining public safety and racial justice. 9/3/2020. This video is tied to several Shift the Country tools because it relates to several of them - and it is a key tool for doing civic engagement, if not made more challenging by the pandemic. Still, there are ways to make it work, to solve community problems, to drive community agendas, and to help people help each other through.
This is on how to deliberately create tipping points - or how to deliberately make something "go viral" either online or in the real world. Creating tipping points & leveraging social networks to do it is one of the 15 Civic Engagement Tools that help us make shift happen. It's also one of the 5 parts of our strategy to Shift the Country. Our "tipping points" tool online is here. This video is on the founder's wall on Facebook here. August 6, 2020.
"Quad4: Realm of Your Highest Impact and Highest Risk:" Chris McGoff at TEDxRockCreekPark. This is a Counterfear Anchorpoint, because it is a rare, short look at what we need to do to solve wicked problems. Also check out Chris McGoff's website and book "The PRIMES," another posted Counterfear resource. The website has videos and a summary of each of the PRIMES.
This TED talk by Seth Godin is one of the classics. From the video summary: In The Tribes We Lead, "Godin argues the Internet has ended mass marketing and revived a human social unit from the distant past: tribes. Founded on shared ideas and values, tribes give ordinary people the power to lead and make big change. He urges us to do so." Check out Seth's Godin's blog here; it's the only blog I read daily (also posted as a resource).
We're in some stuff. This one is on the 5 main parts of the risk landscape in front of us between now and February - through the election and transition of administrations. Plus - how do we survive? August 30, 2020. The 5 main parts of the risk landscape include 1) the out of control coronavirus pandemic (and complex system interruptions and related cascading effects); 2) emerging authoritarianism in the US; 3) the influence of a growing nationalist oligarchy on destabilization in the US; 4) an information war with many fronts; 5) the election and transition of power. This also gets into the 5-part Shift the Country strategy to help us get through these next months.
There is always something viral and funny on the YouTube; it is a great counterfear tool. If you need a laugh and you're new to The Internet, try searching YouTube for "hilarious" + "cat". YouTube is a great source for a million other resources - from movies to training to inspiration.