(Anonymously dedicated to someone who is one of the greatest, positive, ethical influences in my career. You know who you are - you have been an inspiration and this one is for you)
There is a difference between being a disrupter who is a non-conformist and someone who is anti-establishment. Regardless of what you may think from the first few sentences, it is important to define this because the 'establishment' use the term 'anti-establishment' to protect their cosy, warm and fat environment from scrutiny, constructive criticism and change.
So firstly, it would be best to define the fact that change is a constant which must be embraced for progress to be made. The 'establishment' will resist engaging in true disrupters and non-conformists for fear that they will point out that the 'establishment' has become lazy and fat and secure and safe and non-inventive and non-innovative and slow. So they will invest terms like 'anti-establishment'.
As a very anecdotal insignificant game to play, I have developed 'Anti-Establishment Tennis' - we'll play it below. Here are the rules: I will serve, hitting to you the name of someone who has been a non-conformist disrupter who has changed and altered a system, an organisation or a population by thinking outside the box and by refusing to accept conformity.
You will reply with someone who is a conformist, who has stuck with the status quo within their organisation and provided success, safety and security over a long period of time. If you're able to reply with a better example than me then you will win the point.
It's one game.
Let's go, ready to serve...
1. Muhammad Yunus - The Grameen Bank and Nobel Prize Winner in Economics
If you don't know his story, you should read it...
Your reply?... 15 - 0
Your reply?... 30 - 0
3. Ghandi
Your reply?... 40 - 0
It's match point by the way.
I'm sure, although I don't know for certain, that all of the above were considered to be 'anti-establishment'
(The worst thing that can happen is for someone who is a non-conformist disrupter to be sucked into an organisation and turned into the 'establishment'
Just for clarity - I would be happy to accept any names for the 'conformist' column to beat me in the game and I would be delighted to accept any constructive criticism for this blog or any other blog that I have published.
Thanks
Blog Post Number: 1136
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