Surviving and Thriving in Deeply Weird World

ULA FallWorkshop | September 29, 2017 | Peter Bromberg | peterbromberg.com

World population: 7,600,000,000
Ever Lived: 108,000,000,000 (ish)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nationallibrarynz_commons/3326203787/sizes/z/in/photostream/ (no known copyright)

David:Too much, there's too much
*#%ing perspective now.
Nigel: It really puts perspective on
things, though, doesn't it?

“I think that the future, even
10 or 20 years out, is going
to get deeply weird.
It’s going to challenge us,
as a species, in ways that
we’ve not had to confront
in our long evolution. ”
- Michael Edson, Sept 6, 2011
Co-founder at Museum for the United Nations – U.N. Live
Formerly: Director of Web and New Media Strategy Smithsonian Institution

Change
the absolutely crazy
historically unprecedented
accelerating pace of
or…

"I think that when I was first
reading science fiction,
which would have been in
the late 1950's, the
consensual 'now' was
3 or 4 years long, and with
3 or 4 years of relatively
unchanging 'now' a writer of
science fiction had the space
in which to erect something.

“With that long a 'now' you
could build a relatively big
structure before that now
hauled itself into the future
that made your big structure
obsolete.
“But today, now can feel like
a news cycle. It's like the
now is too narrow to allow for
that big a construct.

“We have too many
cards in play to
casually erect
believable futures”
- William Gibson

believable futures
Screen shots from NYTimes Personal Tech update 9/28/17
https://www.nytimes.com/newsletters/2017/09/28/person
al-tech?nlid=46829825

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rachel_s/2906095941/

It all happened so fast…
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rachel_s/2906095941/

Exponential Pace of Change
1.5 mill yrs lever, wedge
500,000 yrs control of fire
50,000 yrs bow & arrow
5,000 years wheel and axle; sail
500 years printing press , rifle
80-100 years Electricity, Automobiles, Commercial Flight
60-80 years Solid State Transistors, Satellites
35-50 years Space Travel,VCR, Micro-processor IBM Home PC,
25-34 years Windows / Mac, CDs, GPS, Pentium, Powerpoint,
20-25 years World Wide Web.Browsing BM Simon PDA , Email
13-19 years iPod, Netflix,Tivo, Sirius,Wikipedia
10 -13 years WiFi, Broadband, Blogging, Skype, Pandora
6-10 years iPhone, Android, App Stores, Geolocation
< 6 years Smartphones, SMS,Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat
< 3-5 years Tablets, Cloud,Wearables, AirBnB, Uber/Lyft, Applepay
AMAZON-APPLE-GOOGLE-FACEBOOK

“That’s the kind of change
we’re experiencing now:
exponential, fast,
continuous; global in scale,
accelerating in speed, and
enormous in scope.

“Anyone [reading this] has
already seen more of this
change in their lifetime—of
broader scope, larger scale,
and faster speed—than our
ancestors saw in hundreds,
thousands, or even tens of
thousands of years.

“And even though this kind
of change is happening all
around us, every day,
we seem as unprepared to
recognize and harness it—
to discuss, manage, and
shape it.

“And we’re just
getting started—
just beginning to
chart the surface of
what will come. ”
-Michael Edson
April 6,2017,“Forward to the Age of Scale”
(Post on Medium)
https://medium.com/@mpedson/forward-to-the-age-of-scale-3638dfd17f4a

Best Comedy 2014
Transparent
(Amazon)
Best Comedy
2009
30 Rock
(NBC)

Best Drama 2014
Breaking Bad
(FX)
Best Drama 2017
Handmaid’s Tale
(Hulu)

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/digital-disruption-has-already-happened-do-you-want-lion-martin-hill
It’s all about the platform

The pace of change is accelerating
and the progression is exponential.
Indeed … we find not just simple
exponential growth, but “double”
exponential growth, meaning that
the rate of exponential growth is
itself growing exponentially.
- Ray Kurzweil, Author, Inventor, Futurist
http://www.kurzweilai.net/the-law-of-accelerating-returns

Thoughts on Change
“Everything’s amazing and nobody’s happy”
-Louis CK
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8LaT5Iiwo4

“Is the speed of light to slow for you?”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8LaT5Iiwo4
Thoughts on Change

Unfreeze/Change/Refreeze
www.flickr.com/photos/circulating/3251962169 Kurt Lewin

“And you
knooooow
something is
happening here
but you don’t
know what it is…
Do you,
Mr. Jones?”
And it sounds… like this

Permanent Whitewater
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nukeit1/244167779/

“Prediction is very difficult,
especially if it’s about the future.”
- Niels Bohr

In a Permanent Whitewater…
What doesn’t change?
Outcomes,Values, and Mission
What changes?
Tools, Methods, and Techniques

Welcome to
Permanent BETA
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kl/3238847578/
“No number of anticipatory
mechanisms can forestall the
next surprising, novel wave."
- Peter Vaill

ALA Center for the Future of Libraries, "Read for Later Update" September 25, 2017

www.flickr.com/photos/kenstein/2948639488
• Learning mindset
• Playful attitude
• Experimentation
• Adaptability
• Continual Attention
• Human Centered
• Time/Attention
Management
How to dance with
Permanent BETA

Compound Time
a small investment that yields large
returns over time.
From: https://medium.com/the-mission/why-successful-people-spend-10-hours-a-week-on-compound-time-79d64d8132a8
And: https://flipboard.com/@flipboard/-successful-people-from-warren-buffett-t/f-151ad0f966%2Fbusinessinsider.com

Compound Time Activities
• Journal
• Nap/Sleep
• Walk
• Read
• Conversation
• Experiment
From: https://medium.com/the-mission/why-successful-people-spend-10-hours-a-week-on-compound-time-79d64d8132a8
And: https://flipboard.com/@flipboard/-successful-people-from-warren-buffett-t/f-151ad0f966%2Fbusinessinsider.com

Journal
Flickr user: anyvanille/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/71917754@N04/6634719063/ (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Naps and Sleep
Library of Congress. No known license:: http://www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/2162949251 /

Exercise
Courtesy Flickr user kevin dooley(CC BY 2.0) http://www.flickr.com/photos/12836528@N00/2811161524/

A lot of exercise isn’t as important
as regular exercise.
You don’t need to be a gym rat to reap the
benefits.The first 20 minutes of moving
around provides most of the health benefits.
and also helps keep the mood elevated.
Exercise is something
completely in your control and one of the
top 3 things you can do to ensure you have
the physical, mental, & emotional energy to
be healthy and effective.

1. What do you want?
2. What have you tried?
3. What was the result?
4. What else can you do?
5. What WILL you do?
Modified from Steve and Jill Morris’ Leadership Simple
Try something
See what happens

Image Courtesy Flickr User Choubistar (CC BY-SA 2.0) https://www.flickr.com/photos/67158364@N00/144769275

Eat Well
(and often)
Courtesy of Flickr user Mike_tn (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) http://www.flickr.com/photos/beginasyouare/290953222/sizes/o/in/photostream

Flickr user: mightyboybrian/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/97058136@N00/4321314167 (CC BY-NC 2.0)
Paying attention
in a particular way
on purpose
in the present moment
nonjudgmentally

Repeated studies have
demonstrated
that meditation can
rewire how the brain
responds to stress.
-Wired Magazine
-www.wired.com/business/2013/06/meditation-mindfulness-silicon-valley/
Courtesy of Flickr x-ray delta one (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) http://www.flickr.com/photos/x-ray_delta_one/5868803382

Six weeks, 20 minutes a day…
• Improves ability to focus our attention
• Reduces stress (quiets the limbic system)
• Improves creativity (stimulates neocortex)
• Reduces reactivity
• Increases resilience
• Improves emotional/social intelligence
• Softens cognitive rigidity
• Decreases rumination
• Ability to overcome learned habits
That’s why Disney, General Mills, Google, Apple, Prentice Hall,Time
Warner, Proctor and Gamble, Salt Lake County, etc, etc. promote
mindfulness mediation in the workplace.

Flickr user: mightyboybrian/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/97058136@N00/4321314167 (CC BY-NC 2.0)
http://marc.ucla.edu/mindful-meditations
Paying attention
in a particular way
on purpose
nonjudgmentally
Download Guided Mediations at:
http://marc.ucla.edu/body.cfm?id=22

“The greatest
weapon we have
against stress is to
choose one thought
over another.”
-Beardy Bearderson
(AKA William James)

Where are attention goes, our energy goes
Where our energy goes, action follows
Where actions are taken, results follow

Experience is not
what happens
to you.
It is what you
do with what
happens
to you.
- Aldous Huxley
www.flickr.com/photos/amandafrice/3046548439/

Photo: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/contributors/dr-mary-catherine-bateson/headshot.jpg
“Take an Improv Class”

“While many creative people in Hollywood are floundering
in the media sea change, Poehler is surfing.
"It all goes back to improv," she says. "It’s
all about flexibility, about not knowing what’s going
to happen next. You have to listen and stay in
the moment.You have to play with people who
will support you. You have to get comfortable
with being uncomfortable.”
Fast Company: m.fastcompany.com/3045739/most-creative-people-2015/amy-poehler-is-really-making-herself-uncomfortable

- Have no formal authority
- Proactively Collaborate
- Solicit Opinions
- Are passionate & engaged
- Motivate others
- Initiate new ideas
(Emergent Leadership concept from Peter Northouse)
“Emergent Leadership”
Image: http://www.makingadifferencedaily.com/apps/vblog/

Influence is something we do
not something we are (i.e.“a LEADER”)
are or a position we hold.
Influence is situational
It’s about the choices we make moment
by moment that either move things in the
direction of a desired goal or not.
If not, we can choose again.

About making good
choices…
Acting with emotional and social
intelligence will help us make
good choices and…
These competencies
can be developed.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomas_sobek/4649690892/sizes/l/in/photostream

SELF SOCIAL
A
W
A
R
E
N
E
S
S
SELF AWARENESS
• Accurate Self-awareness
• Owns personal power
• Self-Confident
• Self-deprecating humor
SOCIAL AWARENESS
• Empathy
• Service Ethic
• Organizational awareness
• Cross-cultural sensitivity
M
A
N
A
G
E
M
E
N
T
SELF MANAGEMENT
• Integrity/Trustworthy
• Transparent
• Optimism
• Intentionality
• Achievement Focused
• Creative
• Adaptable
RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT
• Builds Trust
• Develops Others
• Communication
• Inspirational
• Builds bonds
• Collaboration/Teamwork

Paying attention
in a particular way
on purpose
and nonjudgmentally

The Influence (+ or -) of
Emotional Contagion
Flickr User: roujo https://www.flickr.com/photos/23258232@N00/456104222 (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Think about a
bad boss or supervisor
you’ve had.

The Influence of Emotional Contagion
CC BY 2.0 www.flickr.com/photos/93393982@N00/3822687027 | CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 www.flickr.com/photos/83261600@N00/4944691233
CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 www.flickr.com/photos/9304463@N08/2217777720/
“Being able to change your internal state
might be one of the most powerful techniques
you learn in becoming an effective leader–
one who inspires others to learn, adapt and
perform at their best.” -Richard Boyatzis

Negative Emotional Attractors
• Activate your sympathetic nervous system
• Activate the task positive network of your brain
• Result in stress and decreased cognitive, emotional,
perceptual, and creative capacity.
Negative Emotional Attractors include:
• Getting feedback
• Analyzing
• Problem Solving
• Conflict
• Expectations
• Fear
• Pessimism
• “Should do”s
• Dissonant relationships
• Focus on weakness

Positive Emotional Attractors
Peter Bromberg | Peterbromberg.com
• Activate your parasympathetic nervous system
• Activate the default mode network of your brain
• Result in relaxation and increased cognitive, emotional,
perceptual, and creative capacity.
Positive Emotional Attractors include:
• Mindfulness
• Resonant Relationships
• Experimenting
• Focus on strengths
• Visioning
• Learning
• Practicing
• Hope/optimism
• Play
• Gratitude

Take care of yourself
“You’re just full of hope.You’ve got more hope
than most people do. It’s a beautiful thing to
have a little hope for the world.”

Some Organizational Strategies

Strong Focus on
Customer Experience

Engagement
Apply the principles of

Photo courtesy flickr user butterfingers laura (CC BY-NC 2.0)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/10331381@N08/2265117096/
Photo courtesy flickr user mahalie (CC BY-NC 2.0)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/18773952@N00/123621912
Sensing/Perception Kinesthetic/Action
Thinking/Cognition Feeling/Emotion

Creating Engaging Experiences
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lXh2n0aPyw

We cannot predict the exact details of
the future, but we can have a hand in
shaping the heart of the future,
including its context of meaning and
our commitment and courage in
advancing into the unknown.
- Robert K Cooper, Ayman Sawaf, Executive EQ

“Choosing to act on ‘what matters’
is the choice to live a
passionate existence…
Acting on what matters is a stance
whereby we declare we are
accountable for the world around us
and are willing to pursue
what we define as important.
- Peter Block

Thank you!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/darwinbell/2602728681

Surviving and Thriving in Deeply Weird World

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