A635.1.3.RB - 21st Century Enlightenment

To start I think that the talk by Matthew Taylor is titled 21st Century Enlightenment to emphasize that there is a clear shift in our thinking and perception of Earth and our lives that is caused by additional knowledge and rapid increase in technology. When Matthew Taylor says "to live differently, you have to think differently" I believe he is pointing out that if you want to get out of your habitual way of living you need to be intentional about it and approach life with an open and fresh perspective (Taylor, 2010).  

When Taylor argues that we need "to resist our tendencies to make right or true that which is merely familiar and wrong or false that which is only strange" I believe that Taylor is speaking to how we are creatures of habit and how we recognize what is familiar to us and consistently perceive that as right rather then opening up our perception (Taylor, 2010).  Seeing outside of our own point of view and trying to see something for what it is rather then what we are familiar with. An example of this is when my team would only look to trade advertisements as being the best and most effective way to reach out B2B audience. Luckily, with the influx of fresh perspective on the team we now use a vast and broader approach that enables us to reach different parts of our audience in a variety of ways.

In his talk Taylor argues that our society should eschew elements of pop culture that degrade people and that we should spend more time looking into what develops empathetic citizens (2010). Eschewing elements of pop culture that degrade people and focusing on spending more time looking into what develops empathetic citizens is certainly possible but not without an enormous cultural shift (Taylor, 2010). I would say that social media is often guilty of degrading people, but social media could also be a great tool aiding the attempt to shift our wide reaching culture.

In the context of organizational change efforts this pushes collaboration to be more focused on finding the best opportunity instead of the best or most well received opportunity. This sort of theme also reminds me of the concept of group think and how destructive that can be. As an organization having a diverse group of people with diverse beliefs and backgrounds is helpful to be able to find that well rounded solution.

In this exercise I can take away the commitment to try to see outside of my own perspective before making a decision, and to be more open with seeing that what may be right may not be the familiar choice (Taylor, 2010).

Reference

Taylor, M. (2010, August 19). RSA ANIMATE: 21st Century Enlightenment. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/AC7ANGMy0yo