Unfortunately, coming out of the pandemic and the Great Reflection (Great Resignation), we saw more and more leaders focusing on putting the genie back in the bottle instead of on what was happening in the world around, and in front of, them.
When I worked in the world of organizational change, I would encourage clients to adopt a "red is good culture." Red is good when the warning is raised early and when leaders respond in kind. The opportunities to avert a disaster, to overcome the challenge, are best early on. It's just like when we get sick. Early treatment tends to lead to better outcomes.
Most leaders have ignored the red warnings, refused to hear or see them. They have continued to focus on back to the office, dismantling DEI, shutting down ERGs, backing away from sustainability, and optimizing the quarter. That's like getting on the interstate, setting your cruise control to 80, and then just looking at the dashboard and not out the windshield.
Likewise, too many leaders are looking to artificial intelligence as the solution, as a savior of some sort. It's not. It is a catalyst. A future dominated by AI is not a foregone conclusion unless we let it be. We do have choice. AI is here. AI is not going away. AI has the potential to be a great resource. It is not a substitute for people. It has no wisdom. It has no ethics beyond what is fed into it. It feels no responsibility. Wisdom, discernment, ethical choice, responsibility and accountability are human traits. AI isn't going away. And we need human wisdom to guide its application.
The future is here. The tipping point is near. Thank you, Joseph, for continuing to raise the red warnings! And for this opportunity for me to rant, lol.
What I keep coming back to is that leaders' behaviors in the systems they're in are completely rational *in context*. When this behavior is so prevalent, it seems like something more than individual choice. These are smart people, and yet they're all doing things that aren't smart anywhere but the nearest timeframe. Love the parallel to preventive care. Ice cream feels good now, but obesity and heart disease happen later. They're scary but not immediate.
Unfortunately, coming out of the pandemic and the Great Reflection (Great Resignation), we saw more and more leaders focusing on putting the genie back in the bottle instead of on what was happening in the world around, and in front of, them.
When I worked in the world of organizational change, I would encourage clients to adopt a "red is good culture." Red is good when the warning is raised early and when leaders respond in kind. The opportunities to avert a disaster, to overcome the challenge, are best early on. It's just like when we get sick. Early treatment tends to lead to better outcomes.
Most leaders have ignored the red warnings, refused to hear or see them. They have continued to focus on back to the office, dismantling DEI, shutting down ERGs, backing away from sustainability, and optimizing the quarter. That's like getting on the interstate, setting your cruise control to 80, and then just looking at the dashboard and not out the windshield.
Likewise, too many leaders are looking to artificial intelligence as the solution, as a savior of some sort. It's not. It is a catalyst. A future dominated by AI is not a foregone conclusion unless we let it be. We do have choice. AI is here. AI is not going away. AI has the potential to be a great resource. It is not a substitute for people. It has no wisdom. It has no ethics beyond what is fed into it. It feels no responsibility. Wisdom, discernment, ethical choice, responsibility and accountability are human traits. AI isn't going away. And we need human wisdom to guide its application.
The future is here. The tipping point is near. Thank you, Joseph, for continuing to raise the red warnings! And for this opportunity for me to rant, lol.
What I keep coming back to is that leaders' behaviors in the systems they're in are completely rational *in context*. When this behavior is so prevalent, it seems like something more than individual choice. These are smart people, and yet they're all doing things that aren't smart anywhere but the nearest timeframe. Love the parallel to preventive care. Ice cream feels good now, but obesity and heart disease happen later. They're scary but not immediate.
"...work with people, not for them."
Exactly Joseph! 8 billion of them. Thanks for taking the time to write this.
We have a research project we call 'SHシFT' - it's a vision for trustless human connection.
An idea encoded as signal.
A proof that intent can align without intermediaries.
A self-verifying network that replaces performative identity with authentic resonance.
A discovery, not an invention - revealing that communication itself can operate as value.
Sounds handy right? We're seeing if the world is ready for something like that....