We are now heading down a centuries-long path toward increasing the productivity of our natural capital - the resource systems upon which we depend to live - instead of our human capital.
Paul HawkenRead
Writing is my way of diving deep into an issue. My approach is to watch, read and listen - sometimes for years - in order to grasp the dynamics, resistance and patterns of thought that repeat and impede progress and breakthrough.
Interpretation
Writing allows for deep exploration and understanding of complex issues over time.
In this quote, Paul Hawken expresses the importance of writing as a tool for examining and understanding the complexities of various issues. He emphasizes the necessity of extensive observation, reading, and listening to truly grasp the underlying dynamics and mental patterns that can either hinder or promote progress, suggesting that deep engagement and patience are crucial for meaningful insights.
In practice
In a writing workshop, one could share this quote to emphasize the importance of observation before crafting narratives.
We are now heading down a centuries-long path toward increasing the productivity of our natural capital - the resource systems upon which we depend to live - instead of our human capital.
Inspiration is not garnered from the litanies of what may befall us; it resides in humanity's willingness to restore, redress, reform, rebuild, recover, reimagine, and reconsider.
We can no longer prosper by increasing human productivity. The more we try to do, the more poverty we will create.
At present we are stealing the future, selling it in the present, and calling it gross domestic product.
How much harm does a company have to do before we question its right to exist?
We have the capacity to create a remarkably different economy: one that can restore ecosystems and protect the environment while bringing forth innovation, prosperity, meaningful work, and true security.
In a man's middle years there is scarcely a part of the body he would hesitate to turn over to the proper authorities.
Don’t do what you know on a gut level to be the wrong thing to doI don’t think there’s a single dumbass thing I’ve done in my adult life that I didn’t know was a dumbass thing to do while I was doing it. Even when I justified it to myself—as I did every damn time—the truest part of me knew I was doing the wrong thing. Always. As the years pass, I’m learning how to better trust my gut and not do the wrong thing, but every so often I get a harsh reminder that I’ve still got work to do.
It always takes longer than you expect, even if you take Hofstadter's Law into account.
Sheep are stupid, and have to be driven. But goats are intelligent, and need to be led.
One wanders to the left, another to the right. Both are equally in error, but, are seduced by different delusions.
Each person feels that he is an 'expert' in one or two fields and just the 'public' in all the others. But you know, probably, from experience that no one is really able to appreciate any display of ability in any field if he himself has not, to a certain degree, taken part in its problems and difficulties at some time.
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