Work, life and being human in the midst of fourth industrial transformation
Are we about to witness the death of the Central Business District?
The Central Business District of any major city in the world has fundamentally performed the same function in its local economy for the last 50 years. Is this about to change as a result of COVID-19? Are we about to see the death of the CBD, as we know it?
“You think because you understand ‘one’ you must also understand ‘two’, because one and one make two. But you must also understand ‘and’.” ― Mawlana Jalal-al-Din Rumi
Chances are, if you work in a corporate environment, you’ve heard the phrase “make the complex simple” a lot in recent times. These four unassuming words are now shared as a slogan of progress, particularly in big business, where leaders feel burdened by legacy systems, siloed teams and mountains of decision-making red tape. Turns out going digital and paperless is not the panacea for such cultural ills.
It would be easy to overlook the nine lies of this book as something akin to a myth-busters moment: all fireworks and bang, great for pop trivia. But listen to this: The best plan wins and the best companies cascade goals. People need feedback and the best people are well-rounded. People have potential and can reliably rate other people. Work-life balance matters and leadership is a thing. Yes, you read those right: they’re the lies, not the truths. Each one is exposed cleverly by the authors.
Global power without responsibility?
The last time I was in San Francisco, the city was six months away from the devastating earthquake of 1989. No one saw it coming and yet everyone expected it, as if the ‘big one’ was something to be both anticipated but never experienced. Not that 1989 was the big one in the end, but it was big enough to take dozens of lives and leave the city deeply shaken, the rebuilding effort lasting for decades. Yet in those pre-quake days, the chatter was all about possibility: the feeling that something could happen. Silicon Valley today has that same anticipatory vibe.
Is the EU one of the greatest social experiments of our times?
I love Europe – who doesn’t? But lately I have come to realise that I love Europe in the way that people more easily love things they don’t really understand. Knowing about Europe’s peppered and challenging history is one thing. Understanding its future, is another.
A book for fourth industrial travellers, this the third of Yuval Harari’s masterpieces, following his earlier works in the series: Homo Sapiens and Homos Deus.
The first book, Homos Sapiens (2014), offers a unique take on people and society, examining who we are and what makes us human through the lens of history. The second, Homo Deus (2016), examines who we are becoming in the next 100 years. A seminal work, it challenges us to follow the exponential curve of history to its illogical consequence. In contrast, 21 Lessons for the 21st Century (2018) is much more about the here and now. It looks at questions that we should be asking ourselves today.
“If the future of humanity is decided in your absence, because you are too busy feeding and clothing your kids – you and they will not be exempt from the consequences. This is very unfair; but who said history was fair?” Continue reading “Must Read: 21 Lessons for the 21st Century”
None of us can say that we have seen Indonesia, although a group of us from Australia have just returned from an immersive visit here. It was a glimpse, maybe, into a kaleidoscope on a particular week in a particular year: each tiny piece of life telling a reflected and vibrant story, together seeming to form a discernable and mesmerising pattern. Yet look again in just a second and you will see something completely different.
To generalise from such a brief insight might be foolish, yet not to describe the wonder of being there, dismissive.
This is a blog about the fourth industrial revolution, a place where tales from the edge of ‘big change’ are shared to help you through similar journeys. Here you will be provided with forewarnings of fourth industrial monsters while descriptions of wondrous far-away shores will be served with a dose of salt.
You may be a leader in business or government, a student, a teacher, a consumer, user, citizen or employee. If you’re curious about how the world is changing in the eddies of global, digital, technological and biological waters, read on.
My hope is that, in the mix of writing offered up on this blog, you will find the beginnings of a map. Perhaps also you will discover a place of shelter from which you may safely consider the terrain of ‘big change’ being brought about by the fourth industrial revolution, while refilling your cup of wonder at the mystery of its shores.
