The End of Power : From Boardrooms to Battlefields and Churches to States, Why Being In Charge Isn't What It Used to Be

We know that power is shifting: From West to East and North to South, from presidential palaces to public squares, from once formidable corporate behemoths to nimble startups and, slowly but surely, from men to women. But power is not merely shifting and dispersing. It is also decaying. Those in power today are more constrained in what they can do with it and more at risk of losing it than ever before. In The End of Power, award-winning columnist and former Foreign Policy editor Moisés Naím illuminates the struggle between once-dominant megaplayers and the new micropowers challenging them in every field of human endeavor. Drawing on provocative, original research, Naím shows how the antiestablishment drive of micropowers can topple tyrants, dislodge monopolies, and open remarkable new opportunities, but it can also lead to chaos and paralysis. Naím deftly covers the seismic changes underway in business, religion, education, within families, and in all matters of war and peace. Examples abound in all walks of life: In 1977, eighty-nine countries were ruled by autocrats while today more than half the world’s population lives in democracies. CEO’s are more constrained and have shorter tenures than their predecessors. Modern tools of war, cheaper and more accessible, make it possible for groups like Hezbollah to afford their own drones. In the second half of 2010, the top ten hedge funds earned more than the world’s largest six banks combined. Those in power retain it by erecting powerful barriers to keep challengers at bay. Today, insurgent forces dismantle those barriers more quickly and easily than ever, only to find that they themselves become vulnerable in the process. Accessible and captivating, Naím offers a revolutionary look at the inevitable end of power—and how it will change your world. Argues That The Leaders Of Today Actually Have Less Power Than Ever Before, Discussing The Changing Nature Of Leadership And The Modern Dynamics Of Power. Machine Generated Contents Note: Ch. One The Decay Of Power -- Have You Heard Of James Black Jr.? -- From The Chess Board... To Everything Around Us -- What Changed? -- The Decay Of Power: Is It New? Is It True? So What? -- But What Is Power? -- The Decay Of Power: What's At Stake? -- Ch. Two Making Sense Of Power: How It Works And How To Keep It -- How To Talk About Power -- How Power Works -- Why Power Shifts -- Or Stays Steady -- The Importance Of Barriers To Power -- The Blueprint: Explaining Market Power -- Barriers To Entry: A Key To Market Power -- From Barriers To Entry To Barriers To Power -- Ch. Three How Power Got Big: An Assumption's Unquestioned Rise -- Max Weber, Or Why Size Made Sense -- How The World Went Weberian -- The Myth Of The Power Elite? -- Ch. Four How Power Lost Its Edge: The More, Mobility, And Mentality Revolutions -- So What Has Changed? -- The More Revolution: Overwhelming The Means Of Control -- The Mobility Revolution: The End Of Captive Audiences --^ The Mentality Revolution: Taking Nothing For Granted Anymore -- How Does It Work? -- Revolutionary Consequences: Undermining The Barriers To Power -- Barriers Down: The Opportunity For Micropowers -- Ch. Five Why Are Landslides, Majorities, And Mandates Endangered Species? -- The Decay Of Power In National Politics -- From Empires To States: The More Revolution And The Proliferation Of Countries -- From Despots To Democrats -- From Majorities To Minorities -- From Parties To Factions -- From Capitals To Regions -- From Governors To Lawyers -- From Leaders To Laymen -- Hedge Funds And Hacktivists -- The Political Centrifuge -- Ch. Six Pentagons Versus Pirates: The Decaying Power Of Large Armies -- The Big Rise Of Small Forces -- The End Of The Ultimate Monopoly: The Use Of Violence -- A Tsunami Of Weapons -- The Decay Of Power And The New Rules Of War -- Ch. Seven Whose World Will It Be? Vetoes, Resistance, And Leaks -- Or Why Geopolitics Is Turning Upside Down --^ The Stakes Of Hegemony -- The New Ingredients -- If Not Hegemony, Then What? -- Who's Afraid Of The Big Bad Wolf? Traditional Power At Bay -- Soft Power For All -- The New Rules Of Geopolitics -- Just Say No -- From Ambassadors To Gongos: The New Emissaries -- Alliances Of The Few -- Anyone In Charge Here? -- Ch. Eight Business As Unusual: Corporate Dominance Under Siege -- In The Land Of Bosses, Authority, And Hierarchy -- What Is Globalization Doing To Business Concentration? -- The Power And Peril Of Brands -- Market Power: The Antidote To Business Insecurity -- Barriers Are Down, Competition Is Up -- New Entrants And New Opportunities -- What Does All This Mean? -- Ch. Nine Hyper-competition For Your Soul, Heart, And Brain -- Religion: The Nine Billion Names Of God -- Labor: New Unions And Nonunions -- Philanthropy: Putting The Bono In Pro Bono -- Media: Everyone Reports, Everyone Decides -- Ch. Ten The Decay Of Power: Is The Glass Half-full Or Half-empty? --^ Celebrating The Decay Of Power -- What's Not To Like? The Dangers Of Decay -- Political Paralysis As Collateral Damage Of The Decay Of Power -- Ruinous Competition -- Be Careful What You Wish For: Overdosing On Checks And Balances -- Five Risks -- Ch. Eleven Power Is Decaying: So What? What To Do? -- Get Off The Elevator -- Make Life Harder For The Terrible Simplifiers -- Bring Trust Back -- Strengthen Political Parties: The Lessons From Occupy Wall Street And Al Qaeda -- Increase Political Participation -- The Coming Surge Of Political Innovations. Moisés Naím. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Argues that the leaders of today actually have less power than ever before, discussing the changing nature of leadership and the modern dynamics of power. "In The End of Power, award-winning columnist and former Foreign Policy editor Moisés Naím illuminates the struggle between once-dominant megaplayers and the new micropowers challenging them in every field of human endeavor. Drawing on provocative, original research, Naím shows how the antiestablishment drive of micropowers can topple tyrants, dislodge monopolies, and open remarkable new opportunities, but it can also lead to chaos and paralysis. Naím deftly covers the seismic changes underway in business, religion, education, within families, and in all matters of war and peace. Examples abound in all walks of life: In 1977, eighty-nine countries were ruled by autocrats while today more than half the world's population lives in democracies. CEO's are more constrained and have shorter tenures than their predecessors. Modern tools of war, cheaper and more accessible, make it possible for groups like Hezbollah to afford their own drones. In the second half of 2010, the top ten hedge funds earned more than the world's largest six banks combined. Those in power retain it by erecting powerful barriers to keep challengers at bay. Today, insurgent forces dismantle those barriers more quickly and easily than ever, only to find that they themselves become vulnerable in the process."--Publisher's description. The provocative bestseller explaining the decline of power in the twenty-first century -- in government, business, and beyond.br> Power is shifting -- from large, stable armies to loose bands of insurgents, from corporate leviathans to nimble start-ups, and from presidential palaces to public squares. But power is also changing, becoming harder to use and easier to lose. In The End of Power, award-winning columnist and former Foreign Policy editor MoiséNaíilluminates the struggle between once-dominant megaplayers and the new micropowers challenging them in every field of human endeavor. Drawing on provocative, original research and a lifetime of experience in global affairs, Naíexplains how the end of power is reconfiguring our world.'The End of Power will... change the way you look at the world.'-- Bill Clinton'Extraordinary.'-- George Soros'Compelling and original.'-- Arianna Huffington'A fascinating new perspective... Naímakes eye-opening connections.'-- Francis Fukuyama