A flat world

Thomas Friedman's revolutionary book, "The World is Flat," takes more than 500 pages to articulate a very important point: Nearly every mundane function of business and professional services will soon be commoditized.\nWhat this means is individuals from all around the world will soon perform virtually any job that doesn't require face-to-face interaction between humans for a fraction of the cost. \nDoes that cause you anxiety? It should.\nIt is important to consider that I said "virtually" any job. There is a certain need in society that can never be programmed or outsourced. Not by coincidence, this need is also the one thing that differentiates humans from robots. It is what we call a personal touch.\nPersonal touch can come in either of two forms: critical thinking or communication skills. Interestingly enough, these are the two things that are de-emphasized in upper-level business classes. The logic is that teaching students a specialized skill will ensure them a job for years to come. This sounds reasonable enough for the times of FDR but is too retroactive for our generation. With no due respect, a class on corporate fashion and networking could go a lot further for students than busy-work classes such as X402. For better or for worse, times are changing.\nThe newer "flat world" requires that every individual perform value-added activities. This means don't just present formulas and numbers. Rather, as my consulting professor Joel Rubin says, give us the "so whats?" Don't focus on getting the answers, focus on getting the questions. A Purdue MBA can get you any answer you might ever want for dirt cheap. \nInterestingly enough, the people who would succeed in a truly flat world are the ones who are currently extremely successful. These are the innovators, strategists and great communicators. These are the people who inspire others, band a team together and charm clients.\nThe Wall Street Journal had an article that brought up an interesting point -- in corporate America, those who got promoted through the bottom levels of the corporate hierarchy used completely different skills to get promoted into the upper levels. Basically, the first couple of levels of promotion required great computation and spreadsheet skills while the next couple of levels required personality and strategic vision.\nThe benefits of a flat world are great. Businesspeople in the future will be able to focus their time and effort on providing their God-given gifts to their respective companies. Businesspeople will no longer focus on busy work but on real issues.\nThis will bring incredible talents and innovation out of some and reveal glaring holes in others.\nIt is important to understand that a flat world is much closer than you might imagine. For a company I started this past summer, I successfully contracted projects all over the world for less than 10 percent of what it would cost domestically. The question is not whether the world will be flat but when it will be flat. Today is a great day to start focusing on the unique talent with which you were born.