Message from Ahad Ghadimi I’ve spent over 10 years as a Turnaround CEO - I’m the guy who willingly jumps into the cockpit of a crashing organization with the goal of avoiding impact with the fast-approaching ground. I have ended up in companies or industries I know very little about with barely a month of payroll left. As a result, I had to develop a turnaround playbook that applied to all businesses. The playbook, captured in my first book, Turnaround Artists, is about scaling a culture of inclusiveness, innovation, and employee-ownership - quickly. I encourage you to connect with me at aghadimi@forumsatwork.com and on LinkedIn. |
A Loneliness Pandemic
As you’re probably aware, loneliness, mental health, and toxic workplace culture has become the norm in our society. The Governments of the UK, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada have appointed Ministers of Loneliness. Vivek Murthy, the current Surgeon General of the United States declared a Loneliness Pandemic in 2017, stating: Loneliness is a growing health epidemic in the country and can cut a person’s life span in a way that’s similar to smoking 15 cigarettes a day.
All this was before the effects of Covid-19 and the growing isolating forces of social media. I can go on with how this links to rising rates of suicide, gun violence, and the prevalence of chronic illness… but enough of the bad news.
Here’s the bright side: there’s a proven solution available to combat loneliness and create deep connections. This solution has been used for hundreds of years and until now, has only been readily available to CEOs and addicts.
Benjamin Franklin had one and called it a Junto. Thomas Edison and Henry Ford called theirs a Mastermind. Alcoholics and Narcotic addicts call it a Meeting.
Today, 100,000s of the world’s CEOs and Presidents call it a Forum and participate monthly.
A Peer Forum is a group of 7 people in similar roles and career stages who agree to meet regularly for thoughtful and confidential conversations about their work and lives, in order to learn from one another and grow (read the HBR article on Peer Forums here).
While the names of the groups may differ, what they all agree on is that gathering with peers, and tackling the same challenges in an environment of trust and confidentiality has been central to their success, happiness, and mental health.
These Peer Forums are the antidote for loneliness and a secret weapon for achieving our biggest goals in life.
Me, along with many of my CEO peers who have had life changing experiences through Forum, have been asking ourselves, if this is so good for business leaders, innovators, and recovering addicts, then why not everyone else?
Mission: To Connect One Billion People in Forums by 2030
Until now, the opportunity to join such a group was expensive and reserved to exclusive membership clubs. We have changed that. We use technology, Hollywood scriptwriting, and AI to bring the power of Peer Forums to every professional channel - from doctors to teachers, architects to policemen, unions, associations, and beyond.
Here’s how:
We are democratizing the opportunity to join a Peer Forum for all people, by:
I have committed my entire focus and personal resources to the realization of this mission. Spending the last five years building forums@work, has allowed us to learn, innovate, practice, and optimize our Forum solutions for the greatest possible impact. After launching hundreds of Forums in the workplace in 21 countries around the world, we’ve developed a Forum methodology that works every single time.
We can’t reach 1 Billion people alone. Join us to transform the lives of the people you work and live with.
Here’s what you can do to positively impact the lives of 1 billion people: