Changing the Questions, Changing the Answers

“When you think about it, a national government competes with every other national government on earth to be the most cost effective, the most talented, the best equipped to act, the quickest to respond to external threats, and the most strategic thinking about future opportunities.”

Clemons and Kroth, Managing the Mobile Workforce , p. 98

Being a profound learner means constantly looking deeper, deeper than political positions, partisanship, ideology, tradition, religion, what would benefit us personally the most and, really, any current belief system. As I've written before , we are much more than the labels we give ourselves, like liberal or conservative or nationalist or globalist or socialist, which reduce us to less than we are or can be. And our beliefs about such matters, which can be helpful until they’re not, are just resting places for thoughtful people who want to understand more and to deal more wisely with the challenges and opportunities of their lives and the world.

One way to provoke deeper discussion – internal or amongst others – is to rethink the questions we have been asking. Trying out new questions or iterations of questions can provoke different ways of thinking about issues which have devolved into “positions” or “talking points” or “litmus tests” or any purity evaluation. “Are you with us or against us” can easily become a false dichotomy, with folks finding themselves defending limited “yes or no” options instead of exploring alternatives or looking for something new or creative.

So, occasionally I or others will pose a question here designed to change how a particular challenge is discussed. Hopefully these queries will be provocative – and I believe provoking, evoking, invoking….stoking good discussion is a worthy objective - with something to be learned, even if no conclusion is, well, concluded.

So, to get us started….

When I watch the political and ideological battles between parties and personalities over the size of government and the role of government, both legitimate areas of discussion, I wonder if they are really addressing what might be a more useful, more important question , “How does our country create sustainable competitive advantage through the development and maintenance of the best government on earth?” That question would force people to ask what the most competitive government might look like. Let me try a few ideas to get us started.

• The most competitive government in the world would attract, develop, support, and motivate people who are the best government workers, perhaps the best workers, in the world.
  
• The most competitive government in the world would be best at getting the most bang-for-the-invested-buck, would have rock solid credit, a balanced budget, and long term fiscal viability.
  
• The most competitive government in the world would be the best at protecting its citizens now but also being prepared for future threats – militarily, environmentally, scientifically, economically.
  
• The most competitive government in the world would be the best at assuring its citizens had the best educational system, best defense system, best support for its citizens, and so on. The best.
  
• The most competitive government in the world would be interested in “sustainable” competitive advantage” which means it would have to think and to prepare for the long term – long term health, environment, resources, quality of life, protection – of its citizens.
  
• And there would doubtless be many other ideas....

That question might induce people to ask about the importance of investing in scientific advancement, research, and education, and how sustainability can only occur over the long run when long-term collaborative efforts across nations are strengthened by building mutual trust and cooperation.

If the question were changed from “How large or small?” to “How competitive or how excellent?” what different approaches might arise?

Now, to wrap this up, let’s remember that this is just one question and it’s related to competition. There are of course other questions we could ask, that would produce different discussions and likely different answers. What if the next question was not about being the “best and most competitive government on earth”, but about “what’s the best system of government to produce long term health, quality of life, and survivability on our planet”? (Think biggggg......)

Changing the question can change the dynamics of the discussion, the way the players position themselves, the creativity of the potential solutions.

We will ask questions here from time to time. It would be grand to hear your answers. And other questions that provoke thought.

References:

Clemons, D., & Kroth, M. S. (2011). Managing the mobile workforce: leading, building, and sustaining virtual teams . New York: McGraw-Hill. https://amzn.to/2LtHE7F

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