I had the privilege today of speaking at the opening plenary session of the 8th annual World Knowledge Forum in Seoul. My fascinating position in the lineup was immediately after Colin Powell, who keynoted, and immediately before Philip Rosedale, founder-creator of Second Life/Linden Lab. (I had to wonder if I was just a space bar between the two.) In any event, the meeting has a lineup that rivals that of Davos—and it’s a lot more fun to be doing this in Seoul, where, despite the looming nuclear neighbor to the north, there is an “Asian optimism” missing in the rest of the world. I was lit up by the whole thing. But my afternoon actually topped my morning—my 3rd and last speech of the day was to several hundred students. Such groups lift the heart—but they’re also stressful; young women and young men will not tolerate the bullshit that their elders, unfortunately, often become immune to. Back to VT tomorrow—long flights but worth it.
(Incidentally, I’d be hard pressed to adequately express the warm feelings I have for General Powell. He is, through and through, a remarkable person—and a million million miles from being full of himself, unlike many of his peers with whom I’ve had similar dealings.)