The Right Brain
We live in a globalized, weightless, right-brained economy.
Those who understand the needs of today's globalized workplace
will be better situated to sail through transitions, find meaningful
work and be more effective in existing organizations.
Rolf Jensen, Chief Imagination Officer (CIO) of the Dream Company talks of today’s dream society - or experience economy. He says “We are in the twilight of a society based on data. As information and intelligence become the domain of computers, society will place more value on the one human ability that cannot be automated: emotion.”
According to Jensen there are six important
aspects to this mega trend.
- The market for adventure.
- The market for love and belonging (togetherness).
- The care market: To care and be cared for.
- The who-am-I market: Defining ourselves.
- The market for peace of mind: Feeling safe and secure.
- The market for convictions: Having opportunities to demonstrate them.
Before Jensen, the futurist John Naisbitt said “The more high technology around us, the more the need for human touch.” Others have pointed out this as well for example Daniel Pink and Harry S. Dent, here and here.
Only a human touch will work with human needs. Globalization and higher standards of living in the West has meant that there is a growing market in right brain concepts.
The new economy is increasingly right brain in the sense that it emphasizes human creativity, meaning and purpose. Left Brain Economics is characterized by the rational, industrial, and technological economy - what organization theorists would label 'Fordism'. Let the machines take over these routined, automated tasks. The Right Brain Economy is postmodern, customized, hyper-niched and globalized. Having a personality matters more than ever. We have the option of extricating ourselves as cogs in the machine.
Returning cross-cultural workers in particular, have little to fear here. Many of the key skills needed today are the very ones they've been employing to varying degrees.
Peopleness
This is what I consider the most central skill of all today. The
narrower
phrase would be ‘people acumen’, which is having insight
into people – getting along with them, sizing and selecting the right
ones for organizational
goals. Peopleness
is:
- Being flexible within so much diversity. It means being open and tolerant. It’s harder to have conclusive attitudes in today’s dynamic world. Increasingly in the work place we are being exposed to different work values, work ethics, etc. Let's be clear on what matters most - people.
- Being sensitive and caring for the many needs of people and cultures. This includes discussions of meaning and purpose at deep levels as we work together.
- Becoming even better
at communicating. It might be more accurate to
talk about the communication
age rather than information age (Peter
Drucker would probably agree).
Globalization means that we literally share the same information / cultural space. Traditional boundaries of space and time mean less today. Would you recognize the voice of Nelson Mandela? Of course you would. Have you ever met him? Probably not. This is Globalization. For another example of remote cultures coming to our cities, see Toronto has over 145 languages.
A globalizing and post-modern world means increasing change and uncertainty. But along with this comes increasing opportunity and spiritual hunger. Leaders in the business world today see people, relationships and culture as the three key global assets to be mobilized.
See
also
The Essence of Globalization
The Nature of
Jobs today
Top Skills for today
For the full program details and cost, see my 4 Phase Program
Email me about scheduling a free 1 hour consultation.