When BHAG Thrill, The Deed Is Done

Capitalism flag

What can possibly be more challenging, thrilling and engaging than creating a whole new future?  I think that’s one reason why when I tell fellow entrepreneurs what I’m doing, they are rapt in attention.

It’s not often you hear someone is making headway towards making capitalism, communism and socialism obsolete.

A fellow entrepreneur, after telling him what I’m doing, said, “Boy, I’ve heard people tell me what they’re doing is ‘a game changer’,” he said. “But what you’re doing really is a game changer!”

Another entrepreneur friend of mine, after studying Copiosis said “Well you’re certainly having an extraordinary life!”

It’s true, Copiosis is a game changer. My life is filled with engaging things calling me nearly every moment that bring me joy .

There are times when I feel overwhelm. But more and more, I’m finding peace with the increasing calls for my attention, from people, content I need to create and shows I’m producing.

There are dozens of people around the world contributing mightily to Copiosis through the principle of Stigmergy. Some come and go. Some that go come back. When they do, they’re astonished how far we got during their absence.

I’m familiar with working in and leading disbursed teams.  As a Marine journalist, I worked as part of a dispersed team of reporters in California and Okinawa, Japan. My last tour in Japan saw me working as the editor of the Marine Corps newspaper there. Part of my role included managing a team of reporters spread up and down the Japanese island. Having people who are independent self-starters goes a long way to making coordinating and leading easier. Discipline, an integral component of Marine Corps training, helped a lot too. Since the Marines I’ve worked with those who are self-leading, where I could focus on coordinating their work output rather than actually “leading” them.

Much later, while working at Intel, I lead a small team of people around the world working together to find ways Intel technology could make the world a better place. Team members were self starters working in a highly ambiguous environment (what we were doing was brand new).

Facilitating their success wasn’t always easy. For some, having what I call a “blue sky” role (i.e. you’re free to do whatever you want to be successful, so long as it’s legal and fits our mission) was unnerving. Some folks prefer the familiarity and certainty of clearly-defined roles nestled in a clear, straightforward and traditional mission. I don’t think that’s going to change, even when capitalism’s or communism’s or socialism’s cubicle farms are history.

Copiosis is decidedly not straightforward or traditional. People engaged with me on Copiosis aren’t up for the traditional and straightforward. Of course, many of them must work such jobs. They pay the bills.

But I can see Copiosis lights their fires. It lights mine too. And that’s what makes what we’re all doing so thrilling. When you meet people of the same mindset, focused on the same big hairy ass goal (BHAG) that you’re focused on, it’s fun, joyful even, thinking about the possibilities.

And while you’re focused on the joy and fun, the challenges recede into the background.

Leave a Reply