Reading his essay collection of ten years “MINDFIRE” I’ve been mostly amused by Scott Berkun’s chapter “BOOK SMARTS VS STREET SMARTS” – he writes there for example: “To be street smart means you have situational awareness… Street smarts means you put yourself at risk and survived.” Yes, Scott seems to be both: able to sit and read patiently focused on books and paper only – and on the other hand filled up with enough testosterone and energy, passion and courage, to change the life outside on the streets or inside the complex and often hidden hierarchy of bureau-teams. If you want to be successful supporting your own creativity and the power of a team as well, step by step like an engineer without fear to make a failure: then you need both attitudes: enjoying solitude to think it over and the humor and self-reliance to choose the battles you want to win. A book like a fresh wind.
P.S.:
I tried to illustrate the topic STREET SMARTS metaphorically with two portraits of cats, making their daily cool patrol through the streets …
STREET SMART (1):
title=”A spasso per Villanova (Strolling around Villanova)” – photo by Gufoblu = Sergio Pani, kindly sent to my group BLOG IT! – click on the picture to enter his galleries on Flickr.com
P.S.: I read, like Scott Berkun, Montaigne and Voltaire, Russell and Emerson, Socrates or Csikszentmihalyi, and many more – and I wrote a book (in German) about the perseverance of the philosophers (I still like Schopenhauer and Nietzsche, Kierkegaard or Adorno); so (psychology and philosophy in my mind) I enjoyed the book very much
http://www.amazon.com/Mindfire-Big-Ideas-Curious-Minds/dp/0983873100
related:
http://www.scottberkun.com
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frizztext for amazon.com
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STREET SMART (2):
title=”Horace & Mongo” – photo by Jimmy Legs, kindly sent to my group BLOG IT! – click on the picture to enter his galleries on Flickr.com
Flickr Comments 
Amazing pictures!
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Thanks a lot for having published my photo in your nice Blog.
Best regards from Sardinia Island – Italy
Gufoblu aka Sergio Pani 🙂
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ciao Sergio Pani,
I like your humor:
mille grazie for sending to my group BLOG IT!
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This is great post in many ways, you know I love cats and I am so glad to read more from Scott berkun… Thank you dear, have a nice weekend, love, nia
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Good shots Greets from holland
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The cats certainly illustrate street smarts. I too love Kierkegaard–which might be a good name for a cat.
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Love the B&W. Reminds me a bit of the character Puss in Boots.
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CATS the epitome of STREET SMARTS!! “If you want to be successful supporting your own creativity and the power of a team … then you need both attitudes: enjoying solitude to think it over and the humor and self-reliance to choose the battles you want to win.” Your last phrase caught my attention for its wording and its truth!! thank you, Alexandra
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In stride……
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Nothing more street smart than a cat 😉
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There was a cat abandoned in a brown fill area next to the school i work at.
He was street smart, he had a shelter and came out when the kids were going and coming from school asking for food. Just before winter when it can drop to -20oC I called the cat shelter because i didn’t think his street smarts would have let him survive our huge temperature drop.
I do miss him on my walk to work and wonder where he is now.
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Love the images — great choice!
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Love the cat photos…
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What cat cool-ness! I’m sure Emily D has metaphorical strategies to keep you on your creatives toes daily, so you too, right, have street smart cool-ness 🙂
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I have to admit, Allyson, I’m learning a lot by my cat Emily:
https://flickrcomments.wordpress.com/2013/03/17/cats-fit-in-boxes/
never ignore a good hiding place …
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Awww! I love the photos! Great illustration idea!
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I love the discussion and the photos. Most especially the one of the cat strolling in Villanova.
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Yes, there are many cats that need to have street smarts.
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You did a wonderful job of connecting Scott’s book with your beautiful photo. Nice writeup. Love it. 🙂
Eliz
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glad to hear from you after a long time – I hope you are O.K.?
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I will be… TY for staying in touch. Much appreciated and glad to see your excellent photos again. 🙂
{{hugs}}
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