Vision: Reinventing Work and Life
In the world we live in there is one key question: what do you want to do with your one and only precious life? Creativity and innovation are not strange habits any more. They are our new economy’s backbone and we need to develop a vision to take that on board in our work and lives.
It is not a question of age, gender, nationality, continent or education. It’s a question of ideas, knowledge, talent, attitude and the behavioural competences for a positive change. It also gives us the opportunity to reinvent ourselves as responsible global citizens. We urgently need such change makers, creative visionaries and leaders, people with substance: real and valuable knowledge and expertise in at least one relevant area that increases effectiveness. We need people with the ability to synthesise information and combine creativity with business strategy. We need creative leaders with style: an understanding of aesthetics and the power of design and design thinking. We need creative leaders with conviction: ethics, integrity and beliefs and an idea of how a better world could be. We need people with grace: the ability to listen and talk to diverse people, to understand and act within new business realities and sometimes just say ‘thank you’.
This is the new mindset we need: an informed, active, responsible and relevant citizen in our global society. The individual may be his or her own company. A personal brand, self-responsible and self-managed, in search of continuous training and lifelong learning, can help in all markets, with skills that are constantly adjusted and updated in response to on-going structural labour market changes. There are no boundaries any more. This is great if you have the right skills, the right knowledge and the right attitude to seize this opportunity. If you don’t, however, the scenario is much more complicated. The people left in traditional businesses and companies, including yours, will be given many more responsibilities. This is great. But these people will also be aware that they have more competitors waiting at the door to replace them for a lower salary. Reality shows consistently that the strategies most companies use to react to any change that is triggered by new technology means more pressure for the individual to create value.
Don’t get me wrong. I am not saying these are easy-to-solve problems and there is a simple prescription for recovery. What I am saying is that we have to start at one point, and that some day is today, which is infinitely preferable than tomorrow. And that if each of us is optimising and taking responsibility for our lives, small but positive decisions of many individuals will have a big and positive impact on our future society. This is bottom-up thinking.
The approach is simple, yet very effective. We need people who challenge the status quo, create their futures and lead their lives to help others. There is a huge demand on people with the emotional and intellectual capacity to relate and react to a complex world in a state of constant flux. We need people who combine substance and style, conviction and grace.