YOU – the Global Thought Leader
At some time in our childhood we have all been to a state fair or carnival and experienced the Tilt-A-Whirl, the ride with seven freely spinning cars swirling rapidly around a rotating platform. In his patent application, Herbert Sellner described the objective of his new ride, "… to provide amusement apparatus wherein the riders will be moved in general through an orbit and will unexpectedly swing, snap from side to side or rotate without in any way being able to figure what movement may next take place in the car." When I read this description, it was pretty clear that we are all on this ride – and we aren’t at Disney World! This is just life in 2017 on planet Earth. We cannot anticipate job security, we cannot anticipate the weather, we cannot anticipate stable governments (either public or private), we cannot anticipate the safety of our investments - we really can’t anticipate anything these days. We are definitely along for the ride and I, for one, want to get off and on to more stable ground.
So, how do we do this? By rolling up our sleeves and pulling together as a team. There is strength in numbers and we need the muscle and brainpower of everyone to solve our economic and social problems. The voice of collective wisdom will open the doors to solutions that will enable us to sail into calm waters. The key just might be to solicit the input of the faceless and voiceless millions who are not heard - either because of their socioeconomic circumstances, their gender, their religion or a multitude of other pitiful excuses used in the past. This is the age of connectivity and the internet where those that had no voice can now step forward and put their two cents in and it’s up to each of us to see that they are given the tools and education they need to participate. There is no corner on the market for global thought leaders. We are all global thought leaders and we will benefit from everyone’s words, thoughts and creativity.
Not everyone has time to be an entrepreneur, it’s an all-consuming task and it takes a certain personality to jump into the fray exposed and vulnerable to financial roadblocks and market criticism. Though we admire social entrepreneurs for their interest in making the world a better place, we have long looked at the bottom line as the primary indicator and there are those whose views are still myopic. But, our changemakers need you, your words of encouragement, your financial support, your market intelligence and your connections. Most importantly, they need you to help hold the vision with them and be their cheerleaders, their advocates and their teammates. And, we need them to light the path. Everyone has a role in this new world. I hope that you will engage if you are not participating, even if you think you are short on time or financial resources. After all, if we don’t move the needle, who will?
Copyright © 2017 Linda L. Lattimore All Rights Reserved