Post-US trip trauma: Establishing structures for the future

1. I noticed that I havent posted for close to two months now. Just plain busy, cos then I was deep into execution of an acquisition (my first to boot), then with the PSDM training I conducted, and then the 2 week traveling and its after-effects, and only just trying to catch my thoughts now.

2. Part of the question I’ve been grappling with now is trying to identify what my interests are. I know I came into SWF with a determination to contribute towards RE. I retained my interests in energy through CIRED. I tried to kickstart things while obligingly trying to catch up with ls and biotech stuff. I guess my US jaunt rather jolted me into the reality of the world of innovations and how technology diffusion and commercialisation is created within the real-world now. No whimsical philosophising, just getting into the scheme of things and making sense of a commercial, material and capitalistic world to create something lasting and good.

3. I guess I cant run away from the philosophising if I want to contextualise the innovations and technology development within an Islamic perspective. But really, there’s no conflict or disconcordance. There’s merely standing for what is right and finding ways to allow Islamic thought to reign and float above the chaos.

4. Before I get into greater details there, perhaps, there’s also the need to ensure before I lose myself, and primarily before fz gets back that I structure my thoughts and ideas for the future. Envisioning can create the generative force and motivation I hope to live off for the next few years. It’d also hopefully create a firmness of thought and principled stance that could stand me on good stead when I try to unleash my assertiveness onto the positions I intend to develop and hold.

5. The grounding that I have in systems thinking and scenario planning should assist me to project and understand trends and relevant consequences into the future. It’s that future which should hold some form of relevance onto where we intend to develop and strategise and where we intend to form our path.

6. That path should include how technology is created, commercialised and utilised for the benefit of the ummah. I should define ummah here more generally to be that of mankind rather than that with artificial state borders as we have now, yet cognisant that primarily, the intended recipient of the benefits should be national interest first and foremost.

7. Projection and predicting the future is never easy because of the variability of the multiple factors. The endeavour, which should be a good and noble intent, must be taken with a commitment and seriousness never before matched in my previous projects, indeed calling for a basic retooling and realigning of my life and personality to suit this calling – this epiphany. I should make this my pursuit, with the final destination accruing to the benefit of the muslim ummah in particular.

8. To do this, I should think of structures and ways to peg the various imperceptible changes, and allow further analysis to be conducted. And that, in a nutshell, is what I have concluded after my US trip.