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In this enlightening episode of Next Economy Now, we sit down with Charles Conn, a cross-sector leader, life sciences investor, environmentalist, and best-selling author. Charles is not only a co-founder and partner at Monograph Capital, but also a board member and chair at Patagonia.

Our conversation delves into the nexus of the environmental crisis and the pivotal role that businesses can play in mitigating its impacts through value-driven solutions. Charles offers insights through the lens of his recently launched book, The Imperfectionists; shedding light on the imperfectionist mindset and how it can drive positive change.

We dive into the core themes of the book, exploring the challenges of fast change and the strategic benefits of embracing imperfection. Charles unpacks what makes Patagonia successful, a value-driven approach to business, and the common pitfalls of adapting to change. We also explore real-world examples of value-driven solutions and the role of AI in business and climate transformation. Tune in,and join us as we explore the intersection of business, environmentalism, and value-driven solutions in this thought-provoking episode.

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Key Points From This Episode: 

•   How his conventional background led to a remarkable career, and his role on the Patagonia board. [0:01:11]

•   An overview of his new book, The Imperfectionists, and his motivation for writing it. [0:03:23]

•   Fast change and the common mistakes organizations make adapting to change. [0:05:30]

•   The strategic mindset of The Imperfectionist and how it benefits the individual. [0:07:06]

•   Charles unpacks the qualities that make Patagonia so successful. [0:10:17]

•   Patagonia and its value-driven approach to business and saving the planet. [0:12:05]

•   Examples of value-driven solutions and The Imperfectionist mindset. [0:14:15]

•   The role of AI in business and its limits in developing value-driven solutions. [0:24:16]

•   Current societal problems and how The Imperfectionists framework can help. [0:28:29]

•   Discover the future vision for Patagonia and the Purpose Trust and how listeners can help. [0:33:44]

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Quotes:

“There is no stasis coming. We can expect more change and therefore [organizations] better think of developing strategies now.” — Charles Conn [0:05:51]

“When things are changing quickly the best way to learn new rules of the game is to actually lean into it.” — Charles Conn [0:08:04]

“Let’s make sure that everything we do makes a contribution to saving the planet because we can’t do business on a dead planet.” — Charles Conn [0:10:58]

“I think there is an element of creativity in human problem-solving that is very hard to mimic with a machine.” — Charles Conn [0:26:13]

“If we could be willing to engage in heart-based [and] values-based dialogue, I bet we would be further along the path [to combating climate change].” — Charles Conn [0:30:39] 

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Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Charles Conn on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charles-conn-5008904/

Monograph Capital: https://monograph.bio/

The Imperfectionists Website: theimperfectionists.org

The Imperfectionists: https://bookshop.org/p/books/problem-solving-mindsets-how-the-best-problem-solvers-crack-the-code-robert-mclean/16709310

Bulletproof Problem Solving: https://bookshop.org/p/books/bulletproof-problem-solving-the-one-skill-that-changes-everything-robert-mclean/16662630

Rhodes Trust: https://www.rhodeshouse.ox.ac.uk/

Patagonia: https://www.patagonia.com/home/

The Nature Conservancy: https://www.nature.org/en-us/

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