Tuesday, September 06, 2011

Misfits - Umair Haque

http://blogs.hbr.org/haque/2011/08/what_kind_of_misfit_are_you.html


Inspiring article from one of my current favorite writers, Umair Haque. 


Extracts:

It's not that every misfit accomplishes something fundamentally unexpectedly awesome (for example, yours truly). And it certainly is the case that misfits have also been some of history's greatest villains. But it's also probable that most things unexpected, radical, and breathtakingly awesome take just a little bit of nonconformity; just a little bit of dissatisfaction with "the way things are.


Hence, I'd say: the biggest and most unforgivable crime industrial age institutions commit againstour humanity is to deny us the freedom of our own singular humanity. They stifle us at every turn, fitting us into neat boxes, relentlessly and brutally pressuring us — when they're not pulverizing us — to conform, obey, fit in, toe the party line.


 If we had more freedom of individualism in organization, we'd have less politics, bureaucracy, jargon, time-wasting, wheel-spinning, and an almost embarrassing level of hubris that would have put Icarus to shame — and veritable monsoons more humility, imagination, creativity, empathy, trust, respect, wisdom.


We need those free thinkers. In fact, in a world where perma-crisis seems to be the status quo, by which our so called leaders seem paralyzed and hopelessly confused, we've never needed the misfits more.

6 comments:

Stranger in a Strange Land said...

Hello Nimmy:

A Misfit called Mike and after figuring out what fits in this world, I claim my title happily.

Kind regards,
Mike

Nimmy said...

Mike!! I thought I'd lost you and you were perhaps on a silent tour of the world! ;-) Soooooo happy to "have you back" in these blog conversations! :-))

Blogger has been misbehaving. I had no clue that comments had been submitted for the past few weeks. Looks like the email alerts are not working. Thanks to a friend who warned me that her comment did not seem to be going through, I realized that there is a backlog of unpublished comments!

How have you been? Mike Misfit? :-P

Stranger in a Strange Land said...

Hello Nimmy.

Fine... You very well know that us misfits have all the fun.... :D

Mike

Nimmy said...

:-) Yes and No! :-P

Stranger in a Strange Land said...

Spot on:

Kindest and warmest regards from a guy who maintained inner freedom in an outwardly enslaved world.

My warmest greetings my clever friend,
Misfit Mike

Nimmy said...

Misfit Mike sounds so cool on you, actually! :-P