I have some expertise here. When asked to "think like a mountain," what image comes to mind? A mountain, of course. It is what it is, regardless of its location. It towers above the surrounding land and provides a vantage point to look out and around the world. To think like a mountain requires focus, endurance, and a long standing commitment to be what it is. Namely, a mountain. It may even have a name.
When applied to politics, especially American politics in Election 2016, which candidates running for U.S. president could be called "mountains?" What are their names? Bernie? Trump? Cruz? They have spent a lifetime consolidating their power, shaping their personal beliefs, and they carry the look of events that have shaped them. They are massive. They are craggy. They are pyramids of formidable power.
By contrast, consider Hillary Clinton's global brain. Her brain is more like a beacon. A beacon shines its light to illuminate the forest AND the trees. Global, it shines it's light into dark corners around the world to cast light on a landscape of conflict and diverse cultures. It sheds light in equal measure on people, their problems, and possible solutions.
The global brain is wired for complex thinking.
After the latest debate, in Brooklyn, between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, I was asked a question about the leadership styles of Election 2016 candidates. A children's song from England's 15th Century War of the Roses came to mind. The words describe Bernie's dilemma.
Oh, the noble Duke of York, he had 10,000 men, he marched them up to the top of the hill and he marched them down again. And when they were up they were up; and when they were down they were down; and when they were nearly halfway up, they were neither up nor down.
In times of war, in revolutionary times, those who lead are those who "think like a mountain." They lead us up to the top of the hill and down again. They focus on a single goal, without distraction. When they win, they are UP; when they lose, they are DOWN.
In today's world, there is no "up or down" there is only complexity. In entrepreneurial America, we learn that dreams are "a goal with a deadline." We learn that it is OK to fail, and learn from each failure as we iterate, and reiterate our way toward the future.
Learning from the past, we know that life is complex. Relationships are complex. Our technology-driven workplaces are complex places that thrive on constant, never ending change.
What the political landscape in 2016 reminds is what the world needs now is more collaboration, cooperation, and sustainability. America needs leaders whose brains are best able to manage the complexity and seemingly endless chaos of our times.
We need leaders who respond to stress with laser-beam clarity, flexibility and diplomacy, not with the threat of bullets and bombs, or with the wagging of a pointed finger.
Hillary's global brain is a collaborative brain. It connects with other global brains. It shines its light on our untapped potential and links to a world of infinite possibilities. It brings us closer together as one humanity.
Humankind. As the handshake at the end of the Brooklyn debate reminds: WE can be both.