From 600+ conversations with the world’s leading thinkers.
A lot of business leaders were watching all this and seeing it as a warning call… they felt that they had to figure out how to operate better or risk losing their operating license.
More than one hundred million have been uprooted in the first eighty years of the twentieth century- millions permanently displaced as a result of revolutions, division of countries, annexations or boundary changes and other territorial arrangements. The political refugee has become the symbol of worldwide political and social change.
Backlash is sadly an intrinsic part of social progress. When oppressed people make their claim for justice, they trigger a response – a fightback by those who want to maintain the status-quo.
There was some fascinating research in Judaism which showed that as an individual moved from being orthodox, to conservative and eventually liberal.. there was a steep rise in the prevalence of drug use and drunkenness in society. It's not because the Jewish faith, at an orthodox level, derides drugs or drinking- but more that it derides letting yourself down publically.
I think that inequality within societies and between regions has become a key cause for conflict, exacerbated by rapid information dissemination, as people are now more aware of inequalities.
I feel it is the duty for every human and company to do something to either make their community, their city, their state, their country or the world a better place to live. You don't have to contribute financially, but rather your time, smile and good wishes to start the ball rolling. Time is a very valuable thing, when you contribute your time to others- you've contributed something of great value
Humans are now more numerous than any large land animal ever to walk the Earth, and the combined weight of our fleshy biomass outstrips that of most other larger animals put together, with the single exception of our own livestock.
My parents instilled in me the belief that everyone you meet can teach you something, regardless of their age, background, or education. I've always embraced every conversation as an opportunity to learn, to discover someone else's story and experiences, which are invariably different from my own.
The average person works more than five days a week… they're burned out by the weekend, they end up drinking too much alcohol, too much caffeine, they don't look after themselves, they're reacting to how they feel instead of preparing for the tasks ahead.
the most important thing is to commit your resources, whether it's money or time, to a cause that you're passionate about, whether that is a local school, supporting an environmental project, or helping poor kids in Africa
Older generations give their trust to experts and influencers based on who and what: credibility, qualifications, and institutional affiliations. Younger generations, by contrast, trust based on how someone makes them feel. And you can manipulate that incredibly effectively in 15 seconds of video: the music, the mood, the atmosphere.
We must never confuse the pipe with the content. Today, we are fascinated by the pipe and nobody thinks of what is within.