Session 4

There are essentially 3 ways to cope with changes:
Option A- Make it happen (proactive)
Option B: respond what it happens (reactive)
Option C: Be surprised when it happens (Blur like sth)

After looking at this, I think I am categorized either under Option B or Option C. I am not a person that is very proactive. In the reading “Human Change Management: Herding Cats”, it discusses a lot about option B, about how people in the organizations adapt to changes, using the unfreeze-change-refreeze model. I agree with it by saying that this is model is already outdated due to the constant changes in the world. Personally, I feel that option A is the best model where everyone can try to make changes. However, this is unrealistic as making changes happen requires talent and a bit of luck. Hence, the modern model: Continuous monitoring and renewal (also option B, but with certain qualities of option A) should be used instead. Another quote was also mentioned in class: “The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” When I first saw this, I thought that there was some typo error: the “unreasonable” should be “reasonable” instead as I have always thought that the successful men are the ones who can adapt to the change quickly. But after Professor Shahi’s explanation, then only I understand what “unreasonable” meant. It is not purely accepting what is given to him, but in turn making the change himself, causing people to change for his sake.

Speaking of changes, one of the main changes stated in “Global Trends 2025: A Transformed World” is about the global multipolar system. It was predicted that there will be an unprecedented shift of power from the western (USA) to the East (China, India). Superpower is something of the past. During the cold war, USA and Russia are the superpowers at that point of time. However, due to the “complex economic interdependencies on the international scale” and “the creation of a global village”, the idea of superpower is obsolete. As mentioned in the reading “Global trend 2025”, more countries might be emulating China’s economic model instead of the Western Model in future. The writer also mentioned about multipolarity without multilateralism (multi countries working in concert on a given issue, from Wikipedia). I agree with this as due to globalization, issue required to be tackled are usually issues that affects everyone (transnational problem). Multilateralism can no longer suffice the manpower required to resolve the problem. Efficient governance is necessary and this is where multipolarity comes in. According to the definition on Wikipedia, mutipolarity is the distribution of power in which more than two nation-states have nearly equal amounts of military, cultural, and economic influence. I also feel that this system can avoid exploitation to a certain extent as now a few countries in the dominance and they can pin down or restrain each other from doing so.

Overall, I rate this lesson 7/10.There was an interesting fact raised in class, about how virus is one of the driver of the changes in Europe, which affects not only in the economically, but also people’s belief. However, it is quite a pity that we did not come out with a satisfying answer on the question: How can LDC compete with the developed countries. But I guess if we managed to get the correct answer, we will be politicians instead of sitting here in class