Challenges in the VUCA world
In the VUCA world, there are three key
challenges:
• Challenge #1: The Need for Clear
and Strong Leadership
• Challenge #2: The Need for
Individuals to Think for Themselves,
not of Themselves
• Challenge #3: The Rise of Relativism
Challenge #1: The Need for Clear and Strong
Leadership
Leaders are human, and humans
like to be popular. Leaders, whether
it be of nations or companies or any
organisation, need to be aware of the
wishes and desires of their people, but
more importantly, they have to judge
what would be good for the people,
the organisation, the company, or the
nation for the years to come.
Leaders must have the moral courage
to do the right thing, regardless of what
others are doing, even if it costs them
their popularity.
Leaders have to be clear about what
kind of organisation, community and
nation they want to leave for the next
generation to inherit, and what kinds
of values the next generation will need
to ensure the continued success and
survival for the organisation, community
and/or nation.
Leaders cannot avoid making moral
judgments as to what would be good for
the people because they have to “create
the future”. They cannot simply follow
what people want today.
Challenge #2: The Need for Individuals to
Think for Themselves, not of Themselves
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On the lack of thinking, this has become
more serious with the advent of the
internet. In the age of the internet,
information is so easily searchable
that people do not need to think for
themselves. They simply look for the
website or blog that offers information
and opinions that they find agreeable.
But in such convenience lies the danger
of not bothering to think.
If we are to be responsible members of
society, each one of us must think for
ourselves as to what would be good for
the generations to come.
In the age of the selfie and the internet,
the desire for more public recognition
and admiration leads one to take
deceptive and self-destructive paths—
news, photos, and posts are tweaked,
comments are taken out of context, and
so on.
In a world of instant gratification, few
individuals pause to verify the facts and
the research; many simply go along with
people’s opinions, which oftentimes are
based on rumour, whims, guesses and/
or untruths.
When important decisions that can
affect the future are being made, people
have to think for themselves what is
good for not only this generation, but
also for future generations. People
should not make decisions based upon
what is easy and convenient, but on
what is right and good.
Challenge #3: The Rise of Relativism
The rise of relativism has resulted in a
situation where concepts of right and
wrong, good and bad are not anchored
to the absolutes, such as those found
in the wisdom of religion or ancient
cultures, but are based simply on what
is convenient or what is popular.
Relativism is when people take short
cuts and tell lies but do not feel bad or
ashamed about it as long as someone
else cheats more or lies more.
The stability of societies lie in trust and
a presumed standard of goodness and
rightness.
Trust is the currency for all long term
relationships, and honour is the
foundation of trust.
Honour O.T.T.L.L.S.S. to survive and thrive
in the VUCA world
But how does one best prepare oneself
to deal with these three challenges
in a world that is increasingly Volatile,
Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous
(VUCA)?
In a VUCA world, the best preparation
would not be rules and processes, but
values. In a fast-changing world, there
are no “maps” because no one has gone
that way before; when there are no
“maps”, we need a good “compass”.
The “compass” comprises the values
and beliefs we hold to be important for
our lives. So the best preparation we
can make in the VUCA world is values-
based.
In a VUCA world, we need to:
• Honour a “life compass” based on
absolute values and principles
• Develop self-confidence and sound
judgment
• Have the courage to be different
from others
• Adopt a realistic view of people
• Nurture a capacity to build
relationships
We can survive and thrive in the VUCA
world by learning to honour O.T.T.L.L.S.S.,
which stands for:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Observe
Think
Try
Learn
Lead
Stand
Serve
The future is one in which the unseen
becomes much more important than
the seen. Hence, it is important for us
to address the scarcity on the inside,
and not focus on the abundance on the
outside.
In such a world, the best thing we can
do with our students is to make sure
they have a good foundation of the
fundamentals in terms of language,
Science and Mathematics, so they
have the basic elements for learning,
communicating and understanding
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