Sep 29, 2023

Our AI experiments are blossoming day by day. If you haven't been following it, read this intro -- and for more nuances, a more recent interview on AI + Inner Transformation.

A prominent author sincerely asked us a common question: Will ServiceSpace make money from their products?

Here was our response:

The simple answer is -- never. In fact, even if others wanted to make money on our platform, it would be impossible. :) 

Back in 1999, ServiceSpace started in response to the greed narrative of Silicon Valley. Many on the founding team were college kids conditioned to create dot-coms (lot of our peers indeed created household brands); but we were beating to a different drum -- here's an SF Weekly article from 2001 that chronicales this counter-culture approach. We had three principles: be volunteer-run, don't fundraising, think small. It was radically opposite of the "big money, big staff, big change" narrative. Take a look at this 2007 document articulating some of the power behind this: Tao of ServiceSpace (CharityFocus was our previous name) and this TedX talk: Designing for Generosity

Fast forward 25 years, and ServiceSpace is now host to half a million visitors to its sites everyday; every year, we send out 70 million emails; we host hundreds of in-person and virtual events with some of the most prominent folks on the planet. Yet, the ecosystem sniffs out all remnants of a transactional mindset -- no solicitation, no advertising, never even a "buy this" link (even for our beloved author friends). Initially, it seems naive, but after decades of experience, the ServiceSpace journey is creating a new narrative beyond the power of 3M's of market, media and military -- where money gives way to alternate forms of wealth; broadcast gives way to "deepcast" of many-to-many networks; leadership gives way to "laddership". In this second term, Obama invited us to offer policy recommendations to unlock similarly uncommon ripples for America.

That leads to an inevitable question -- so then how do you pay the bills? :) Consider the Buddha's example of needing to feed his thousands of monks daily. He could've asked the King to feed his monks (philanthropy), or asked an entrepreneur to create a transactional framework (business) to cover their needs, but instead, he asked them to go on alms rounds. ServiceSpace experience shows that there were ample good reasons for Buddha to adopt that approach. :)  If you have delivered enough value, there's no stopping the flow of gratitude from the web of those relationships; and if not, all schemes to manipulate the outcomes will invariably lead to immediate or downstream violence. 

The Hindu sacred text, Bhagwad Gita, offers a simple practice: renounce all outcomes. After collectively experimenting with releasing transactions, it's easy to see the wisdom of that approach. You start swimming in the abundance of non-financial wealth, resting in the ripples that span much wider arcs of existence, and smiling at ongoing-wow of an emergence that is powered by a cosmic intelligence.