Take Action in the Middle of the Zombie Apocalypse
In developed economies, there is a growing sense of unease with the economic direction we have chosen. The financialization of our economies has left us feeling as though we live in a fantasy, where nothing real underpins wealth or economic sustainability. In this fantasy, massive numbers are created through facilitating transactions, or shifting foreign currency about, but it is almost impossible to get funding for new ideas. It is no coincidence that through the era of financialization we have seen the increase in zombie myths and metaphors. In Adelaide, we do a fantastic Zombie Walk, and there are enough zombie films and memes to keep the undead happy for an exceedingly long time. We have been looking for a metaphor that will allow us to come to terms with work devoid of meaning, where your economic action if allowed at all, cannot create change. Once bitten you trudge along content, but limited and empty. This metaphor feels right for industries that don’t actually create anything, for industries where innovation is a rule change that creates ways of accumulating more numbers, but doesn’t create new meaning.
Entrepreneurship is different. Entrepreneurship picks up the baseball bat and cuts a swathe through the pointless masses of the undead. Entrepreneurship is old school business we can all understand and appreciate. This is where someone has an idea, they take the risk, they raise capital and build a team to create something new. The process is archetypal innovation, where a person, or a team, brings a new idea to market – a real and tangible thing we can use to make our lives better. We often think that this is just a commercial activity, but there is also social and cultural benefits. So yes, a company like Google does make a lot of money, but it also made researching articles much easier and put broadcasting into the hands of individuals. Today, a good business has to generate revenue and create a social good. Having a good idea and sharing it with as many people as possible is what built our civilisation, being an entrepreneur puts you at the heart of history, it makes you a builder of civilisations.
MEGA gives people with good ideas the entrepreneurial skills and the living network of mentors and colleagues that can take that good idea to the market - to build a business from your idea. MEGA can also give you the skills and connections to have an impact on the world you live in, to make change happen.
If the zombie apocalypse has got you down and you need to do more, MEGA can give you the baseball bat and the mission – it is up to you to come out swinging.