PC Book Club: The Tipping Point

I had heard that The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell was one of those books that made people working in behavior change or marketing swoon. My feet stayed firmly on the ground, but I did think it was interesting. 

The writing is a little textbook-y but with a casual tone — in way of a baby boomer trying to pull off the word "chillax" — and (like a conversation with "Uncle G," you get through it pretty quickly and relatively unharmed.

The main theme centers around three essential characters, without whom, starting trends and selling Airwalks would be nearly impossible: The mason, the connector and the salesman.

The mason is the fact-finder. The trend-seeker. The information-gatherer. He/she/they search tirelessly for what's new. What's hot. What's au courant. They know all about that new African fusion restaurant in SoHo and polka-dotted Keds. And not only do they collect this information, but they pass it on. Enjoying the process of gifting useful knowledge to the world.

The connector's role should be easy to surmise. Once masons are able to get their information to a connector, all they have to do is wait for the burnt-out Blackberry to get going. Connectors know everybody. And inevitably the somebodies. 

Salesmen are those somebodies. They tell people what's cool and what's lame. They make other people want to do whatever it is they are doing.

In Peace Corps, it's very possible we'd be all three. Let me give a concrete example.

As a health volunteer, I routinely try to seek out new information concerning water purification. (Mason!) I come across SODIS* technology and think it's really cool. Now because I'm the token foreigner and a regular face in the town's health post, people know me. I tell them about this hot, new method of cleaning my drinking water and how it has minimal effects on my wallet or routine. (Connector!) I then place the clear, plastic bottles filled with water atop my own tin roof for all of the community to see, inspiring my neighbors and other passers-by to try the same. (Salesman!) This causes, of course, a chain of SODIS-practitioners to pop up all over my community.

The whole premise is that for a trend to hit the mainstream, a certain number of people have to adopt it. I thought that the The Tipping Point would offer suggestions as to how to make that happen. Unfortunately, it just gives the obvious: get the trend to the people who are going to make other people want to adopt it. No specifics, no tips or tricks.

Overall, the book wasn't bad. It was kind of cool to track where certain fads started and flopped. And as far as behavior change study, it's a good start. It's made me think about who are the masons, connectors and salesman in my own community — and how I can work with these people more hopefully to cause change. Boiling your water isn't exactly like watching Blue's Clues. But you never know. It could catch on.

*SODIS is a process of water purification that uses the sun.

What's Next?- Updated

A bit of a bummer note: My mass communications class was canceled due to lack of kids.

I guess "lack of kids" makes it sounds like there were some kids, just not enough to make a full class. That's misleading. There wasn't a single kid. Not one.

Last year, my teens were begging me to do more radio spots or skits. I thought summer would be a great time to do that, as the kids wouldn't be all that busy. So, I planned this class, told teens, slipped a fiver to the loudspeaker guy and talked the course up to anyone who breathed near me.

But it's summer. And I guess it's not what the teens really wanted to do during their break. To be honest, when I was a kid, I didn't want to spend my summers in a classroom either. You can't blame them really. Why study when you can run around with your friends and go swimming in the river?

I'll admit, I'm a little disappointed. I was really looking forward to teaching the class. But I can't make people participate. So ... I guess I'll do something else. I'll just use my extra free time to think of the next cool idea.

Quiz: How Long Have You Been a PCV?

1.) You call a meeting. And I mean you really call a meeting. You put up signs, place an announcement with the town loudspeakers and go door-to-door to spread the word. But when the time comes, no one shows up. You:
  • a.) Slump your shoulders in disappointment and defeat, but convince yourself to stay resolute and plot out to succeed the next time. You'll probably cry later.
  • b.) Feel bummed but decide to talk to a few community members to help encourage participation.
  • c.) Shrug and head back to your room to watch How I Met Your Mother.

2.) You meet someone for the first time, and they immediately call attention to how fat you are (something you've been a little sensitive about). You:
  • a.) Shoot them death glares and vow to go on a diet.
  • b.) Smile but secretly want to snap at them for being the 62nd person to say that to you this week.
  • c.) Laugh and pat your belly. Whatever, man. You are what you are.

3.) You are visiting a family in your village, and they give you a heaping plate of rice, noodles and questionable-looking meat. You:
  • a.) Smile politely and will yourself to eat as much as you can while suppressing your gag reflex.
  • b.) Thank the host graciously and polish off the plate with some difficulty.
  • c.) Compliment the host profusely, eat as much as you want (and not a grain of rice more), and then excuse yourself for a "very important meeting" – still emphasizing how delicious the meal is as you walk out the door.

4.) You and the mayor agreed to meet at 8 a.m. You confirmed and re-confirmed, but he never shows. You:
  • a.) Stay at the meeting place for 2.5 hours, feeling more depressed by every minute.
  • b.) Stay at the meeting place for 1.5 hours, all the while plotting his death.
  • c.) Stay at the meeting place for 45 minutes – just enough to finish the book you brought with you.

5.) You're eating lunch and find a hair in the rice. You:
  • a.) Lose your appetite and say you're full.
  • b.) Eat around it.
  • c.) Pull the hair out and finish eating.



RESULTS*:

If you answered with mostly A's: You're likely fresh off the boat. I'd say 0-5 months in site (max). Life is new and exciting. You are still doe-eyed and enthusiastic about pretty much everything, and you're terrified of a making cultural faux pas. Outgoing and sedulous, "no" is not a word you use often. But you're still learning, and two years can seem pretty long.

If you answered with mostly B's: You're a seasoned idealist. In site for 6-11 months, sure you've learned a few hard lessons. People are usually late and feed you too much, but you've got it pretty much under control. You're still enthusiastic and eager to please. You are learning to recognize your limits.

If you answered with mostly C's: You're jaded – you know, in a good way. You've been in site for 1 year + and know what you need to survive. You don't need stupid quizzes like this. You've got it under control.


*No promises that this will be in any way accurate.

What's Next?

Rainy season's back! And you know what that means.

Well, you probably don't. But it means summer school, sweating and zancudos.* And while last year, I was spending morning fumbling about with my community diagnostic survey and watching whole seasons of NCIS in front of my fan in the afternoons, this year I'll be kept really busy.

Summer school is starting soon. This year, I'll be teaching a class on health promotion through mass communication as part of our PEPFAR project. We'll be working with the teen promoters we trained last year in two different communities, as well as some new students who want to participate. We'll be covering how to do radio spots, posters — even making a video. And I'm really pumped. Mass comm is one of those few areas in which I feel moderately competent, and it will be fun to get a chance to incorporate it into our HIV-prevention project.

I'm mostly excited to write and shoot the video about HIV/AIDS and prevention methods. A lot of the materials we get are from Lima or other parts of Latin America. But those places aren't Tumbes, and the culture is slightly different. It will be great to have locally made resources.

Our English class is finally getting off the ground — *fingers crossed*. A really nice woman in my town has studied English up to a more advanced level, so she'll be taking on the role as facilitator/teacher, and I'll just be a support role. We'll also be charging 8 soles for the 8-week course, which will go toward materials and as a small stipend for the señora. I really don't know how this is going to work out, but I'm optimistic. I'm hoping the setup will make it more sustainable.

The first weekend in February, PCVs in Piura and Tumbes will be doing a girls retreat for teens. Each participating volunteer will bring 1-3 girl teens to a leadership camp, equipped with strong, female speakers and life skills activities. I'll be serving as a camp counselor, leading one of the groups. I've never participated in this type of camp before (there's a boys camp mid-year), so I'm a little nervous to see how it turns out. But it sounds like it will be really fun for the girls.

In between these activities/classes, we'll be continuing with our Health Homes projects with our team of health promoters. I'm hoping this year I'll have more time to go out into the campo and do house visits with the families. I spent most of last year in the district's capital, but I'd really like to venture out to the small villages only accessible by walking. Our tech trainer in Lima during training told me once that if your shoes aren't dirty, you aren't working hard enough. So I'm planning on getting mine a little muddy.

Anyway, so that's what I have planned. I'm sure things will change, come up, or fade away. Nothing really works out the way that you plan it, and in Peace Corps it's more the rule than the exception. But we'll roll with it and see where we end up. I mean, I signed up for an adventure, right? And the best things are never planned.


*zancudos means mosquitoes

Back to Peru

Hey all! I made it back to Peru OK, and in a lot better shape than I thought I'd be, thanks to your comments and e-mails. One note, in particular, helped shake me from my sulking.

A friend of mine told me to try and remember what it was like when I first got accepted to Peace Corps. How it felt when I held the thick envelope in my hands with photos of blonde 20-somethings in the Andes beside stories of planting vegetable gardens with families and primary schools. How I daydreamed about where I would go and the people I would meet. The adventures I'd have.

And how in nowhere in those daydreams was leaving early an option.

So, since I committed to stay, I'm at least going to do it without pouting. Because frankly, I'm getting a little sick of myself. I love my family and friends back home, and I miss them. But as another friend pointed out to me, I have the rest of my life to live among them. And I need to take advantage of what's in front of me.

Happy New Year, everyone!

A favor

Hey Everyone,

I need a favor. So ... I came home for 18 days to spend Christmas and New Year's with my family and some friends, and it's been amazing. A little too amazing. And now, with only three days left of my trip, I'm starting to, well, freak out a little.

You see, I love my life in Peru. I do. But coming home has made me realize how much better I fit here, and how much I miss my friends and family. It's hit me with a wave of premature homesickness. And I'm finding it a little hard to go back.

So, here's where you come in: I'm in need of a little encouragement. Some help improving my attitude so that I go back to Peru excited and cheery.

Think y'all can help?