How are you going to improve the world?

I’d prefer to let actions speak – so that will make itself clear in time.

Interesting thoughts Michael. It could also be argued that to improve something is to change it, therefore how you interpret the word “change” is the key issue. For years I subscribed to the theory ” if it ain’t broke don’t fix it”. Early last year I changed that view when I it was pointed out to me that the original telephone made phone calls. It wasn’t broken but because people “fixed it” phones today not only make calls they do all sorts of things. No doubt someone is busy “fixing” the phones that currently aren’t broken to chage/improve them! ” If it ain’t broke – fix it”. Now there’s a thought.

I definitely haven’t looked at it that way, but it makes sense! And you’re totally right – it does depend how we define “change”. Because changing the telephone would have been a waste unless it was changing it through improvement.

My point with this was to try and get people to think about improvement rather than just change for change’s sake – so I guess we have two options. Either make sure that people think of change as improvements, or just start referring to it as improvement. The latter is probably more simple and direct, wouldn’t you say?

Thanks for the comment – hearing the way you view “if it aint broke don’t fix it” is precisely why I blog. If I hadn’t written this post, I wouldn’t have heard the way you think about it :)

I agree. To improve something is to change it for the better. Not all change is improvement, but any improvement is a change. Sir Isaac Newton changed the world by improving our understanding of science. Adolf Hitler changed the world by murdering millions and trying to create an empire for himself. Both changed the world, but one improved the world by the change he brought. I would hope that most people who want to “change the world” want to do it in a good way—improve it—but as history shows, that isn’t always the case. Change for the sake of change can be dangerous. Change aimed toward improvement is, simply put, good.

I think that when a lot of people (including myself sometimes) talk about “changing the world” they think of revolutionizing it somehow—hence their focus on figures such as Steve Jobs. There is a place for such large-scale change, but we often miss what lies at our doorstep. We should seek to improve the world around us, not just dream about monumental accomplishments. I once read a short story about a man who decided one day that he wanted to change the world. “The world is a pretty big place to change all at once,” he said to himself. “Perhaps I should start with my own country.” But as he thought about it, he realized that even his country was too large a place to start. So he decided to first focus on his city instead. Then he decided to narrow it down to his neighborhood, and then to his family. Finally he realized, “If I am to change the world, I had better start with myself.” I think those who have wrought some of the biggest improvements in our world didn’t set out to do that at first—they were just scientists curious about the world around them and determined to discover its secrets, or inventors who believed there was a better way and weren’t afraid to try it, or kindhearted people who wanted to help those less fortunate than themselves. In putting their utmost into the work that lay nearest to them, in doing what they believed to be right, they ended up improving the world for everyone else. And then there are those who perhaps didn’t do anything monumental, but because of whom the world is a better place today. The cumulative effect of many people each doing a little bit of good can be a lot of good.

How one finishes “If it ain’t broke …” is what separates inventors from non-inventors. My favorite version is “If it ain’t broke, it don’t have enough features yet.” ;-)

How are you improving it now?

I’m creating a library of experiences and advice through They Don’t Teach You This In School (http://tdtytis.com).

It’s helping people in over 120 countries gain an emotional and social education that they otherwise couldn’t gain. Where Khan Academy provides an intellectual education, TDTYTIS is providing the other side to education – social intelligence.

I’m also helping people to remember their personal history and communication through Duo (http://duoboard.com). People are by nature nostalgic, but the Internet does not allow them to be because we lose the vast majority of our communication. Duo changes that.

These are not just changes – I’m not just creating a product because it’s cool to. They both fundamentally improve the world, because they solve clear problems.

This is just the start for me, but it’s a start that I believe in and will set me up to solve the huge problems that I see with the world.

Good picth. Great, indeed.

[...] physicist, Salman Khan, teenager, world | No Comments » Tweet A month ago I wrote a post titled “Don’t change the world. Improve it.” I talked about my frustration with [...]