Antifragile

There are so many stimulating people in my life, and last Friday I was able to share a journey with Chris Phippen, he’s a talented tech star in Exeter and is taking a mini sabbatical. Not a journey for car karaoke* but certainly a great discussion about AI, mindset and leadership theory.

Chris recommended a book that he’s devouring called Antifragile by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. The core tenet of the book is this concept of fragile and antifragile. Fragile items break under stress, antifragile items get better from it. In order for a system to be antifragile most of its parts must be fragile.

Most teams hunker down under stress to maintain productivity, antifragile systems get better and thrive in volatile environments. The book itself draws parallels in mythology, evolution and biology. For example, we know that when a muscle is exercised with really heavy weights, the muscle tears slightly and the body repairs it so that it can handle additional pressure.

I’ve been using Chris as a sounding board for my theories around Exponential Leadership and how you build in internal systems and a collective mindset to adapt in an age of exponential change. It is possible at an organisation level with the right governance, communication and reward strategies in place. Chris had spotted the practical applications of my work to this concept of antifragile.

So, you can guess what’s next on my Amazon account this week 😊

So questions for you to consider over this weekend.

How do you respond to external stress?  

Do you have a personal mindset that seeks lessons from challenges, that recognises a natural order to growth that’s not always easy?

What tactics could you use to face down challenges, to beat your chest and declare “Is that all you’ve got, give me more!”?

When you’ve begun to master the personal mindset then look to the team around you. After all, culture is effectively a collective mindset and can be influenced positively or negatively.

Finally, I’m currently refreshing my materials for Exponential Leadership and I can’t wait to share them in the future. If there are particular challenges you face in terms of leadership, change or business strategy please get in touch and jump on a call. I’d love to help you with what you’re facing and keep adding to the repository of examples.