Only the lucky few will have real conversations
the rest of us can read about them

Is there a difference between a king sitting on his throne 5,000 years ago, deciding the fate of his kingdom, and the CEO, autocratic leader, or dictator ruling over their kingdom today?

The leaders of today and those of the past share one thing: they have conversations that matter. The conversations we ordinary citizens have also matter, but only in certain circumstances do they influence the direction of a state, a large company, or the world.

Who can really tell Trump, Putin, or Xi Jinping what to do? These leaders have advisers who have some influence over their decisions, but we, ordinary citizens, have almost none.

I suspect that only a few thousand people, at any given moment, are having the conversations that shape the direction we, as a world, and our individual countries and large companies take. I don’t say these conversations are fruitful, but they are there. Most of the conversations, newspaper articles, and documentaries we ordinary people produce never reach those rooms where the important decisions are made. This is not by design; it is simply how societies tend to function. Revolutions happen, and democracies can replace rulers, but once the dust has settled, a relatively small group once again finds itself making the decisions.

There is no real solution, in the sense that there are no obvious first steps toward a fundamentally better system. The difference between people living 5,000 years ago and now is surprisingly small when you look at how we think, process our surroundings, and how easily we are influenced. Many people still prefer a strong figure to lead them, even when they rationally know that the path this leader is taking them down is the wrong one. It is often better to go the wrong way with a strong leader than to remain where we are with a weak one. A strong leader can derive their power either from their ability to persuade others or from their control over other forms of power, such as an obedient army. These days you can endlessly read about how these different forms of power are divided around the world and why, but if you strip it down, it is still power that leads, not necessarily wisdom.

I was inspired to write this story by the two people you see in this picture. They are having a lively discussion while the people in the background are on the move, some watching their phones. The statues represent different groups in society. Every ruling class, whether in a democracy, a monarchy, or a dictatorship, has to keep these groups sufficiently satisfied. In the background you see the Parliament of Norway. Norway is objectively one of the better democracies to live in, and although Norwegians can vote, almost all important decisions are still made by a relatively small group of people.