Thank you, Michael Jackson, for your timeless lyrics; your title song lines are the theme of this week’s Top Trends in the World of Work.
Last week’s big trend was Facebook’s initial public offering. We speculated on its share value and said our pieces on whether or not to purchase. At the end of the day, both literally and figuratively, it turned out to more of an IP“Oh”. While there was marginal movement in stock price, what is truly “share” worthy (no pun intended of course) are the movements that Facebook’s existence have created in the way we function as a global society. This HBR article captures these shifts from what I like to call 2.0 to YOU.0tm – the human potential paradigm. Individuals are evolving from consumer to co-creator. Media’s movement is from audience to community and leadership is releasing control in favor of empowerment.
The Trend: Sidelines = side stepped. You can’t play to win from the periphery – The Engagement Evolution is here.
“Do You Remember the Time…”
There are those who tell stories and those who lead them. The former are rightful magicians of words, the latter are truly memorable; they are themselves stories that are retold at others’ campfires. They are legendary. So how do you become an epic story of sorts? This Inc.com post explains it all. It tells us memorable people stop observing
and start engaging (this is what I meant by the sideline thing above). They live beyond themselves by doing social good. They build a bridge and get over themselves; they leap off the paper and into practice by exercising fearlessness. They make seemingly worthless shenanigans their mission – like being an extra in a film just for the sake of it. Truly memorable people collect experiences.
The Trend: Cookie cutter is out and awesome is in. If you want to stand out, you’ve got to stand up… for something meaningful and when you fail. Live a story worth retelling.
“I’m Starting with the Man in the Mirror…”
Great Businesses Don’t Start With a Plan – A great article and idea you think is either brilliant or completely preposterous. Ok, so what do business plans start with then? Heart. No, it’s not crazy; it’s about removing complexity in favor of cultivating a vision or bigger goal. It’s also about putting people before a plan and dreaming big but daring in manageable amounts by starting small and scaling up. Failure is okay too – but only if it’s fast. Taste the Kool-Aid by reading the article.
The Trend: The heart and fast rule of business: have a purpose, put people first and give yourself permission to live your potential.
