This appraisal of the current state of American foreign policy from last Saturday’s Wall Street Journal should be required reading. Brookings scholar Robert Kagan describes America’s (and the West’s) precipitous turn away from the realities of and stomach for power politics:
… in the wake of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is the U.S. that seems to be yearning for an escape from the burdens of power and a reprieve from the tragic realities of human existence.
For those of us in the strategy business, the lessons Kagan lays out are all too common in the business and economic sphere.
The most prevalent is poor assumptions about competitors and outside actors. Too often I see clients make the fatal mistake of ascribing their own beliefs and worldviews to adversaries and customers. No matter how many times they parrot the idea of “walking in the other guy’s shoes,” they seem unable to accept that others are motivated by different ideas and different objectives…some that may seem completely illogical.
The other parallel I see, especially with large firms, is the utter loss of guts. Executives opt out of the big decisions and longer odds because either they feel they must “protect” the current business or they fear the hard work, emotional turbulence and potential for failure that attends the big moves. The evolution of executive reward and compensation away from long term payout (e.g., stock options) only fosters this defensive posture.
Nations, companies and individuals don’t make their mark on history by shrinking from the contest. But sadly it seems more and more the way of things.