BOOK SUMMARY 329 Humans are Underrated
·
Summary written by: Ingrid Urgolites
“The new high-value skills are instead part
of our deepest nature, the abilities that literally define us as humans:
sensing the thoughts and feelings of others, working productively in groups,
building relationships, solving problems together, expressing ourselves with
greater power than logic can ever achieve.”
- Humans are Underrated, page 4
Over the last century, education has been the mainspring
of flourishing economies. The knowledge worker was most valued. As technology
becomes more powerful, computers can do many tasks previously done by knowledge
workers more efficiently, and education is not as valued as it once was. The
nature of our work is changing, and the skills the economy thrives on are
changing. In Humans are Underrated: What High Achievers Know that
Brilliant Machines Never Will, Geoff Colvin shows how social skills are becoming the most
powerful force in business. The new relationship worker will be the most
valuable asset in the new economy.
The Golden Egg
Social sensitivity is becoming our most valued commodity
"As the two large technology trends of our era
combine, as technology takes over more of our work while simultaneously
changing us and the way we relate to one another, the people who master the
human abilities that are fading all around us will be the most valuable people
in the world."- Humans are Underrated, page 67
In our changing world, we increasingly rely on computers
to retrieve facts, make calculations and perform tasks. Sometimes we still
insist on human interaction. Our brains are hardwired to relate to people, and
we need to feel understood—a computer does not empathize. We still need human
creativity. As things change, we often don’t know what the problem is, and
without a defined problem people must innovate to define both problems and solutions.
Human abilities are indispensable.
Technology has become ubiquitous in the workplace.
Physical and mental work is rapidly being done more productively by computers.
Not only can computers replace factory workers and office workers, in some
cases, they can replace doctors and lawyers, and even self-driving trucks can
replace truck drivers. Our work is evolving to become less routine and
repetitive, menial jobs are disappearing, and the complex social interactions
the human brain evolved to perform, the attributes that caused the human race
to flourish, are a significant advantage.
As technology expands, it becomes efficient to connect
remotely. There are countless examples; we have more opportunities to work from
home, we choose to connect with a computer instead of a person, we send texts
instead of calling. It is efficient, but our brains evolved to function best in
face-to-face interaction. We may seem vulnerable in a personal encounter, but
an electronic connection may feel like there was no connection at all. Worse is
that our human skills atrophy and our ability to sense the emotions, motives,
fears, and needs of others, fades. Those with strong ability to empathize
become less common and more valuable in the workplace.
Gem #1
Teams thrive working face-to-face
"The world is doing ever more of its work in teams,
and we humans have been exquisitely fine-tuned over the millennia to work
together in this way. … We form, exchange, improve, accept, and reject ideas,
and we improve our collective performance, through deeply human processes that
may happen without our even knowing it."- Humans are Underrated, page 140
Humans evolved in groups that benefit all members. Groups
offered protection, pooling of resources, and efficiency in hunting and
gathering. Effective group dynamics involve helping others, sharing knowledge,
and making connections without expecting something in return. Our brains reward
us with opioids when we work together, not for self-interest but the benefit of
others. When we interact face-to-face our brains synchronize, but when we talk
back to back they don’t. Companies that have ensured their employees have
freedom to interact face-to-face have seen boosts in productivity.
Teams that work face-to-face have a better understanding
of each other and generate more diverse ideas. Creativity is at its peak in
groups where people spend time both outside the group gathering ideas and
inside the group exchanging ideas. The team needs to have a healthy trusting
relationship to exchange ideas freely, and it is empathy that binds people and
creates cohesive groups.
When team members don’t work face-to-face, we lose the
advantages that evolution gave us. Since technology has replaced more of our
face-to-face interaction, narcissism has increased, and empathy has decreased.
Narcissism creates a toxic work environment where people focus on personal gain
and minimize their contributions. In this environment trust and creativity shut
down, we compete against our teammates and the organization declines.
Gem #2
Win with self-motivation and focus on others
"In their lab experiments and studies of
organizations, people who are other-focused as well as intrinsically motivated
produce the most creative and useful ideas. Being other-focused means having a
prosocial orientation, a fundamental wish to help others. It’s not surprising
people with those traits come up with ideas that will be useful to others, and
when combined with intrinsic motivation, it’s a winning package."- Humans
are Underrated, page 175
To be intrinsically motivated we need to be engaged in
the work we do. Much of the work we have done for more than 100 years has
involved acquiring knowledge or skills and honing them to do the same thing
accurately and repetitively. I think it is wonderful we can give that up to
computers. It is hard to stay engaged in mundane work when our brains have
evolved to thrive when we engage with others, share ideas, and explore. The
task then becomes to seek what genuinely interests us.
A prosocial orientation means we can empathize with
others. When we listen to and understand the thoughts and feelings of others
and respond with comfort, support, and truth, it creates a bond of trust.
Others have a reciprocal response, and you learn to understand one another and
communicate. Our ideas mingle, and the most useful solutions materialize. When
we combine our inborn drive and focus on how we can benefit others, there is a
synergy, and our work achieves its highest value.
We are all born with the ability to develop social
sensitivity. It is a skill we can learn or learn to do better. Our jobs are
changing; technology is replacing education and skilled labor. Humans still
need to feel understood, and for some interactions we will only accept a
person. Reliance on technology is reducing social connection. Those with prized
social skills are becoming scarce, and in our transforming world, we need them.
Those who have social expertise will become the most valued in the workplace
and part of the most innovative teams and productive organizations. Their
skills will be valued because they are uniquely human.
No comments:
Post a Comment