That is where I first learned about this starfish concept. I like this phrase in their text:
Size matters. There is power in being small.

You know, people may not realize it from our discussions on MLPF, but I’m actually a huge believer in the strength of weak ties. My point, and one that doesn’t come across here, is that merely having an electronic connection in LinkedIn or MySpace, or being members of the same discussion list, doesn’t constitute a “tie”, i.e., a relationship. It’s one common connection point on which to build a relationship, but it’s not a relationship.

As Auren said, “Everyone’s interesting for at least an hour.” But how many people have spent even an hour interacting with each and every one of their LinkedIn connections? Thomas Power has had one-hour face-to-face meetings with thousands of Ecademy members. He’s in a unique position to do that — most typical businesspeople simply can’t do that as a practical matter.

Of course, the reality is that relationship strength is a spectrum. Anyone can draw a line somewhere in a spectrum and say “there are two categories”. I could just as easily say, “There’s family, and then everyone else.” And relationships are multi-dimensional — there’s the level of intimacy, the level of bonding, the level of trust, etc., and they may not all be the same. It’s just not that simple, and systems like LinkedIn that basically force us to draw an arbitrary line somewhere in that spectrum create cognitive dissonance for us. On the other hand, make a system that’s as complex as human relationships and it will be impossible to maintain.

When Auren speaks I for one listen very closely.