Over the past ten months we have looked at forerunners engaged in everything from humanitarian relief and fair trade, to transmitting a handshake over the internet, building a public utility, and bringing electricity to our community. Although these forerunners have been active in a broad array of activities, they have had a common motivation – their ideals and their ideas.
Some of the forerunners which we have profiled knew and understood exactly where they were going before they started their journey. Others started without a clear picture of where they were going only to discover their path as they journeyed. They all solved problems as they moved forward and in spite of the obstacles which are common to any project, they found ways to overcome them. Some projects required flexibility and the adjustment of priorities and objectives along the way. But common to all was their belief that their goal was attainable and worthy of their best effort.
Forerunners live looking forward, and they are inspired by ideas. They are deeply affected by injustice. They are not “fence-sitters” but passionate about issues. It is this passion which gives them the focus and unyielding persistence to take on the problems inherent in creating, reforming, innovating, and building a dream.
Forerunners are often misunderstood. They have an ability to see and focus on problems because they are problem-solvers; however, because of this, they are sometimes viewed as negative or trouble-makers. Forerunners believe they are helping by bringing attention to problems and pushing for solutions because they understand that problems will eventually hurt and possibly destroy the project. Instead of being considered committed contributors, forerunners are often seen as disloyal, aloof, or destructive by those who don’t understand their motivation.
Forerunners prefer influence over power, and work well in roles as advisors.
They sometimes lack people skills, as in the case of Sir Adam Beck. He developed a number of enemies which could have been avoided by communicating to people how they could benefit from joining him rather than fighting him. Beck was a skilled and fearless fighter, so he put less value on winning people to his side, but this proved to be a costly mistake.
Starters not Managers
Forerunners are very good at starting a project and taking it through the early stages of development, but when it becomes established, they look for a new challenge. Larger projects are best served when forerunners stay engaged and a manager is brought in to oversee the day-to-day work. The pace of change has increased so dramatically that an organization’s survival depends on re-visioning on a continual basis.
Organizations that fail to understand the importance of fresh vision fail to lead in their sector. When managers replace forerunners, vision can become the victim, and it is the beginning of the end of the organization. Projects which are lead by a group of equals who respect the talents and abilities of each other are best suited to excel in the new economy. In the past, “forerunner unfriendly” organizations (the walking dead) could survive for decades with no new products or ideas, but today, lack of vision will kill a company in a few years.
Becoming Forerunner Friendly
Creating a forerunner friendly organization demands a respect and appreciation of ideas. Not all ideas are “keepers” but all ideas have value because they lead to more and better ideas, and ideas are critical to surviving in this new era of unprecedented change. Many leaders see problem identification as a slight of their leadership rather than an effort to fix the problems that are hindering the effectiveness of the organization. Becoming a forerunner friendly organization requires putting aside ego and making problems and solutions a high priority.
The best ideas often come from the most unlikely sources. People who see the problem from 10,000 feet often have a better perspective than those who are engaged in it. Every idea must be evaluated on its merits, not its source.
Being a forerunner friendly organization requires clear communication that ideas are the seeds of change and that the future depends on how well its workers generate and evaluate ideas, and that everyone is responsible to make the organization better. A separation between management and workers is a costly mistake for any organization if it hinders the flow of ideas that will make the company or project better.
The Value of Ideas
In the past, people believed that “ideas were a dime a dozen”. They placed more value on money than ideas. There is far more money than there are good ideas. That, in part, has been caused by the devaluation of ideas and an over emphasis on the value of money. It has diminished progress in our nation and the world. Ideas are risky but in the new economy new ideas are the only way forward. Safe, secure investments paying big returns are few and that’s why most of today’s wealth is currently in cash. Investing in people who you know and trust builds our communities. Investing in multinational corporations drains financial and human capital from our rural communities and kills them.
Our Community
Communities founded on industries which are no longer relevant in the new economy are in imminent risk of dying. Most rural Ontario towns are void of economic, social, and cultural life. They have been left behind by the world and the people who could reinvent them. They need to be re-founded on a new premise, and that takes ideas. It requires the bringing together and stimulation of forerunners. The original founders had a vision which birthed economic prosperity for a time, but now our communities must be re-founded. People must work together to find a new competitive advantage from which to build their future. We have all been hurled unwillingly into unavoidable change. The future of our communities is dependant on our ability to discover our place in the midst of the current changes. We must re-launch our businesses, communities, and our country with innovative ideas, passionate persistence, and visionary leadership. Our future depends on it.
