A society that is almost enamored by
social innovation for
innovation's sake faces in virtual helplessness a situation that requires — not for the sake of a traditional national interest but for the survival of civilization, if not of mankind itself — an extreme effort of
bold, innovating imagination.
One last thought on leadership. When truly disruptive
innovation collides with any market, historically the big boys don't survive. They are lacking the
bold leadership required to make major course corrections. The top ten most profitable law firms - 9 of which have no blogging presence to speak of — will lose their position if they don't join the party. As Kevin O'keefe noted this week, anonymity online is a losing proposition, while others disagree. We aren't just talking about blogging though, it's the whole
social media system - Legal Onramp, JDSupra, and even LinkedIN, Twitter, and Facebook. These are powerful tools, and real leaders will understand, like their younger counterparts, it is much more significant to harness the power of fire, than to simply try and stamp it out for fear of getting burned.