Artst Tlk Sketchnote with Peter Diamandis

I never heard of Peter Diamandis before seeing his interview on Artst Tlk. He's a really interesting guy with a great vision for the future. I love his passion for what he does and his X Prize Foundation mission to make the impossible possible, solving various world problems. It's definitely something that I'll have to take time to look at. It would be neat to be able to contribute someday. In the mean time, here's what I retained from this interview : 

Where do crazy ideas get tried? 

I've always wondered how come certain things take forever to evolve. Especially working in the building industry. I saw (and still see) a lot of things that does not make sense. One of the main example for me are the way most condo buildings are designed. Diamandis answered that question by raising a really good point: Large corporations and governments don't take risks because they have a lot to loose if they do. Consequently, things don't change or grow very fast under their directions. As such, it's up to the entrepreneurs and small companies to pave the way. They are the ones who can take risks, try the crazy ideas and come up with innovative solutions. This is how inventions such as the iPhone, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Google were invented. It takes people like Peter Diamandis, Steven Hawkings, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Kanye West, Eminem, Michael Jackson, Karim Rashid, Zaha Hadid and more to change the world and improve it. They go against the grain, they break the mold, they redefine our world. They are a true inspirations to me. 

It's only science fiction today but it could be science fact. 

If you look back at some of the sci-fi movies and TV shows from a couple years ago, you'll noticed that what was science fiction then is now our reality. Take for example the communicators from Star Trek: they look like the old flip phones when cell phones were becoming more accessible to the general public. Also think about back when Tom Cruise was using a gestural interface computer in the 2002 movie Minority Report. This technology actually works today.  It's not surprising to me that Star Trek inspired Diamandis in his endavours. That show is one of the reason why many people chose engineering as a career. How cool is it that Pharrell also interviewed Leonard Nimoy who was part of the inspiration for Peter Diamandis work?

I went from someone complaining about a problem to someone really working to fix it.

It's an important reminder to actively participate in the creation of the world you'd like to live in. It's not very effective to complain all the problems in the world and wait for someone else to solve them. Chances are, if you're the one noticing the issue and it bothers you, you're most likely the one who should be doing something about it. That's something I'm personally working on : making a personal commitment to be responsible for making my dreams come true and not waiting for someone else to do it, as Diamandis and so many other inspiring people did. When I think about it, all the successful people that I admire basically did exactly that.