Source: blog.thomsonreuters.com via jimmy on Pinterest
This WEF global risks grid compiled from survey respondent answers seems, at first, to be a pretty good stab at the issues on the table. Now, try and take another look without slipping into a heavily comatose state. These terms, familiar to us thanks to the daily grind of ‘very serious information,’ is the apex of mechanistic, non-sentient language, not far removed from what you might find in an IKEA shelving unit assembly manual. Impossible to decipher and skull-crushingly dull, both destined to go straight in the bin for most normal people.
It might be that we need to think about other ways to fix this planet that is on the verge of a nervous breakdown. After all, 4 years into this pile-up, haven’t we been talking about these things for ages with minimal progress? Where are the answers? The blindingly obvious truth is that the frames of reference for those snuggled up under their goose feather quilts in Davos are hopelessly inadequate for dealing with the task at hand. The required reboot is going to take a long time, a lot of muscle and a massive dose of heart. And to make it happen we are going to need to get as far away from the self-serving, nacolepsy inducing ‘serious talk’ as possible to create a groundswell that is engaged in creating a better future.
And make no mistake, the type of capitalism plugged by snowshoe-clad industry leaders is somewhat different to the one you may have read about, as this startling exchange demonstrates:
So, not much chance of anything happening there. In an attempt to go beyond the standard go-to risk soundbiteology, I thought I might make a wee risks chart that could actually resonate with peoples lives. While i don’t think it is that hot in term of language, I do hope it scratches at what might be behind the impasse we are at as well as think about some of the areas that need more attention. For although ‘serious talk’ never goes near most of the issues i’m talking about – and even less so during a CRISIS – it might be that they are precisely what’s holding us back. Anyway, here it is:
Source: i-seeglobal.com via jimmy on Pinterest
- Does all the ‘serious talk’ ignite any kind sense of purpose? If not, why does it exist/persist?
- Are the captains of industry and government anywhere closer to even part-solving this uber-crisis? And do they actually have a stake in solving it?
- What would happened to business, politics, society, you and me if we all started to think and talk about issues using these seemingly off-limits frames.
The above is just something I jotted down very quickly and no doubt lacks themes and links that you might think are missing. If so, do post any in the comments (or tweet them to me) and I will add them all and share a version with your recommendations included.