[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2016\/03\/17\/goodies-baddies-and-the-invisible-hand\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2016\/03\/17\/goodies-baddies-and-the-invisible-hand\/","headline":"Goodies, baddies, and the invisible hand","name":"Goodies, baddies, and the invisible hand","description":"Is it possible to lead from the front without getting caught up in the battle\u2019s heat?","datePublished":"2016-03-17","dateModified":"2022-01-11","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/jamie-anderson\/#Person","name":"Jamie Anderson","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/jamie-anderson\/","identifier":119,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/249ae804963762332acd20e644bfe865782bee3d64ee223d5dd6a28e548b47b5?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/249ae804963762332acd20e644bfe865782bee3d64ee223d5dd6a28e548b47b5?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"The Future of Commerce","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/logo-foc-schema-app-1.png","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/logo-foc-schema-app-1.png","width":172,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/good-versus-bad-1.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/good-versus-bad-1.jpg","height":375,"width":1200},"url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2016\/03\/17\/goodies-baddies-and-the-invisible-hand\/","video":{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"VideoObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ulyVXa-u4wE#VideoObject","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ulyVXa-u4wE","name":"The Invisible Hand - 60 Second Adventures in Economics (1\/6)","description":"Economist, Adam Smith, used the term The Invisible Hand to describe the self-regulating nature of the marketplace - a core concept for so-called free-marketeers.\n\n(Part 1 of 6)\nPlaylist link - https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/playlist?list=PLhQpDGfX5e7DDGEQvLonjDQsbclAF2N-t\n\nTranscript link - http:\/\/podcast.open.ac.uk\/feeds\/3998_youtubeuploadsfriday\/transcript\/41502_160114_354_st.pdf\n\nFree learning from The Open University - What is economics?\nhttps:\/\/www.open.edu\/openlearn\/society\/politics-policy-people\/economics\/what-economics\n\nStudy a free course on Managing my money at the Open University http:\/\/www.open.edu\/openlearn\/money-management\/managing-my-money\/content-section-overview?active-tab=description-tab\n\nStudy R30 BA (Honours) Economics \nhttp:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/courses\/qualifications\/r30\n\nThe Open University is the world\u2019s leading provider of flexible, high-quality online degrees and distance learning, serving students across the globe with highly respected degree qualifications, and the triple-accredited MBA. The OU teaches through its own unique method of distance learning, called \u2018supported open learning\u2019 and you do not need any formal qualifications to study with us, just commitment and a desire to find out what you are capable of. \n\nFree learning from The Open University\nhttp:\/\/www.open.edu\/openlearn\/\n\nFor more like this subscribe to the Open University channel\nhttps:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCXsH4hSV_kEdAOsupMMm4Qw\n\nLike us on Facebook: https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ouopenlearn\/\n\nFollow us on Twitter: https:\/\/twitter.com\/OUFreeLearning\n\n#OpenUniversity #Economy","thumbnailUrl":["https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/ulyVXa-u4wE\/default.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/ulyVXa-u4wE\/mqdefault.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/ulyVXa-u4wE\/hqdefault.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/ulyVXa-u4wE\/sddefault.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/ulyVXa-u4wE\/maxresdefault.jpg"],"uploadDate":"2012-09-05T15:46:26+00:00","duration":"PT1M21S","embedUrl":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ulyVXa-u4wE","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCXsH4hSV_kEdAOsupMMm4Qw#Organization","url":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCXsH4hSV_kEdAOsupMMm4Qw","name":"OpenLearn from The Open University","description":"Welcome to The Open University\u2019s free learning channel on YouTube. 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The OU teaches through its own unique method of distance learning, called \u2018supported open learning\u2019 and you do not need any formal qualifications to study with us, just commitment and a desire to find out what you are capable of. \n\nVisit OpenLearn, the OU\u2019s home of free learning for more inspiring ideas and over 800 free courses.","logo":{"url":"https:\/\/yt3.ggpht.com\/vuaGMIK-4E6nWb_FHAk12OShsUHz0iHxjReowj8QgBshQ4pO9MKeMn25vHdK6sU3x_QDc66H6A=s800-c-k-c0x00ffffff-no-rj","width":800,"height":800,"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ulyVXa-u4wE#VideoObject_publisher_logo_ImageObject"}},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ulyVXa-u4wE#VideoObject_potentialAction","target":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ulyVXa-u4wE&t={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"},"interactionStatistic":[[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ulyVXa-u4wE#VideoObject_interactionStatistic_WatchAction","interactionType":{"@type":"WatchAction"},"userInteractionCount":1004423}],{"@type":"InteractionCounter","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ulyVXa-u4wE#VideoObject_interactionStatistic_LikeAction","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":4695}]},"about":[{"@type":"Thing","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/marketing\/customer-engagement-marketing\/","name":"Customer Engagement","sameAs":["https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Customer_engagement","http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q5196451"]},{"@type":"Thing","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/customer-experience\/","name":"Customer Experience","sameAs":["https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Customer_experience","http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q984142"]},"Customer Journey",{"@type":"Thing","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/purpose\/","name":"Purpose","sameAs":["https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Purpose"]},{"@type":"Thing","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/purpose\/purpose-general\/","name":"Purpose","sameAs":["https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Purpose"]}],"wordCount":525,"keywords":["Customer Engagement","Leadership","Marketing"],"articleBody":"Nice guys come second and the winners we should admire are sociopaths. I might be paraphrasing, but all too often that\u2019s what we\u2019re fed. From celebrity chefs to autocratic CEOs, society has accepted the lie that you have to be a despot to succeed.Jon Ronson touches on it in The Psychopath Test \u2013 and history bears him out \u2013 this idea that the most ruthless people also share an ability to mesmerize and charm as well as bully to get what they want. And if not everyone all the time, then they at least build enough impetus to get what they want.Whether from business or politics, strip many leaders of their veneer of success and you\u2019ll find someone who is perfectly intelligent and extremely charismatic but also bullheaded and completely unwilling to listen to anyone else\u2019s point of view. Is that what it takes to succeed? Perhaps we need to re-examine the way we define success in the first place.Leadership styles and the Invisible HandTake a look at the lampooning of Donald Trump and the very modern saga of Martin Shkreli\u2019s downfall, and you will see two things. First, that the higher someone climbs a ladder, the better you can see their backside (and oh how we delight in pointing that out). Second, that it doesn\u2019t matter if you think someone is talking rubbish, they\u2019ll always find someone to agree with them.And with this alchemy of persuasion comes a strange mutation of Adam Smith\u2019s Invisible Hand theory. Originally this described how the self-interest of an individual (and with it free market capitalism) unwittingly benefits the whole of society. More so in some ways than direct intervention.I\u2019d quite like to believe that things were simpler back in the 1700s when Smith first put quill to parchment, but they probably weren\u2019t. There\u2019s nothing more complex than humanity\u2019s desire to clamber of the shoulders of its rivals. But I think with modern wealth distribution as it is, what self-interested individuals want is increasingly separated from what benefits society.There are notable exceptions. Bill Gates for one, who has put $20bn behind solving climate change (short version: since there\u2019s no commercial imperative, he\u2019s creating one). Perhaps the exceptions don\u2019t get enough press \u2013 \u2018nice\u2019 doesn\u2019t make the right sort of headlines. And it is possible to push people too far \u2013 as Iceland\u2019s response to the banking crisis shows.Groups of all types will excuse shoddy treatment from the big man and happily file it under \u2018Great Leadership\u2019 so long as it Gets The Job Done, particularly in times of crisis.But when the job done isn\u2019t a good one, and it\u2019s not in our best interests, then the simple truth is that we\u2019re worshipping false idols \u2013 accepting behavior that\u2019s less than equable without an exchange of care or protection. And the simple lesson for would-be leaders? Well it\u2019s the same it\u2019s always been: Don\u2019t screw it up.  Disrupt disruption.Connect supply + demand with the power of over 4 million suppliers. Get started\u00a0HERE."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"2016","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2016\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"03","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2016\/\/03\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"17","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2016\/\/03\/\/17\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Goodies, baddies, and the invisible hand","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2016\/03\/17\/goodies-baddies-and-the-invisible-hand\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]