The World is Flat

I just com­pleted read­ing The World is Flat, by Thomas Fried­man, and I rec­om­mend it to any­one who is lit­er­ate.  This book is a fas­ci­nat­ing look at some of the most impor­tant trends and events of the last decade.  It paints a very dif­fer­ent pic­ture of the future world.  While Fried­man is not a dooms­day author, his book is a real wake-up call.  China, India, and the devel­op­ing nations of the world are embrac­ing tech­nol­ogy and grow­ing at unprece­dented rates.  Fried­man dis­cusses this trend and how it will change every­thing we are accus­tomed to.  There are count­less points that are rel­e­vant and insight­ful.  My copy of the book is so filled with Dog Eared pages that it will barely shut.  Fried­man basi­cally asserts that the world as we know it is flat, in so much as all peo­ple around the globe are much bet­ter able to com­pete, col­lab­o­rate and cre­ate world chang­ing inno­va­tions.  He lists his 10 Forces that Flat­tened the world which include 11÷9÷89 (Fall of the Berlin Wall), the pub­lic offer­ing of Netscape, the rise of Out­sourc­ing, Off­shoring, In-Sourcing and more.  It is an amaz­ing book.  The 450 pages plus fly by, and you will prob­a­bly find your­self want­ing to re-read it again once you have made your way through it.  Fried­man closes the book with a great quote.  “The most impor­tant attribute you can have is a cre­ative imag­i­na­tion.“  I am very excited about the “Flat” world.  Voice your opin­ion on “The World is Flat” by leav­ing a com­ment below.

Thomas L. Fried­man, New York Times “For­eign Affairs” colum­nist and author of “The World Is Flat