The Future Of Work

Some 20 years ago, I collaborated on a white paper with Bill Gates and other senior leaders at Microsoft on the future of work, to be the centerpiece of the annual gathering he held in those days for Fortune 500 CEOs at his home.

He framed a problem in a way that has stuck with me.

It has yet to be solved — but that’s where you and your companies come in, as you take advantage of what we’ve all learned during the pandemic and map out new ways of working as we scope out a new normal.

The problem concerns focus — and how to get a lot more of it in our work lives.

Now, Gates is famous for his ability to focus and drive deeply into a problem. When I knew him, if he got curious about a topic he’d take a tall stack of thick books along with him on vacation and sit on the beach under an umbrella while working through them for a week.