It is time to be very optimistic

As I watch the markets collapse and people’s overall reaction to this apparent misfortune, I have come to the conclusion that we are in a financial, social, sustainable, personal and spiritual correction. As we all know most of the time it takes a big shock to our system for us to change. This could be it, the time to examine the behaviors of those in the government and the financial institutions but also to question our own and our relationship with ourselves, the planet, our happiness, the concept of consumption and the purpose of living beyond our means. This process of self-analysis and introspection is one that I have started. I must tell you it is a painful one but I predict that it is going to be very liberating. I think it is going to relieve us of a great deal of pressure. It will give us permission to stop trying to be or desire to be something we do not want to be, to stop buying what we do not want nor need as well as to stop conforming to a lifestyle that is out of sync with our true nature. I believe this process or correction will bring us closer to ourselves and nature, and inject quality to our lives instead of more quantity. The earth will also benefit from our shift in living philosophy, as we become conscious of our behaviors and consumption patterns.

Designers will own the world

The world is now slowly starting to shift as is evident in what is now occurring in the global markets and economies. These changes are coming faster and faster. It is now obvious that the process of creative destruction is starting to take its place. The old is now collapsing and the new will soon come to the surface. The new is already brewing underneath it all. It is brewing in our consciousness as well as in most industry and service sectors. Given this non-linear and exponential change, the redesign has started. This means the design of new financial, business and political systems. The artists and protagonists of the new world are and will be professional designers in the different disciplines of design and those people that start to think and operate as a designer. These people will also design the environments we live in, in this reality as well as any other virtual realities we choose to hang out in. Imagine a whole new planetarium conversation. The time has come for us to redesign ourselves and how we live - think designer.

The new design of the globe

I continue to try to figure out where we are heading in this redesign of the planet. How are we going to live, communicate, do business and relate to one another. How about currency? Will we still be using the dollar or the Euro? Will we combine them with barter? What will be the definition of the GDP? Our cities? Are we going to continue to build these really spread out, hard to get around-type living spaces? Spirituality - not religion - will it play a big role in our world or will the status quo religion rule. The world’s poverty - is it going to continue as it is now? or are we going to be able to figure a way to stop exploiting those in poverty and bring forth a solution. The media, will the television networks despair and will all the content move to the Internet? How will the Internet transform the way we interact, vote and do business? Will the concept of government still be valid or will the world go back to a tribal-type system or a series of gang-like groups with different agendas, good and bad, roaming the planet.
When alternative energies do kick in for real, what will happen to the Middle East, Russia, Venezuela-will they just become poor agriculture states? Or maybe disappear? What will happen to our lifestyle here in America? What will happen to the old paradigm? Bye, bye.

Men's new vortex

Men, we need to make a significant change in our framework and state of being. I believe that we are entering into a living model which will force us to reconnect with a different internal guiding system. The one we are consulting with at this current time is not working. It is time to seek that part of us that is not about repeating the old but creating the new, taking the risk of leaving the current cocoon and diving into our new existence. It is time to stop imitating the traditional and build the new with pure imagination and a new design void of old parameters. It is time to be with nature, get clues and learn for the earth. The time has come to block out a little of the exterior noise, go within and tap into a better and wiser source of information. Let’s go out into the woods and ask better questions about what are the next steps to take for this living model to work. At this moment we cannot continue to take our marching orders from a broken frame and systems which are obviously heading in the wrong direction.
Men, let’s simply connect, create, innovate and reinvent ourselves. The time has come - if you do not believe look at the financial markets, global violence and the environment. But most important look at our individual lives. Time to get to work.

The old model is collapsing

As I look at what is happening in the financial markets, I continue to think of the new redesign of the planet that I believe is currently taking place. The old models will start slowly to fall apart and the new will start to reveal itself. This whole crisis in the capital markets is indication of the fact that the current paradigm is unsustainable and the only way for it to continue to operate is basically to move into a criminal model by doing what was done in the sub-prime market by establishing a pyramid scheme. The United States, due to is lack of oversight, is now forced to move away from being a market-based system into being a quasi-socialist state in which the government must rescue business and not let the market take its course in terms of who fails and who succeeds. Many believe that this process of creative destruction has just begun in the financial world and will move next to the car manufacturers and continue throughout many industries. Our only option is to move as fast as possible to a business and personal model of sustainability, transparency and of human integration in a holistic manner. If not we will also going the way of Lehman, AIG, etc.

I have the feeling that the Democrats are in trouble

The Democrats are starting on the road to self-destruction. The reason being. I believe, is their philosophy or political point of view of collective, big government. “I know what’s good for you” no longer works and it will become less and less appealing as we move into a new paradigm of living where the world is more interconnected and individuals have more and more access to self-empowerment and self-expression. The world is not moving into a frame of sustainability, individual empowerment/greatness, transparency, fairness and abundance. This new global scenario is one in which the individual creates a collective, not where a collective tries to impose itself on the individual. That is why Democrats - even the ones I like - will continue to lose influence and power as we slip into a new global framework.

The new design

This summer I traveled across Maine. I also spent time in Boston and New York City. At the end of this beautiful trip I realized that America needs to make a shift into a new living design. Our current living model seems outdated. I felt it as I drove through towns and saw their living conditions. I felt it as I exchanged ideas with people of different walks of life. America has hit a wall. Our thinking has become complacent and stuck. Our individual and country stories need an urgent update; reinvention is a must. The rest of the world is slowly leapfrogging over cemented mind-sets and moving at high speeds towards new prosperity. I believe that a green, sustainable and non-toxic lifestyle model is the new paradigm and our new opportunity to find our edge again and a new global leadership. Of course there is a catch - it all starts at an individual level; it is bottom revolution and evolution. Yes, self-responsibility.

The shift is already happening

There are strong signs of a global shift. The traditional institutions such as the financial and oil sectors, the political status quo, and many large global corporations, are showing signs of the initial stages of a collapse. I finally understood what sustainability means but understanding how unsustainable our current global paradigm is -- we are coming very close to a fork in the road. We will have to decide if we want to continue down this dead-end road. The game has to change hands and become more inclusive. The current game favors a very small group of people on both sides of the political and economic spectrums. It has to open up and become playable for more people on the planet. It also has to be nature-based. Nature is who we are, not something to control and destroy. I also think that we need to re-think our values in terms of what success is. Because our current concept of it is unsustainable.

May the shift be with you.

Radames