E-Commerce
Business Strategy

In Cathy Davidson’s podcast, The Myth of Mono-Tasking; she discussed several topics:
changing technology, multi-tasking and attention blindness, which dominated the
podcast. Attention blindness is people distorting what they see only to focus
on what they want to see. Cathy presented the listeners with research that
painted that demonstrated what attention blindness is. “Cars drove into an
airplane in the middle of the highway because they didn’t expect to see an
airplane; only cars,” says Cathy. Combining people’s perceptions will allow one
to see a lot more, which reduces attention blindness. Reducing attention
blindness and mono-tasking will increase productivity.

Monotasking is a person devoting their energy and focus on one task which is considered a
myth by Cathy. The brain spend majority of its time multi-tasking. When one
focus on a single task at a time, it over works the brain; causing reduced
productivity. “Many believe taking frequent breaks is counterproductive,” says
Cathy. Taking frequent breaks allows the brain to refresh itself, maximize
output and productivity. Due to the rapid change of technology, the world makes
it easier to take frequent breaks by logging into Facebook or Twitter. “When
someone is not focused is when the best ideas are generated,” says Cathy; “when
pressure is applied; creativity is eliminated.” It can become difficult to tune
the world out due to technological advances that can hinder one from completing
tasks.


Changing technology is inevitable. The world is rapidly evolving; multiple choice test were
designed to aid families strive during WWII, cell phones are used to e-mail,
etc. Change is often receiving a negative connotation due to the population’s
reluctance to evolve with technology. People tend to hold on to what they were
accustomed to as they were growing up.

The second podcast featured Misiek Piskorski and Anthony Bradley who discussed how
social media can be a useful tool in the business world. Social media tend to
receive a negative wrap because people tend to think it is not professional or
it conjures mess. Misiek and Anthony believe social media all people in various
communities to collaborate and divide the workload associated with a project.
Social media allows delegation of duties to become easier and assess the
marketplace in a dynamic way. Social media’s biggest uses are facilitating
relationships, the creation of new products and receive feedback from
consumers.

During the airing of the podcast, the listeners were provided with ways to convert
social media utilization into success: get younger employees to operate social
media due to their familiarity of the sites and buy-in from senior level
executives. Many companies are afraid of failure because there is a high
failure rate associated with social media. It has been said, “Bad things will
happen, but how you engage and interact with those in the situation will make
the relationship better or worse.” Social media doesn’t create conflict, it
exposes it.

If one was to reduce their attention blindness in the business world, one can
exploit more opportunities that were ignored by other competitors. Having a
broader perception will create avenues of newer products and innovation that
competitors haven’t developed or foreseen yet. Becoming technological advanced
will increase efficiency and possibly decrease human errors. If productivity
was increased, it will serve as a catalyst for growth and development in
companies.

Utilizing social media for business purposes is a great way to inform consumers of new
products and gain feedback. Social media speeds up the diffusion process. When
consumers are satisfied with a product, they tend to make post or updates about
them. Social media can be used to discover consumers’ needs and wants. Sites
like Twitter and Facebook can be used to find out what are the fads, styles and
trends. Social media can also make consumers aware of discounts and
sweepstakes. Strategic alliances are also made on social media networks which
can lead to co-branding or increased market share. In conclusion, paying more
attention to the environment will lead to greater opportunities which will
foster success. Reducing attention blindness and utilizing social media will
create a synergy; 1 + 1= 3 if used correctly.

I would create a research firm that will cater to those who experience attention
blindness. The goal is to unlock the hidden the potential of the brain and
teaching people how to maximize productivity. The research firm would develop
methods that place clients into uncomfortable situations that will cause them
to become accustomed a new perception. Lastly, I would create a small business
that targets the elderly to assist with the transition to the world of
technology. It would increase companies’ reach which will birth a smarter
planet.