Goal: It is time to shift our thinking and approach.  We are bringing together a diverse group of leaders to create a new framework for how organizations who are focused on supporting service – companies, media, nonprofits, government – can better address the challenges that exist today. Our discussion will focus on: What do we STOP doing?

Background: Everyone talks about the transformational power of digital and social media, the contribution that technology and the Internet are having on our society, but for all the changes and advancements, most things about our society are operating largely as they have for a long time.

The promise of new technology is scale, reach, and efficiency. By prioritizing ease and speed of delivery over quality of product, the digital age has not made us lazy so much as it has catered to (and therefore amplified) some of our lazier tendencies. Hence, we choose to do more instead of thinking about what we are doing already. We take on new communication platforms without asking ourselves why they will work in ways the old ones did not. We exhaust ourselves by being active, but fail to produce the necessary outcomes.

There are too many activities distracting us from the important issues and critical work that needs to be done. There are too many bad habits that are preventing us from pursuing the best solutions. There is so much potential for action, change, impact, and influence today that we should all feel inspired. But we aren’t in a position to take advantage of all those opportunities in the best ways. Too many things are standing in our way. So before we can do more and achieve what we know is possible, we have to stop doing the things that aren’t working. We need to shift the focus away from activities that are nice and interesting, but aren’t important, and start focusing on the things that will help accomplish our goals.