The Mind of the Future
Arfah Salleh
Professor of Human Governance
Dean of the Graduate School of Management
Universiti Putra Malaysia
Howard Gardner in his book “Five Minds of the Future” (Harvard Business School Press, 2006) talks of the five minds that are essential for anyone to measure up to what is expected of him or her, as well as to deal with what cannot be anticipated. Without these minds, Gardner considers a person would be at the mercy of forces that he or she could not understand, let alone control. “Our survival as a planet,” he writes, “may depend on the cultivation of this pentad of mental dispositions.”
His list of the five minds of the future is an important one to help us face the issues of the day. And, I consider that the fifth mind – the ethical mind – is indispensible for a leader, in a world where leaders have succumbed to the pursuit of the bottom-line regardless of its impact on man, society and the environment.
The five minds Gardner believes that we need are:
1. The disciplined mind is schooled in subjects such as history, science and arts. Notwithstanding, rather than being a jack of all trades, it is crucial to become an expert at one profession to become a productive worker in society or master a scholarly disciple. Disciplines such as science, management, economics or law provide a decent livelihood for those who have mastered them. They provide a frame wherein which thinking is done. The problem arises when you only use your disciplined mind to think about the whole world. Gardner gives an example of a lawyer using his legal discipline and legal arguments in situations involving the family, classroom, basketball court, boardroom or even the bedroom!
2. The synthesising mind collects and puts together information from varied sources. It melds all the information collected to solve a problem. Without synthesising capabilities, an individual would be overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information that he or she would be unable to make the right decisions. We desperately need this kind of mind especially when there is so much information available today. Indeed, Gardner considers this mind to be the most important mind for the 21st century.
3. The creating mind generates new ideas. It asks questions to arrive at new solutions for a problem. The synthesis of the disparate information done by the mind informs the creating mind in generating these new answers. The creating mind goes beyond what is known. Its ‘out of the box’ thinking is one step ahead of the ‘in the box’ thinking of computers. This mind focuses on new questions, new methods, new combinations of information. The creating mind’s ability to think beyond rules enables it offer fresh ideas and insights. Like Thomas Elva Edison who invented the light bulb after 9,999 attempts or Einstein’s questioning that resulted in the development of the theory of relativity, the creating mind is never satisfied. It does not quit until an answer is obtained.
The future beckons for people who can do things that machines cannot yet do. Individuals without creating capacities stand at risk of being replaced by computers. So, the capacity to ask a good question, rather than getting the right answer from a machine, is of greater premium.
4. The respectful mind honours diversity. It celebrates differences among people. It tries to understand others so that it can work effectively with them. The response to differences is, at the very minimum, tolerance. Respect is the ultimate response. People can tell quickly if they are in an organisation in which genuine respect is practised.
Don Juan once said, “No man is an island.” Man is a gregarious being. As a social creature, he or she has to interact daily with those who come into his or her life. As such, to live peaceably with one another, this mind is essential. As they say, we give respect to take respect and that respect must be earned, not demanded. We earn this respect by treating others with the same measure of respect that we want others to accord us. Individuals without respect will not be worthy of respect by others and this would make the workplace intolerable.
5. The ethical mind thinks about justice: distributive justice in the distribution of wealth and rewards according to one’s just desert. It goes beyond self-interest and seeks to improve the interest of all. It is about procedural justice which offers a level playing field for all to be heard and fair procedures in place in the allocation of distributive justice
Of these five minds, what resonates the most in me is the ethical mind and its close companion - the respecting mind. The ethical mind is so in tune with the philosophy of human governance that the Graduate School advocates as the cornerstone for nurturing leaders. Ethics and morality, the components of human governance, are particularly at a premium in the world today. It would be even more so in the future as leaders face complex issues that impinge on the legality and ethics of their courses of action. Individuals without ethics would result in a world without decent workers and responsible citizens. Surely, none of us would want to live in such a wretched world!
Human governance - as is the ethical mind - is about good work ethics. It is about going the extra mile even though we do not have an accountability to do so; only comforted in the belief that God is watching us. The ethical mind better serves the individual through the inculcation of ethics, integrity and universal core values that govern human behaviour. With the proper mindset and behaviour that are underpinned by core human values many of the mismanagement that takes place in businesses today can be averted.
Human leaders, like the ethical mind, are critical to inspiring and energizing others. It is about leading from the inside out. Such leadership is based on core religious or spiritual values that are universal. Human leaders are those who lead and facilitate problem-solving in such manner that opportunities and solutions emerge quickly thereafter or are quickly seized upon emergence. Human leaders make things happen. Human leaders are equally important in growing other leaders with the same mindset and philosophy. It is akin developing a leadership brand founded upon the philosophy of human governance.
Human governance is about ethics in action. Actions are matters of the heart – not the kind that are ruled by emotions! Rather, these are actions that emanate from a clean and clear conscience that is in sync with universal values of justice, integrity, transparency and accountability – to mention a few. Abiding by the law is another hallmark of human governance. Ethical accounting in accordance with standard accounting practices – not the ‘creative’ kind indulged by crooked CEOs – is a characteristic of human governance as it is a manifestation of Gardner’s ethical mind.
Disciplines, syntheses and creativity can be put to all kinds of ends, including wicked ones. However, such perversions are much less likely if we had also cultivated a sense of respect and an ethical orientation in all that we do.
According to Gardner, ethics involves an additional step of abstraction. The ethical mind works in a more abstract way, contemplating how it can contribute to improving society. Human governance too is about working for the common good of society. In the context of business, it is about promoting sustainable businesses that do not harm the environment while not forgetting the long-term success of the business. Apart from the immediate concerns of profit maximization and increasing shareholder wealth, the true purpose of business is to promote the welfare of society – a cornerstone of human governance. The ethical mind for businesses therefore is that they foster the common good and promote shared value where both the business and society benefit from business operations. Financial considerations must not override the principles of human governance.
We need to fashion an education that will produce individuals who are disciplined, able to synthesise, are creative, respectful and, more importantly, behave ethically according to the dictates of human governance.
The Graduate School of Management dedicates itself to making a contribution in this regard.
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