BETWEEN WORLDS. STILL.
I ended the year on an uncharacteristically grumbly note. Don’t Look Up. The BSAU of ESG. The retreating antarctic ice shelf, the creeping advance of fascism. My usual equanimity and resilience suffered.
But I started the year with my most productive week in ages. How? Ikegai, maybe. (More on that—and a request—in a moment.)
We’re still “Living Between Worlds.” But it’s a time of hyperfocus for me, so I’ve gone off Facebook (!) for at least a month (though you can still follow me on LinkedIn) and there’ll be no monthly webinar next week. (We’ll resume at noon on February 16th. Register here.)
DON’T LOOK DOWN ON DON’T LOOK UP
Don’t Look Up generated some of the most fiercely polaraized movie reviews I’ve seen in ages, with lots of bloody ink spilled. But my favorite piece lately (aside from a few on why so may “film crisis” were so tweaked) was Why our secret weapon against the climate crisis could be humour (h^t George Mokray) from director Adam McKay and marine biologist Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson.
The point of all of this is to welcome more and more people into the work of driving forward climate solutions. Seventy per cent of adults in the US say they are willing to take action on climate, but 51% say they don’t know where to start. Though fervent climate science deniers get lots of attention, they are only 7% of Americans. Amid all the dire news, these are encouraging numbers.
Maybe some film or gif or TikTok has jostled you to think seriously about what you can do. Specifically you. Well, here’s one way to answer that question: think of a Venn diagram with three overlapping circles. In the first, put what you’re good at. (So, which Avenger are you and what are your specific super powers?) In the second, put what part of the climate challenge you want to work on. (Your mission, should you choose to accept it.) In the third, put what brings you joy. (What, for you, isn’t work because you love it so much?) And then find your way to the epicenter of that for as many minutes of your life as you can. We don’t all have to do the same thing – in fact we shouldn’t.
A REQUEST FOR YOU
So here’s my request to you:
- Watch Don’t Look Up (in theaters and streaming on Netflix).
- Read the whole McKay/Johnson article, linked above.
- Draw your Venn diagram, and find your Ikegai (“a Japanese concept that means your ‘reason for being.’ ‘Iki’ in Japanese means ‘life,’ and ‘gai’ describes value or worth. Your ikigai is your life purpose or your bliss. It’s what brings you joy and inspires you to get out of bed every day.”)
Was it something you already knew? Or did you discover something new for you? Let me know! (I’ll show you mine if you’ll show me yours. 😉
In solidarity,
Gil
Gil Philip Friend • Trimtab4Trimtabs™
CEO, Natural Logic, Inc. • Founder, Critical Path Capital • Keynote Speaker—Book me now!
Tel: 1-510-248-4940 | Cel: 1-510-435-6346 | Blog | LinkedIn | Twitter | Facebook | YouTube channel
PS: I advise companies, coach leaders, and inspire audiences, about profitably doing business in service to life—about doing business, and everything else, as though we belong to the living world. Maybe there’s something for us to do together. Let’s talk!