Liberal arts for the future - Masanobu Tsugaske

 

11 Lessons to survive disruptive era

The book is a collection of Masanobu's interview with 11 professionals in different liberal arts fields. All professionals interviewed are Japanese. Understanding of Japanese history and cultural state and values is helpful in reading. This book helped me to realize the impact of societal changes in broad liberal arts realm and how all studies are closely knitted together. The lessons learned from this book are useful to everyone and worth spending time to anticipate and adapt to the future coming to us.

1. Media

Ability to edit is the key to managing a business. Connect all available contents and objects to create to find the new values and trends.

2. Design

We live in the era where we create and evaluate the values. Designers point where the human desires lie. Keep wonder which desire you have and how you would create it as a service.

3. Product

Interaction between a person and an object has been the key in a product design. Interaction between a person and his/her values are being designed in the era where contents are more important than the objects themselves. 

4. Architecture

Beauty of architectural works is in the adaptability of the building to the change in seasons, time, or activities of people. Architecture should be based on what people value.

5. Philosophy

Ideology focused on fulfilling instinct and intuitive needs is animalistic. Ideology that balances the instinct needs and the other desires stemming from unanticipated events is humanistic. To be human is to have senses and adapt in unanticipated events. Observations on what kind of unanticipated desires exist and why they exists should continue.

6. Economics

We need to get away from the "faster, farter, and more reasonable" modern ideas and strive towards "slower, closer and more generous" idea. When the capitalism has reached its limits on solving the widening wealth gap and facing stagnant low interest rates, we should review the history and the world to establish a new system.

7. Literature

Every abstract idea, whether it be a personal ideology, identity, or social system limitations, needs a specific example for a clear explanation. The value of experience is dependent on the languages used to describe it. Literature does not die. It evolves and transcends.

8. Art

The purpose of art is to help people realize the value of life. Art revolutionizes the every day life in a way only art can approach. Art is not just a style to be admired, but the enablement and activation of life that trigger people to act. Individuality and identity is created when people act.

9. Health

The more experience you have in building trust and understanding other people, more beneficial to your health. Find one big question or purpose in your life that will multiply your interactions with others.

10. Life Science

Life is unpredictable and hence cannot be programmed. Life can sustain, recover and replicates by itself. Create chaos and experiment to experience the stabilities found within the chaos and the meaning of it.

11. Anthropology

Humans have built trust by sharing the information they collected through their physical senses. Humans can act independent of data. Focus on increasing your sensibility, ability to think and ability to apply. Build relationships that focuses on intuition.