Neither revolution nor reformation can ultimately change a society. Rather you must tell a new powerful tale. One so persuasive that it sweeps away the old myths and becomes the preferred story. One so inclusive that it gathers all the bits of our past and our present into a coherent whole. One that even shines some light into our future so that we can take the next step. If you want to change a society, then you have to tell an alternative story.
[ via Ivan Illich ]
“For the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: ‘If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?’ And whenever the answer has been ‘No’ for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.”
[ Steve Jobs, co-founder and CEO of Apple via thedailylove.com ]
Obama didn’t win the election. His supporters did. And only his supporters–not Obama–can bring the change he promised. Don’t quit now.
I am intrigued by a post that has garnered quite a discussion over at Chris Anderson’s blog on The Long Tail:
The short head will be human, the fat middle social and the long tail algorithmic.
[ via The Long Tail ]
We are running directly into a future where relationships will be more valuable than information. In business, it doesn’t matter what you know, it matters who you know. In the arts, your product isn’t worth anything, but interaction with your audience is priceless. In education, knowledge is a click away, but the classroom is a unique space where interaction and innovation can flourish.
How are you deriving and investing value from/in your relationships?
If you know me at all, you know that I believe telling alternative stories will change the world faster than violence or politics.
It is in this spirit that I suggest the person who gives the speech in the video below would serve the world better from a grassroots level, than a political one.
This coincides with a comment by my friend Mark on Emergingleadersnetwork.org that has been making me think:
It strikes me that “alternative” was once synonymous for “non-commercial” in the same way “Christian” was synonymous with “contra-empire” in the first couple centuries. Both were co-opted – alas, alt barely had a chance to exist before getting sucked into the market. Theres a downside and an upside to this, the downside being obvious (a total 180 on the mission), but the upside being wider distribution of the “alt” or “Christian” message.
I seem to recall Augustine wrestling with this in “City of God,” expressing some guilt for Christianity’s alignment with Constantinople/Rome but also some hope for its propagation beyond the limited sphere it occupied at that time.
I do believe that we can change society for the better. I do not believe these changes can or will come from a government, rather from people with broken hearts.