What’s world class mean to you?
I think most of us see world class as being of the highest ranking in the world. This might be size, skill, beauty, popularity, power, brutality, endurance, bravery, you name it. But what if you are a world class individual? Will the world care?
There are interesting perspectives within our grasp. I just finished reading a book by Nicco Mele called the “End of Big: How the Digital Revolution Makes David the New Goliath“. The introductory chapter leaves me frustrated because Nicco Mele positions himself as an influential nerd and seems to overstate the chaos that can evolve out of the end of Big. But the book gets interesting. It’s well worth a read and contemplation. Near the end of the book. Mele suggests some ways to navigate through the end of Big. Here are his suggestions:
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In revising institutions, focus on making them more amenable and responsive to individuals.
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Demand serious, thoughtful, informed leadership.
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Develop new processes and approaches to bring together the networked, individual power of radical connectivity and the direction-setting inspirational leadership necessary for change.
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Imagine in ever-finer detail what future institutions will look like.
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We must strengthen and reimagine local community.
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Take control of the Even Bigger platforms – Facebook, Google, and Twitter – that today constitute our digital commons.
My writing in Tunnel Vision, Toward Improving Canada, and Village Café focuses on the above points 1, 3, and 5. Points 2 and 4 don’t figure prominently in my writing. Point 6 doesn’t figure at all because I didn’t see it as much of a problem. Mele’s book has heightened my attention to the potential for a new Big problem. However, perhaps naively, I assume competitors will counter the worst offences of the Big digital commons.
Reverberations around the world suggest that individuals can make a difference. Please accept this invitation to be a world class individual and, leading by example, be an inspiration for the villagers in your midst.