Does the title sound true and acceptable to you? A comment by John Moore mentioned that this is true. I wish to explore with you the validity of this claim.
A very interesting post, which I read reveals that in order for two enemies to not fight, is to find a common denominator between them.
One example is the avoidance of nuclear wars. Both the USA and Russia know well about each other to avoid the use of their nuclear power. The cost of this war is high enough for the two conflicting parties to avoid going to war. Each side has enough trust that either side would not use this power offering the needed predictability of not feeling endangered.
This way predictability has a massive positive value because without it the two countries would slide to fighting.
Building the bridge of predictability does not limit itself to just interrelations between nations, but also between organizations and people as well. Here creativity plays a dominant role in finding ideas on which they find the creative bridge to human different interests.
Take the example of two manufacturers of the same product say cigarettes. Both manufacturers have the interest of not exchanging claims that would hurt the demand for cigarettes. Both sides would refrain from doing such an act that becomes the bridge connecting them. It is again the bridge of predictability.
I know of a married couple who got divorced recently. Each party has documents to prove the wrongdoings of the other party. The predictability that either side would not dare to share the documents publicly shall restrain the two parties from using them.
The Ugly Face of Predictability
Not all of what we can predict is good. It can be bad. You have an employee who hardly disobeys rules. He works as instructed. You are happy with him because he is predictable.
That sounds great, doesn’t it?
Remember that this employee is not willing to take risks by exploring new ideas or new paths. He is not open to discoveries. He is blind to new advancements in technology. He is disinterested in what competitors do or in the possibility that what he works on soon shall become obsolete.
In a rapidly changing world, the last thing to accept is having an employee who is resistant to change. This employee lacks agility, the spirit of discovery, curiosity, and creativity.
We cannot win over unpredictability by following predictable and consistent attitudes.
Predictability has two faces indeed.
