Gather What You Scatter

I’ve written over the last months about spreadability being like scattering seeds. The problem with only scattering is that it’s a volume game, and we can’t live in the volume game – it creates burnout, width without depth.

The question is: how do we go from a volume approach to a value approach? How do we filter what we scatter, and know what relationships to invest in?

The way we go from the volume game to the value game is to go from scattering to gathering.

If I scatter my message by sending out a tweet, those who are valuable to me are the ones that respond – they participate. I then begin the process of gathering those people to me at the level at which they are participating.

If a farmer scatters his seed, and some of it begins to yield fruit, then he doesn’t just leave the fruit out there – he gathers it.

Scattering is necessary because you can’t predict which relationships will yield what. But gathering is what converts scattering from volume activity into value investment.

Scatter. Then gather. Tend what grows.