What I would admit to being, however, is pro-cognitive.
Case in point:
Scott is bang-on to say "globally" - there're moves being made in the same direction right now in New Zealand and Britain, just to name two other jurisdictions.
If you peruse my blog, you'll know that I have discussed MCIT, online tools and a third emerging piece of the puzzle (the inclusion of smartphone Apps) before. If I've gotten these bits right, what else might I have landed on?
Of course, all of these trend lines were in place before I found them - at most, I get to help connect the dots between likely partners. The process of connecting those dots is what helps me map out emerging patterns and get a general sense of directions they are likely leading in. I don't get 'em all right, but my batting average is not that bad.
So - how do I do it? It's easy, really; I do the reverse of what I am constantly told is the formula for success.
We are constantly told that we need to keep our messages simple and to focus narrowly on what we know clients want and familiar territory we know we can sell confidently. Don't worry about what others are doing, unless it takes away from your opportunities; stay functionally fixed on your mandate and don't get distracted. Know what you are about and what you aren't and leave it at that.
I don't do any of this. I start with why - it's knowing why I'm motivated to work in this space that informs everything I do. My goal is a shared destination, a conscious society that thinks laterally, thinks ahead and lives sustainably. I can't get there on my own - I don't know the way.
By constantly challenging myself, pushing the boundaries of my expertise and connecting dots between people and projects, I'm adding value to others as we fill in the map, together.
This is a terrible strategy to pursue if you want to make a million bucks by the time you turn fifty. If, on the other hand, you have any interest in what the world will look like fifty years from now and want to shape it, there's really no other way.
UPDATE 24 March 2014: I wish people could see this article the way I see it. Or perhaps better wording would be that I wish people could see this when I see it.
UPDATE 24 March 2014: I wish people could see this article the way I see it. Or perhaps better wording would be that I wish people could see this when I see it.
Transparency is in the headlines again, circling towards specific examples - including staff. Those who may have happily coasted by talking the talk are being forced to either walk the walk or walk the plank. They should have seen this a mile away, but as it stands I don't know if the people in a position to do something about this and protect their own fortunes even recognize their is a pattern.
Recently, I was diagnosed as being on the Asperberger's spectrum (to which I replied, "they've take Asberger's off of the DSM-5, so maybe you want to reframe that" - arguably proving their point). Let's be honest - that's a pretty bad-ass diagnosis to have, as it's a bit like being branded a genius.
Whereas you might think of a high-functioning autistic person being a whiz at physics, though, I'd like to think my pattern-recognition talents lie more in the social sphere. There's an irony in this - autism has the same root origin as auto-pilot or auto-nomic, as it "does its own thing", implying social withdrawal.
I have no interest in social withdrawal - I thrive on interaction with people. There's just so much to learn and absorb from them and to facilitate between them. I do, however, find that others will often withdraw from me; I can be pretty intense. Moths may be drawn to flame, but people recoil from the sun.
Either way, the healthy tension between being immersed and being disengaged allows for some interesting perspectives. There's value in that, no?
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