I’m reaching up and reaching out,
I’m reaching for the random or whatever will bewilder me…
Whatever will bewilder me
And following our will and wind…we may just go where no one’s been
We’ll ride the spiral to the end…and may just go where no one’s been
Spiral out…
Keep going, going…
-Lateralus

Why Read OnTheSpiral?

What we commonly refer to as “the economy” can be understood on three levels:

• Psychology – What do humans value, and therefore seek? Why?
• Economics – How do humans behave in the domain of activities related to seeking value?
• Technology – What mechanisms and systems are used to mediate economic behavior?

Mainstream coverage of “the economy” is myopically focused on the day to day details of one specific set of technologies – the markets and conventions that pervaded the industrial economy.  But, these specific technologies and conventions represent only only a subset of the total universe of value exchange.  The mainstream coverage has completely lost touch with the reasons why these technologies exist at all.  What are the fundamental values that real people seek to satisfy?

Now a new set of technologies is emerging that threatens to disrupt the current paradigm, but that does not mean existing knowledge can be safely ignored.  Those economic insights that describe fundamental human motivations will continue to be relevant in any technological environment.  This blog addresses psychology, economics, and technology in an effort to better understand what will persist, what will be threatened by disruption, and what emerging technologies offer the most promise of producing real human value.

My hope is that these musings help forward-looking individuals to better understand their current place in the world and to more easily plot the course of their future endeavors.

If you find yourself wrestling with these same issues then I would encourage you to connect with me via any of the services on the right and to subscribe for regular updates…