A night out

Lucas was having a rare night out. He was going to the theater with his wife. The play they were going to see had got good critics, which was the reason why Lucas had agreed to go in a first place – he wasn’t much for the cultural things. Nevertheless, tonight he was going with an open mind and would enjoy the night.

As they were sipping wine at the interval, Lucas was trying to decide how he felt about the first part. The topic was well chosen and the characters were credible. The play made him think about the nature of people – what did they think was important, what were their values and what impact they actions had. How often do we adapt viewpoint of others and somehow hide our own wishes and hopes but also fears under a surface of artificial coating. Lucas wondered how much art, and especially today’s art, could influence on people’s behavior and their way of thinking. Could it make a difference and what would it take in order to do so?

Motivation inside an Easter egg?

Lucas was very keen on getting all possible information related to the business entrepreneurship, but realized that not everyone was as keen on following the lessons. He started to note down the different behavioral habits of his co-students and questioned their motivations.

Here is a list of most common characteristics in his class:

• speaking on the phone while "listening" - same claim that this is possible, maybe, but at least it is rude for others.
• listening to music with one ear
• reading a news paper/book while trying to follow
• discussion with the person next to you - if on the topic, fine, but if not...
• walking back and forth - normally this takes place in the end of the class room
• sleeping participants
• ....

This made him very sad, as although several efforts were done for the future of the students, those were not appreciated. Lucas started his Easter break by writing a letter to himself on how his own attitude, behavior and motivation influence on his future. Like an Easter egg- his future has several layers still to be revealed.

More carrots

On national level, a lot of discussion has been focusing on the future vision and what alternatives do we have for it. There seems to be a consensus that a change is needed and everyone has role to play in it. Still we are not burning yet for the change. Is it so that we do not have a huge need that forces us to do anything radical?

Before sustainable changes take place, we need to have many measures in place, both carrots and sticks. We can force some changes to take place by laws, taxes and limitations. Still the hardest challenge is - how to change the behavior of the citizens so that they feel positive about it? What changes trigger a behavior change and what kind of measures are needed for that? Many experts are looking for the answers in their own surroundings.

Many say that it does not, in the end, matter how do we reach the change, as long as it takes place. I do not totally agree on that, as we need to ensure that everyone is going to be on board. The carrots make things easier and we can all create them by being/looking for role models, organizing competitions or offering peer support. Hopefully the conference will be one of the big carrots! Let´s create the positive spin among our networks!