Crisis, what crisis?
Rudy Aernoudt, 12 March 2009
Rudy Aernoudt, his come back as an intellectual!
The crisis and its opportunities
Thursday March 12, Rudy must be an happy man tonight. After a short journey in the political world, he just decided to follow his heart. Back to the intellectual world! A role he does enjoy, a role written for him. He could not find a better place to give his first lecture, Cook&Book, the trendy restaurant and bookstore chosen by Food For Thought. For Rudy, a nice discovery!
The participants were welcomed by Murielle Lona who made a very original introduction of the man. She mentioned twice with a big smile : “His departure from the Flemish Administration was not passed unnoticed!”. How did she convince Rudy Aernoudt to be her guest tonight? Simple, she went to speak to him with this statement : “ Rudy, you have been inspired by my work!”. Murielle Lona is also an economist and she was one of the first who made those famous comparisons between Flanders and Wallonie!
Rudy Aernoudt has received some instructions. “To explain the crisis and its opportunities, without mentioning the politics”. A big challenge! When you read the news, a lot of articles are dealing with the participation of the state in the financial sector, the public subventions given to the companies, the diminution of the VAT in the building trade. As a matter of fact, a few punctual measures in order to save the economy and to boost the consumption. On the other hand, who is not afraid to lose his job, his money…and even his dignity?
Rudy Aernoudt, a man who dares to go ahead
The crisis, a valuable opportunity to encourage the country to make some vital structural reforms? When there is no certainty about the future, it is the moment to show your courage. Courage to do something else, to discover your natural talent and to follow your passion! Rudy Aernoudt is one of those men who has always innovative ideas. He dares to go ahead, even if it is not the right way…even if there is a strong opposition.
Rudy Aernoudt proposes to build up the innovation society of creativity
The lecture began with the statement : “ This crisis is a crisis of values and we observe a lack of common sense”. As Milton Friedman says: “the role of intellectuals is to develop alternatives to existing policies to keep them alive and available until the politically impossible becomes the politically inevitable”. And this crisis offers this great opportunity to see a global renaissance and to think differently. How? By developing innovation and creativity. This new kind of renaissance will be started by the people who are going to create the innovation creative society of tomorrow.
All the attendees were listening with a lot of attention. The ambiance was really funny. Imagine for a few seconds the Serre at Cook&Book. Close your eyes. Just smell the delicious dishes coming from the kitchen, taste the white and red wine. It was a real Food For Thought session, with everyone eating, drinking and enjoying at the same time intellectual food!
Who is the man behind Rudy Aernoudt?
Murielle Lona, inspired by Rudy’s “value driven economy” asked him a very personal question. What are his “own values”? After of few seconds of silence, the man came with this beautiful answer . “I want to be integer. I don’t like hypocrisy. I want to keep my own principles even if I have to lose my illusions”. We will all keep in mind Rudy’s message “ In our society driven by money, we need to come back to the human values”.
Joseph, the ambassador of Edward De Bono, the father of creative thinking, was among us!
A surprise during this session : Rudy was not alone. Murielle Lona and Rudy had invited Joseph Woods, a senior Consultant at the prestigious Center for Creative Thinking in Malte. Joseph belongs to the “Edward De Bono philosophy”. For those who don’t know him, Edward De Bono is the father of creative and lateral thinking. He is also the EU ambassador of the year of creativity. Joseph who works directly with the Guru had a lot of thoughts to share with us.
A lot of food for thought, a lot of interaction. We proved again that Food For Thought brings a frew view on events.