Thriving in a World of Accelerating Technological Change

For the last three years, I've had the privilege of leading the Wellness program at Singularity University, where I teach strategies to help changemakers be happy and healthy in times of extreme stress and uncertainty.

We live in times of accelerating technological change, and all around us the pace of that change is increasing. At no other time in human history have we created so much progress, with advances in computer networking, digital biology, neuroscience, artificial intelligence, robotics, and more making astronomical leaps forward in very short periods of time.

At the same time, there has never been such a wide disparity between the rich and the poor. We know that inequality has long-term negative health and social consequences, including shorter life span, even if that inequality is relative and all basic needs are being met. The moral imperative to create a world where all have access to the same resources and opportunities is before us, and the capacity to do so has nothing to do with technology and everything to do with systems change.

Technology is a human invention, and its value depends entirely on how we decide to use it. Not just the titans in Silicon Valley, but all of us -- what do we decide to do with the amazing tools we have created for ourselves?

Those of us who wrestle with these challenges find ourselves in a position unique in all of human history. Never has it been more easy to effect change, and never have the stakes been greater for people or for the planet.

If you're a leader, a social entrepreneur, or someone actively working on creating a better future for all, you already know how heartbreaking and lonely the road can be. Support is essential if we are to do this for real -- not just a semester abroad or a trip voluntouring, but the humble, hard work of shifting our communities, our worldview and our systems towards an equitable world for all.

This is exhausting work, and it would be easy to give up our health and happiness doing it. In the last century, that kind of sacrifice was the norm -- the martyred hero, the tortured changemaker, the cynical and bitter expert who had no light left to give. We also saw exceptional leaders show us a better way, and prove that it's not only possible to be healthy and happy while being of service, it's actually the most optimal way to get things done.

I know from experience what it takes not just to survive, but to thrive, in environments where it's all too easy to become exhausted and depleted. For the last six years, I've worked directly with social entrepreneurs, global changemakers and public and private sector leaders from around the world to teach strategies that encourage holistic health and well-being.

I've led workshops for African and Arab feminists from the global network Women Living under Muslim Laws. I've created Wellness programs for Singularity University's Graduate Studies Program, Global Solutions Program and Executive Programs. I've coached social entrepreneurs, humanitarian aid workers and creative changemakers to help them find what it takes to thrive in the middle of the mayhem and the uncertainty.

I'm going to be sharing and writing about that body of work here, on the blog, but also more in-depth on my email list (which you can sign up for here) and in my online workshops and public speaking.

My writing and my work isn't for everyone. It's for those of us who cannot stand silently by as others suffer, for those of us who see the anguish created by inequality and are compelled to act, for those of us actively putting our lives in the service of the whole.

The emerging knowledge of how to grow our health and happiness while doing this work is essential. Thriving well-being and joyful happiness are our birthright. How we create the change is as important as the change itself.

This work cannot be done from a place of martyrdom or lack. It must be bold, courageous (a word whose origin is "full heart") and from a place of love and compassion. Only then can it properly take root and grow to have the impact we intend.

I hope that you're inspired to join me on this path of wellness for changemakers. For now, make sure not to miss anything by signing up for my email list here.