Six Degrees of Separation

The concept of “six degrees of separation” is very simple:

Six degrees of separation refers to the idea that everyone is on average approximately six steps away, by way of introduction, from any other person on Earth, so that a chain of, “a friend of a friend” statements can be made, on average, to connect any two people in six steps or fewer. – Wikipedia

This is a concept I came across originally when introduced to the website Oracle of Bacon years ago, which uses IMDB to connect anybody in the movie industry to Kevin Bacon within six “steps.” It has stuck with me way beyond the novelty of the website, bringing a new perspective to the way I view friendships and networks with others.

When you think about the people you know, and the people they are connected to, you realize how far your “reach” really is. I know that, for example, I’m a few steps away from the South Korean president, or just a few steps away from every major figure within the anime industry. And, by knowing me, you are only one more step than I from these people.

These aren’t people you just run into casually when you go about your everyday business, but business acquaintances, co-workers, or even personal friends, those you can call up and say, “‘sup?”. It’s not much of a leap to use these chains of acquaintances to meet those people and add them to your network, reducing the degree of separation to one. There’s nothing wrong with meeting new friends through your current circle of friends, as long as you don’t act like you’re using them to meet others. Naturally, this can lead to new opportunities, and of course, new connections. Rather than casually hanging out with friends for the sake of hanging out, really get to know them, and their friends as well.

In the end, it’s a realization of how small this world of ours really is, and more importantly, how connected we all are. This is why communication is so important. The networks you build and maintain play a major role in what you can start and accomplish on a personal level. So talk to people. Don’t be afraid to exchange contact info, make new friends, and expand your network. You’ll be amazed at who you can reach. It’s never too late to start, so go out there and get to know new people.