Just Start Running

There's a phenomenon called the Bannister Effect. It's named after the first guy who ran a mile in under four minutes. Before he did it in 1954, nobody could do it. After he did it, runners all over the world could do it. So what changed? It wasn't their shoes, their diets, or their training. It was their belief — if Bannister could do it, it was doable.

We are conditioned to wait for permission, to wait for someone to tell us it's okay to be brilliant, to take risks, or to disrupt the status quo. But here’s the big secret: There's nobody there to give us permission.

The world, our institutions, and even our markets are more anarchic than we think and are held together largely by everyone's willingness to play along. Even in the most structured, rule-bound environments, there's no one with the authority to decide who gets to have a breakthrough or change the game. There's no magic moment when the stars align and the Universe says, "Go ahead and disrupt." The opportunity is always there.

Some years ago, I decided to improve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. No one asked me to do it. In fact, nobody at the UN had any idea who I was. But I saw a need and decided to try and fill it.

I could have tried to find a person somewhere in that massive bureaucracy to give me permission. But there isn't anybody like that. And if there were, that person would probably be so committed to the status quo that they'd be unwilling to let me.

It's better not to ask. Just go.