Have you ever noticed that some people seem to make friends wherever they go? They know everyone, have been everywhere and have acquaintances in every social situation they may encounter. These people are what Malcolm Gladwell calls "connectors - special people with a gift of bringing the world together."
If we examine our social circles we will find in reality that they are not circles at all - they are pyramids, with one name at the top who connects all the rest. When I think about my own social circle of musician friends, I find that one name stands out above the rest. It was this person who connected me to everyone else. Because of this person, I recently played with a new orchestra in Stratford for a conductor who I had played for in university. During rehearsals, I also realized that everyone there had some connection to my past life - some were from my hometown of Woodstock, some were from my university days in London and others were musicians I play with currently in Waterloo in different freelance situations. "It's a small world after all."
Amazingly enough, I even experienced a connection to Malcolm Gladwell just before my concert on Saturday night. While talking to a friend who is a vice-principal and who also books musicians for the Kodaly festival, he mentioned a violinist who wants to join our group, a principal who recently moved into our area and who is the brother of Malcolm Gladwell. Recently, he was able to arrange for Gladwell to speak at a system leader's meeting.
Coincidence or connections, we've all experienced first-hand situations such as these. As Gladwell points out, the theory of six degrees of separation has been proven time and time again. So, examine your social pyramid. Who is at the top and has made it possible for you to meet people and become part of a circle of friends or acquaintances? Even Facebook and Twitter show us the power of social networks and it is often a small group of people who connect us to all the rest.
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