Iconoclast One who: (i) challenges established beliefs, customs or institutions; (ii) questions prevailing ideas, practices or values in any field; (iii) seeks to change the status quo.
The word comes from the Greek "eikonoklastes," which literally means "image breaker," and historically referred to those who opposed the use of religious images and icons in worship. Today, the term is used more broadly to describe anyone who challenges or questions prevailing ideas, practices, or values in any field, from art and literature to politics and business. An Iconoclast is often seen as a nonconformist, an independent thinker, or a radical who seeks to change the status quo.
In the context of Faulty Learning, we’re interested in those who are uneasy with mechanistic ways of working and thinking in a wide range of fields - from organisation design and technology to economics and even education.
Our ‘Iconoclasts of the Week/Month/Year’ are challenging the received wisdom in their domains of study and action. We’ll attempt to highlight their key messages and provide you with links to where you can find out more.
Over and above this, however, we’ll try to show how their inspiring work makes a wider contribution to organic thinking and behaviour.
As always with Faulty Learning, we’ll seek to do this in a light-hearted manner with a sense of fun - as well as awe for the incredible contributions each Iconoclast has made.