On Daniel Pink’s A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers will Rule the Future (twitter post 6/27/09)

Written in 2005, this is one of a string of management self-help books that have had sustained popularity (others include Covey’s Seven Habits franchise and Collins’ Good to Great). Pink’s book came off as especially elitist – not that the others aren’t. What was especially annoying was his dismissive attitude toward service workers, who are critical in today’s economy and are especially at risk during the current recession (note my mother was a retail sales clerk). Even worse, he seems oblivious to social inequity: “…while problems of poverty and other social maladies persist, most people in the advanced world have been relieved from true suffering” (p. 218). He doesn’t define “true” suffering, but I offer that it can be found not too far from his home in northwest Washington DC. This blind spot is particularly ironic given his menu of “senses” required for success in today’s world (senses = aptitudes, habits, competencies, etc.). Among Pink’s six senses is empathy (yes, as in what might be good for a Supreme Court Justice): “What will distinguish those who thrive will be their ability to understand what makes their fellow woman or man tick, to forge relationships, and to care for others.” The other senses are design, story, symphony, play, and meaning.

If you can get beyond the feel of elitism and are not yourself hungry or homeless, Pink’s work is a lively and easy read that reinforces what most effective leaders know at some level: they have to be able to conceptualize and articulate the purpose of their organization and work collaboratively across many different boundaries. Of particular value are the “Portfolio” sections that follow each chapter. These sections contain recommendations for exercises, additional reading, and other resources for right brain development. For some reason, the section on labyrinths intrigued me (p. 227 and following). See http://labyrinthsociety.org/home for an example of a resource found in the “Portfolio.”

The book ends with “meaning” – which offers no great insights. It is here that the labyrinth story is told, leading to the observation that labyrinths are like life itself “where the purpose is the journey itself” (p. 231). The idea of meaning, obviously, is not a new concept. I’ve yet to find a better expression of the concept than the Book of Ecclesiastes. I prefer the “New English Version” (1970), which subtitles the book as “the emptiness of all endeavour [sic].” The Speaker recommends that we should “fear God and obey his commands; there is no more to man than this.” Christ later offered that there were to great commands: love god and love your neighbor as yourself. Pink recommends that we “…start taking spirituality seriously and start taking happiness seriously.” An even more right brain idea was offered by novelist Tom Robbins (Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, 1976), who says that we must concern ourselves with “magic and poetry” if “civilization is ever going to be anything but a grandiose pratfall, anything more than a can of deodorizer in the shithouse of existence.” Kurt Vonnegut simply said, “So it goes.”