If I Ruled the World —

And the "and how" that stops everything

Hey friend!

Have you ever listened to Trevor Noah’s podcast. He and his guests play this game, If I Ruled the World?,

where each person gets to create one rule that everyone on the planet has to follow. Then the others vote on whether it should be implemented. Some of the ideas are right out of left field. All of them are interesting.

Then I saw a friend post this question on Facebook: If you were leader of the world, what would you do first — and how?

It’s the “and how” that stopped me cold.

My first instinct was to end world hunger. I truly believe that if food deserts and starvation didn’t exist, the world would be a kinder place. It’s the base of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. You can’t get to anything else until that’s handled.

But here’s the rub. How do you get all the stakeholders to agree without ego and greed and infighting getting in the way? Do you appeal to our better angels?

If it were really that easy, wouldn’t we have accomplished it by now?

Here’s what I actually think. I don’t think a problem like world hunger can be solved. Not because the resources aren’t there. Because human nature, at its core, is not benevolent.

Women are, though. We are wired differently. We have always been. We’ve just lacked the confidence and the support to act on it at scale.

But let’s bring this back down to earth. Let’s bring it back to you.

What is one problem in your life or your business that needs solving right now? And what is stopping you from tackling it?

Fear? Shaky confidence? No support? Lack of resources?

My friend, Sara Connell — [link to her Substack] — taught me a technique called 50 Ways. It uses brain science to get your brain out of first-response thinking and into actual creative problem solving. Here’s how it works.

Write the result you’re hoping for at the top of the page. Not the problem — the solution. Then write down 50 ways you could reach that solution. They don’t all need to be good ideas. Just start writing.

I will bet you a cup of tea that somewhere in those 50, you’ll find your answer. And it won’t be as hard or as daunting as you thought.

Try it. Then tell me what you came up with. Seriously — send me a message, reply here, or shoot me an email. I want to know.

xx, Heather