Making Connections

by Ben Way

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Making Connections 

 

It is impossible to know exactly what the future holds, but it is possible to make a pretty good guess. A lot of what I do is future gazing and looking for opportunities on the horizon. I think the three big issues coming up are environmental technology, space tourism and robotics.

Each of these will involve a whole host of sub-sectors and issues that need to be considered. For example, over the next 20 to 30 years robotics will become part of everyday life. Robots will interact with us and, as they become more and more sophisticated, will take over many of the basic jobs in society. We’re going to have to consider what rights these robots have, what the legal issues are, what the servicing and upgrade requirements are over time and what to do with obsolete products.

The Rainmakers 

I’m 27 and Managing Director of a corporate venturing and innovation company called The Rainmakers. I started working in technology when I was nine, and by the time I was 14 had effectively started my first business – a computer consultancy. Before I was 20, I had my own offices with people working for me, and I was given £25 million by investors to take my ideas and turn them into reality.

The Rainmakers works in three ways. The first way is that somebody comes to us with an idea and we add something to it – either the ability to deliver it, management or sometimes money – then we turn it into a reality. The second way is that I come up with an idea then we put a team around it and turn it into a product. The third way is that a big corporation that wants to innovate comes to us – such companies are notoriously bad at innovating, so we help them do this.

The reason I am able to do these things is that I can assimilate information across a wide range of areas and connect it together. In fact, this may be my biggest skill. My passion lies in understanding the way the world works. Whenever I don’t understand something, I research it until I do, then add it to my portfolio of knowledge. For example, it could be how the electricity grid in the UK works, how it all fits together and how electricity gets to our houses. I research it through the Internet, reading publications and asking relevant people.

Perhaps it’s because I am dyslexic, but I don’t see things as flat in my mind. Instead, I have a 360-degree view of information and I can explore it very quickly. So, if you come to me with an idea, I may not necessarily know how to do what you’re asking me, but I know that I can find a way to make it happen. For example, I have been asked to help a client put their logo on the moon and I have come up with a viable solution. When I was asked to do this, I didn’t know how I could, but I did know I would be able to find a way.

Embracing an interconnected view of information 

If we are to prepare people for the future, whatever it may hold, we have to prepare them to look at information in a way that helps them to make connections between subjects and
bits of information. At the moment, education compartmentalises information and it often pushes people down one specific path – but this can be restrictive.

We need a much more interconnected view of how disciplines can be put together, as this will help people put information in context. At the moment, for example, you might be taught all about chemistry, but you’re not necessarily taught about how it interacts with physics and biology. But the world is Ben Way Making Connections not compartmentalised, everything interconnects with everything else. Information technology, for example, connects with psychology and with robotics.

Changing the education system to reflect this interconnection won’t be easy. At the moment the emphasis in education is on teaching children to absorb information, specifically so they can pass various tests. If I were to change the education system to give us skills for the future, I would want more time dedicated to understanding and being able to make use of information.

Exposing young people to the 'real world' 

When I was studying for A-levels, before dropping out of education, I used to have standing arguments with my Business Studies teacher because I’d already been running a business for three years, and the theory is very different from the practice. The challenge is to learn from the theory and make it work in reality. One way to do this is by ensuring children have more exposure to the real world at a younger age. They should spend time in businesses and the workplace to see what the world is really like. They could be encouraged to design their own learning experiences and escape from the bubble they live in.

When I took part in a television programme called The Secret Millionaire, I lived undercover in a community in Hackney for two weeks, and after that, if I wanted to, I could give money away to people I thought would enhance the community or make a difference in some way.

One of the people I gave money to was a young designer called Wayne, so he could set up a clothing label. He had great raw talent in the design area, but he also had very flexible talent and it wasn’t just in one discipline. Having such a wide breadth of knowledge and an understanding of how subjects interconnect are key to giving us the skills we need as a society.

About the author

Ben Way is an entrepreneur who founded his first company when he was 15. He is currently Managing Director of The Rainmakers, a corporate venturing and innovation company, and also sits on the board of Brightstation Ventures, a $100 million venture capital fund.