As the problems we face in our hyper-fast world seem to sometime (oftentimes?) spin out of control, it has occurred to me that it becomes difficult to not only recognize, but also prioritize actions and solutions. How do we recognize a problem, how does it get brought to the forefront of public to the point of awareness, and how do we as a society act or react to the issue? Many, many issues are shaped by the media and what is happening in the 24-hour news cycle. And depending on which outlet you watch or which fish wrap you read, your awareness and priorities will also be different. So we're all over the map on awareness and actions. On how to solve problems.
As I've thought about this lately, I've not categorized it in terms of geography, and how things can be different in different places. Oh, of course a big problem in the Western world may not be an issue in another part of the world. And vice versa. All the issues of the day are viewed through the lens that we are most used to. That lens is usually colored by geopolitics. But then along comes an article that really, at least for me, is impactful and stirs some deeper thinking on these issues. I'm not generally a fan of Tom Friedman, but his column in the NYT yesterday hit me between the eyes.
You can check it out here.
I'm not enthralled by the title..."Hilary, Jeb, Facebook, and Disorder". But he makes, again at least for me, some really fundamental points that I've not thought about in the particular way that he addresses them. When I started reading I thought it was going to be another screed on how Hilary is the chosen one and the cavemen on the other side don't really stand a chance because they aren't as hip as her. But no...this was about something entirely different.
His thesis is that our leaders, and particularly our next leaders, have to start talking about how the issues of the day impact us. They have to start by being aware of them. To illustrate he quotes this mind-blowing paragraph...
"...my candidate for best lead paragraph on a news article so far this year goes to Tom Goodwin, an executive at Havas Media, whose essay March 3 on Techcrunch.com began: “Uber, the world’s largest taxi company, owns no vehicles. Facebook, the world’s most popular media owner, creates no content. Alibaba, the most valuable retailer, has no inventory. And Airbnb, the world’s largest accommodation provider, owns no real estate. Something interesting is happening.”
WOW! Think about that paragraph. All these things have happened and the populace has generally not even been aware of them. They just are. And he goes on to say that a fundamental requirement for leadership in the 21st century is to recognize issues/problems/opportunities and then set priorities.
When he says "This is a result of the exponential growth in computing power, storage, networking, sensors and software generation and interoperability, which is allowing us to both gather massive amounts of data and apply software to that data to see patterns at a speed and scope unknown before", he hits the nail on the head. But it's also about how all this impacts us in the Western world and how it doesn't (or is different/nonexistent) in other parts of the world.
The technical issues are interesting. In fact they are fascinating. They could and will be discussed and dissected endlessly as we move forward. And they will dramatically and rapidly alter our lives. But there is an impact on our geopolitics emerging as we go forward and
most don't see it coming!
"On geopolitics, we still have great power rivalries, but the most relevant divide in the world will no longer be East-West, capitalist-communist. It will be the World of Order versus the World of Disorder, as environmental, sectarian and economic pressures are pulverizing weak and failed states. Every day now you read about people fleeing the World of Disorder for the World of Order."
The World of Order vs the World of Disorder! Isn't that what we are seeing more of everyday and is how we are thinking about the world? For me at least, this is a bit of an epiphany. It will impact not only our technical capabilities, but how we treat each other. How we relate to the rest of the world. How we cross not only geopolitical borders but also Order vs Disorder borders. How we can or whether we can impact positively across these unknown borders. Who are the leaders who can see this divide and lead us to the future? Here's his last paragraph,
"So, to paraphrase Trotsky once more: Our presidential candidates may not be interested in talking seriously about the future yet, but the future will be interested in talking to them."
These and so many other questions will emerge as our rapidly evolving technology and capabilities take us to new places. They are issues that will be so important for all of us as we move further into the 21st century. And that will be especially true for my children and grandchildren. Scary, energizing, inspiring, worried...all these things come to mind. Think about all this as you start to evaluate the field for our Presidential election. Of course, if you're a Dem there's no field to evaluate. There will only be a coronation. But if you're on the other side, make sure you're thinking about who can embrace some of these hugely challenging issues, make sense of them, relate them to the common person, and have the skill and patience to navigate them. And have the intelligence to listen to as many smart, experienced, and logical people as possible to assist in him or her. But no matter what...I think we're pretty close to the brave new world.
