top of page
  • Writer's pictureTidy Content
    • 2 min read

On embracing and steering



Things are moving fast. Faster than ever.


What the future holds feels unpredictable.


And the constant stream of new developments becomes intimidating and overwhelming.


How will it all impact the way we cooperate, engage and interact with one another? How we think, organise, and work. Our lives and livelihoods.


Change is uncertain.


We’re creatures of comfort, stability and predictability. The urge to resist and react against change is nothing but normal.


But resistance may indeed be futile. And it often leads to escalation and conflict.


There may be a lesson in the martial art known as ‘the art of peace’, Aikido.


The philosophy of Aikido is about resolving conflict without violence — dissolving aggression by redirecting it.


The emphasis is on blending and embracing the opponent’s momentum to redirect their energy rather than opposing it with brute force.


Only by letting go of fear and resistance can we learn to harness technology and steer its direction towards a future that’s aligned with our goals and values.


Allowing us to completely immerse ourselves in the things that make us human.


Perhaps, like some would read the Greek myth of Phaethon and the chariot of the sun, we can either sit at the front and take the lead, or be dragged by the horses.


Will you oppose force with force, or embrace and steer the current of the time ahead?


Will you be dragged by history or be at the helm of change?


Note. This text was written with support of ChatGPT. I used it as a research assistant to remind me about Aikido and the myth of the chariot of the sun, as they were ideas in my head that I could not put my finger on.



Our highlights

✍ Content

Nia Campbell, Content Design London

The world is still largely designed for ‘neurotypical’ people. We all have a responsibility to consider how our decisions affect and exclude people. Nia looks at steps we can take to make content more accessible to more people.



💡Ideas

Farnam Street

Do you have a set of principles to live by? If not, get inspiration from this operating system for life. It encourages direction over speed, living deliberately, and owning your actions.



📣 Language

A must-read for strategist and transformation teams.

Bryony Shannon takes a deep dive into councils’ ‘transformation’ plans and strategies, and unpicks the language of transformation in relation to social care.



🔮 Trends

Ralph Hertwig, Anastasia Kozyreva, Sam Wineburg and Stephan Lewandowsky, World Economic Forum

Competition for our attention has accelerated over the past decade. While critical thinking helps us to evaluate the information we come across, do we also need to learn ‘critical ignoring’ to choose where to invest our time?



💻 Digital

99% Invisible podcast

Ever since humans started documenting things, the struggle has been in how to organise it so that it doesn’t get lost. This episode looks at how search has tried to fix this.

 
bottom of page