In TED talks Seth Godin rehearses a short history of change. He describes the evolution of our frameworks.

We have seen the lever of change as..

1. factories and assembly line (machine)
2. big enough voice (TV + push + authority)
3. leadership (influence)
and now..

4. tribes - connecting people and ideas (networks of people who share purpose)

Godin says,

“You don’t need everyone. What Kevin Kelley has taught us is you just need, I don’t know, a thousand true fans…

“The Beatles did not invent teenagers. They merely decided to lead them. That most movements, most leadership that we’re doing is about finding a group that’s disconnected but already has a yearning. Not persuading people to want something they don’t have yet.

“When Diane Hatz worked on The Meatrix, her video that spread all across the internet about the way farm animals are treated, she didn’t invent the idea of being a vegan. She didn’t invent the idea of caring about this issue. But she helped organize people, and helped turn it into a movement.

“Hugo Chavez did not invent the disaffected middle and lower class of Venezuela. He merely led them.

“Bob Marley did not invent Rastafarians. He just stepped up and said, “Follow me.”

“Derek Sivers invented CD Baby. Which allowed independent musicians to have a place to sell their music without selling out to the man. To have place to take the mission they already wanted to go to, and connect with each other.

“What all these people have in common is that they are heretics. That heretics look at the status quo and say, This will not stand. I can’t abide this status quo. I am willing to stand up and be counted and move things forward. I see what the status quo is. I don’t like it. That instead of looking at all the little rules and following each one of them, that instead of being what I call a sheepwalker, somebody who’s half asleep, following instructions, keeping their head down, fitting in, every once in a while someone stands up and says, “Not me.” Someone stands up and says, “This one is important. We need to organize around it.” And not everyone will. But you don’t need everyone. You just need a few people who will look at the rules, realize they make no sense, and realize how much they want to be connected. “