From 600+ conversations with the world’s leading thinkers.
Our nations cannot exist independently, we are intrinsically linked to the global economy, and another-nations problems will, invariably, affect us.
There's no sensible definition of people without technology. Our relationship with technology is complex and helical. As technology changes over time, so do we, and we have a situation therefore where we develop technologies, adapt, and then need new technologies to solve the side-effects of the first.
Now, the internet has democratized this, and you don't need to be wealthy to be a patron. You can help bring something to life with $10 because you like the project, not because you see it as a financial return.
In a world where everyone gets to play in social media, we're about to realise that the vast majority of people aren't good enough. Now we have an ecosystem where everyone gets out there and says they're great. The vast majority are not going to be great.
It is natural that a society would want to keep what they think works, the status quo. We are also acutely aware that technological changes alters society in unpredictable ways. It is the uncertainty associated with change—especially the fear of losing what we value—that leads to resistance to change.
I think the people who are larger or those who have more resources like to think they're the ones who have greater power… and they have benefited from that illusion.
Human beings seem like their default recreation is sedation. For some reason, getting drunk at a bar is the default in what people do for fun, which I find bizarre.
You feel like a product when you're on these things. You feel like you're selling yourself. But what's amazing is that when you get people in person, actually interacting, much of the time they don't do that same optimisation, especially if you give them just a few nudges.
You cannot fully realize your own self in isolation. It's a collective effort; your uniqueness is essentially shaped by everyone else in the world. Everyone else plays a role in sculpting your distinct identity. Individuality is essentially a community project.
The truth is that many in the clergy don't know what to do when people come to them with something that can't be prayed away! They need the right training, support and signposting skills to help.
Love it or hate it, we live in a furiously competitive world- and being just another face in the crowd simply won't help you get ahead.
We have the unusual paradox of being both highly individualistic, yet in essence social. We exist in what I describe as a collective survival exercise.