Why changing the way we work matters.

Large companies have a vast amount of resources and often have some of the most talented people in the industry. We can look at Google, Apple, Facebook and assume that they have hired the best people. In some cases this is true. However, there is a naivety in assuming those companies are attracting the very best. Having seen the inside of Boeing I’ve seen literally the brightest minds on the planet. Building aircraft is a complex endeavor few can appreciate unless they’ve seen it up close. Add weapons and mach speed into the mix and you have a whole other ballgame.

But working there is frankly terrible. The systems in place do not allow the brilliant minds to do what they do best — create. But, BUT, we cannot discount these companies and more importantly these people. They are locked into these places for some reason. Not everyone can work at “Space X” or be an entrepreneur. These types of companies that have these cultures are still facing complex and spectacular problems and have solved just as many. They do not lack for brain power. They lack for the systems that give people the chance to do their best work. They lack the understanding that if they’re “Empowering Employees” then they’re already broken.

There are many companies like this, big ones that have people & problems, expertise & resources, institutional knowledge & techniques, and yet lack the capacity to create change. I fundamentally believe this is a travesty.

Change starts by creating systems in which people are allowed to create, innovate, and build.

The things that humans naturally tend towards. Boeing, as an example, took flight from an unrequited love to a stale and tedious relationship in LESS THAN 100 YEARS. That’s insane. What’s even more insane is they could literally do so much more and aren’t. They are, and this is why this is a travesty, the norm. They have so much and do so little. The people suffer and the world suffers.

Changing the way we work is more about just making millennials happy, or increasing productivity by 20%, or innovation. It’s fundamentally about changing the foundation of work so we take back what we are — “Creators” and do that.

This is why this work matters.