davidmacgregor's posterous

I recently attended the Kea World Class New Zealanders event. I dodged the glad-handing, back slapping of the award ceremony the evening before because I didn't feel that it would be useful.

The speakers who shared their thoughts the following day were though. I was particularly impressed with Derek Handley of the The Hyperfactory.
He was somewhat laconic. I don't know if that is is personal style, I have never met him in person. But his message resonates with me.

I get very weary hearing folk talk up New Zealand's place in the world. When I have traveled I have noticed there is a benign warmth towards us - but there is very little breathless excitement about us as a nation. Why would there be? We barely register in the grand scheme of things.

Let's face it when did you last have a fascinating discourse with a neighbor about dairy products or lumber?
Nobody is talking about us out there - by the same metric as our beloved 'per head of population' delusion
The trope that we 'punch above our weight', is jingoistic drivel.

We under-perform. Just look at the disparity between Australia's fortunes and our own.
In so many ways we are in a race for the bottom.

I don't say these things to be dis-spiriting or negative but we need a reality check and some real leadership.
By leadership I don't mean rhetoric from politicians of any party but from more people like Derek Handley who will think deeply about the future and position themselves in danger's way to exploit the trends and opportunities they present.
More of the same is not going to work for New Zealand.
At the rate we are regressing we will be a branch of Australia before you know it.
Or a branch of Tasmania.

You may well disagree with me.
I have a dear friend who has an investment theory that pivots on the GOD principle - Gold, Oil and Dairy and, while I can't argue with it's clarity and simplicity I wonder whether the real opportunity for explosive growth and 'insane profits' (to quote Tom Peters) resides somewhere else in the firmament - between your ears.

I've been wrong before, but I believe New Zealand's real future resides in intellectual property and the creative economy will be the one that delivers the prosperity we crave. Sure, primary produce is the 'backbone' of the the current economy, but you don't have to be Einstein to see the challenges we face when our resources are equal to our capacity to supply. Where will growth come from other than the value economy, rather than the volume/commodity economy. How long before Greenpeace start targetting toxic kiwi farming practices, rather than the low hanging fruit of oil exploration?

'What we need is a little less wish-bone and a little more back-bone' - and more clever buggers like Mr Handley who are prepared to speak up.