As globalization
continues it is apparent that the rich are getting richer and
the poor are getting poorer. The "baby boom" generation
is retiring and many with inadequate financial ability to live
with dignity. In the coming years more and more people are going
to "fall through the cracks of our society"
Synergy is one
of best kept secrets in the world. It is one of the most powerful
factors in the exponential multiplication of resources. This power
is best demonstrated by the abilities of work horses. One horse
can pull about 12,000 lbs of weight, but two horses working together
can pull not 24,000 lbs as expected, but 32,000 lbs of weight.
There is a 25% increase in their ability when they work together.
That is called synergy. This lost power is the power we need to
make an impact on many of the problems society faces.
Throughout history
people lived
in separate homes but daily gathered together to share their food
and lives. The monks of the early church lived communally and
they were so efficient they were able to build most of the hospital,
schools and universities. In America today, communal living is
frowned upon as being cultish. However, community
is different. It is efficient, synergistic and advantageous in
many ways. For example if a group of people bought a 25 acre plot
of land and subdivided it for the benefit of the group, so they
could build homes, there would be an immediate financial gain
for their working together.
If
that same group of people then contracted with a farmer to produce
all the food they needed, they would be able to purchase the food
at below wholesale, instead of double that cost (retail). If a
group with some skills and financial resources purchased a business
or developed one for the mutual benefit of each other, they would
be able to reap the benefits of that business which would be greater
than investing their funds or working as an employee.
Each group of
people can and must define their needs, objectives and limitations
of the scope of their collaboration. That can take some work,
but the benefits of synergy and collaboration are so significant
that they have the potential to be a catalyst in solving some
of our most serious social problems.
Paul Weigel
paul-at-theforerunnerproject-dot-com
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