10月9日にLondon School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)の公開講座(18:30 - 20:00)に参加してきた。Noreena Hertzによる講演だったが、彼女が最近著した本「Eyes Wide Open: How to Make Smart Decisions in a Confusing World」の紹介という感じである。色々な局面でよりよい意思決定をする上で重要な洞察が語られた。
講演内容の趣旨は以下である。
- 我々は専門家を信頼しすぎてきた。
- 我々は専門性の定義をより広く捉えなおす必要がある。
- 経験は必ずしも専門性とはならない。
- 今日では誰もが様々な情報を集めることができる。
- 我々は違いを受け入れ、寛大になる必要がある。
- 我々は必ずしも経済理論にかなった理性的な意思決定者ではない。
- 昨日うまくいったことが、明日もうまくいくとは限らない。
- 我々は思考する時間とスペースを十分に確保する必要がある。
整理してみるとごく一般的な内容な気もするが、45分ほど具体例などを用いて説明された。残りの45分は全部質疑応答に当てられた。折角の機会と思い、私も勇気を出して質問してみた。その結果うまく聴衆の笑いをとることができ会心だった。
公開講座の終了後、近くに座っていたアラブ系フランス人に声をかけられ、名刺交換をするまでに至った。やはり、笑いが人を惹きつける力に改めて関心する次第である。
講演内容の趣旨に記載した最後の考えることが重要という洞察はなかなか感慨深い。なぜなら、京セラの稲盛和夫氏が以前講演で語っていたのだが、彼が若かりし頃に現パナソニックの松下幸之助氏が京都で行った講演で「どうしたら売上を上げられるか、どうしたら利益を上げられるか」というような質問に対し、「それは思わなあきませんな」と答えた一言に衝撃を受けたエピソードを思い出したため。その時、稲盛氏以外の聴衆は「思わなあかんいうても、具体的にどうすればいいかを教えてもらわな、我々は何をすればよいかがわからん。どうしたら売上を上げられるかの答えになっとらん。」と言い、松下氏は嘲笑に遭った。しかし、松下氏の一言に稲盛氏は「体中に電撃が走った」といっている。
日々のビジネスの現場で数多くの意思決定を強いられるビジネスパーソンにとって、どのようにすればより良い意思決定ができるかの答えが単に「思考する」ことでは、確かに禅問答のようでどこかもどかしいような気がする。しかし、その答えこそが真実なのだと私も思う。
それは意思決定をする人々はそれぞれ異なる外部環境／内部環境下にあり、その環境下で自分自身が地に足をつけた状態で考え抜いた答えこそが、その環境下において最適な意思決定となり得るのだと思う。
<English>
I attended a public lecture (18:30 - 20:00) at London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) on 9th of October. The speaker was Noreena Hertz, and she introduced her recently published book 'Eyes Wide Open: How to Make Smart Decisions in a Confusing World'. She talked about important insights in making smarter decisions in various situations.
The main point of the lecture was below.
- We've become too trusting on experts.
- We need to broaden our definition of expertise.
- Experience is not the relation of expertise.
- Today, we all can gather various information.
- We need to seek out difference and decency.
- We are not the rational decision makers of economic theories.
- What worked well yesterday may not work tomorrow.
- We need to carve out time and space to think.
Although those summary seems to be obvious, she explained them using specific examples for 45 minutes. The rest 45 minutes was spent by questions and answered. I thought it's good chance and I asked a question. As a result, I got a laugh of audience as I intended.
After the lecture, an Arab-French man spoke to me and we exchanged business cards each other. I realized the power of laugh attracting people.
The last insight of the lecture mentioned above is profoundly meaningful, because it reminded me of talking by Mr. Kazuo Inamori, a founder of Kyocera, about a story that Mr. Konosuke Matsushita, a founder of Panasonic, gave a lecture in Kyoto when Mr. Inamori was young. At the lecture of Mr. Matsushita, he was asked 'How to improve sales and profit?' by the audience and he answered just 'You need to think.' Although all audience was disappointed at the answer, jeerer at him, and said 'Just thinking is not enough. Without specific idea of how to do it, we can't understand how to do it. Your answer is empty.', Mr. Inamori felt electric shocks throughout his body.
The last insight of the lecture mentioned above is profoundly meaningful, because it reminded me of talking by Mr. Kazuo Inamori, a founder of Kyocera, about a story that Mr. Konosuke Matsushita, a founder of Panasonic, gave a lecture in Kyoto when Mr. Inamori was young. At the lecture of Mr. Matsushita, he was asked 'How to improve sales and profit?' by the audience and he answered just 'You need to think.' Although all audience was disappointed at the answer, jeerer at him, and said 'Just thinking is not enough. Without specific idea of how to do it, we can't understand how to do it. Your answer is empty.', Mr. Inamori felt electric shocks throughout his body.
It might be frustrating as if Zen riddle for business persons who need to make decisions from day to day that the answer for how to make smarter decision is just 'THINK'. But I think it is true.
Each decision maker is in different external and internal circumstances. Therefore, a decision which each decision maker made by thinking through enough and by staying down-to-earth will be the best suited one in the each circumstances.
The picture below is inside the lecture room at the end of the lecture.
Each decision maker is in different external and internal circumstances. Therefore, a decision which each decision maker made by thinking through enough and by staying down-to-earth will be the best suited one in the each circumstances.
The picture below is inside the lecture room at the end of the lecture.
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