#154: Everything Strengthens Everything.

Deep down, I think we all know what it takes. Both for us and those around us. Why don’t we just decide to be a little more generous?

The other day, I watched a short video clip of an interview with the late professor and author Frithjof Bergmann on Linkedin. He talks about the future of work and the future of society.

«The society of the future will be a society, in which everything strengthens everything!»

As simple as it sounds, we are far from reaching that state. It starts with us. How much harm do we do to ourselves? We eat like crap, don’t get enough sleep, hang out with the wrong people, all of which drains our energy. None of it makes us any stronger.

And yet, we should know better. Too often, we take the easy route.

How much better do we do when it comes to those around us? Encouraging others, supporting them, lifting their confidence by telling them what we appreciate about them. We offer power and strength.

We have all been through performance reviews at work. Those reviews generally involve forms with sections on «strengths» and «weaknesses». All too often, though, the resulting action plan mainly focuses on eliminating weaknesses as opposed to improving strengths. Now you could argue that reducing a negative by the same factor or margin as increasing a positive leads to the same result. It doesn’t.

My read of Bergmann’s vision of the society of the future is one of mutual support, empowerment, encouragement and appreciation. It is not as hard as we often think. Helping someone else succeed can actually give us as much satisfaction as succeeding ourselves.

It’s not a battle, no longer a «winner takes it all» rat race.

We owe it to ourselves and everyone else. We all deserve it. We all benefit from it.