I saw a headline this morning: Auto makers commit to bi-fuel vehicles
Well, that's nice. But, what are they going to do when an even more efficient/cost effective/desirable energy source starts making waves?
What we need is commitment to flexibility. It's a balance between being very good at delivering what needs to be delivered now (mainly gasoline) and being able to switch to the better thing without excessive overhead costs.
In the past ~10 years, I've moved over two dozen times, across six oceans. I got very good at moving, and up until a few months ago, everything I owned fit in a standard car. I was very good at switching to the better thing. I feel I was also living a pretty good life, and could deliver to myself what sort of experiences and essentials I needed.
How did I manage both? I travelled light but everything I had was very useful. I was lucky enough to have a cushion of money to get me through difficult periods. I was able to tap into local resources and communities relatively quickly when I'd arrive in a new city or country.
The auto fuel industry (or transportation industry, or sewage system, or education system) is not a peripatetic person. But over-committing to an existing system is a short-term strategy. Reserving a cushion or resources and constantly seeking innovation will be increasingly mandatory going forward, especially as technology has allowed for the instantaneous sharing of ideas that might otherwise have languished undiscovered.
Think about all those telephone poles for land-lines. No one knew when those would cease to be essential, but assuming the status quo will last forever is a fool's position.
Take five minutes a week to assess your underlying assumptions and status quos. Even listing them out will reveal how fragile the current reality is: every one of those might change soon.
Flexible in mind, flexible in resources, flexible in catastrophe.
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