I know nothing.
"Nothing" is quite a strong claim, even if it's mathematically accurate. As I shared in this old post, it doesn't matter how many things I know because any amount is nothing compared to the infinity of possible knowledge.
Anyway, I just want to provoke a bit here.
I keep reading posts and articles where experts confidently say how things will and should be. Strong claims about how organizations should work, change or innovate if they want to. All very valid points.
But I can't help but wonder, do we really know?
Do we really know what will make an individual or organization thrive in the future? Or are we just guessing based on the past?
I quickly searched online and discovered that the oldest companies in the world - I'm talking about more than a thousand-year-old Japanese organizations - are very traditional and rooted in cultural significance. So, if you want your company to survive for centuries, it looks like you should focus on tradition more than innovation.
But is it? Did those old Japanese companies choose that way, or are they just being who they are?
When I read the stories of the pioneers who paved the way for new ways of living, working, and leading organizations, I saw that they never followed a traced path. They created their own. And more often than not, they didn't know if it would work. Some of them weren't even sure about where they were going.
So, I feel like I know nothing.
In particular about the future and how things will be.
But I'm curious and willing to hold the space for whoever wants to explore what is possible together.