Posted by Kevin Boon. Follow me on Twitter.
Over the past couple of weeks I’ve been putting some thought into a variety of topics. I’m in gathering mode trying to understand and put together some of the pieces of my life puzzle. Here are some of my insights from the past 2 weeks.
The World is Flat: A Brief History of the 21st Century
I’m reading Thomas Friedman’s book called, The World is Flat, a brief history of the 21st century. I have to admit I purchased the book a year ago but the 600 pages originally seemed a little daunting. The book was sitting on my shelf collecting dust but every now and then I could hear it calling my name, “Kevin…. Kevin….”
I’m glad I finally picked it up.
Technology & Globalization
Friedman talks about how technology and globalization are changing literally every aspect of our society and how nations, corporations and individuals are adapting or will adapt to that change. India, China, Eastern Europe, Russia and other developing nations are quickly emerging as dominant economies and the overall power structure within our world is changing.
He talks about outsourcing, increased competition, education, government policies and how we (meaning everybody) need to learn to think differently and plan ahead.
Did You Know Video
Here’s a great video that has been floating around on the Internet but that I recently found at Volker’s Blurb a blogger who talks about Life and Business.
How will we Adapt to the Coming Changes?
Make no mistake as the 21st century evolves China and India will become dominant economies, American and European influence will decline and world will establish a much more level playing field. Individually we need to understand these changes, adapt our lives and educate our children to prosper within this new economy.
Our changing reality is the main reason why I began talking about Meditation and the Life Balance Project but in future posts I want to discuss strategies on how we can adapt to the changes that are being thrust upon us by our changing world.
My Career Search
My career search has been a little slow partly because I’ve been balancing the process of wanting to find a job but also making sure that I find an opportunity that I want.
Cookie Cutters
Applying for jobs can be a daunting process because applicants are forced to put together a resume most of the time geared to a job description. Most companies still take a cookie cutter approach to recruitment and if you ever work with cookie cutters everything has to be cut the same way or it just doesn’t work. Sometimes it’s nice to just plop the dough on the tray and put the cookies in the oven. They usually taste better, especially if they’re chocolate chip.
Seriously though I recently took some advice from Chris Brogan and with insights from my World is Flat book and other sources and have updated my resume and Linkedin profile to showcase my talents.
Sales 2.0 and the Hybrid Salesperson
For years I have worked in software sales in the IT Industry and quite frankly I’ve found traditional selling techniques have become less effective in a Web 2.0 world. At one time in my career (from 1997-2004) I could make a call and send an email to a prospective customer and chances were good with a little persistence they would get back to me.
Today those same customers have more control and feel more empowered to do the research on their own but more importantly their time is limited often bombarded and overwhelmed with emails and the responsibilities of their jobs. Life has become significantly faster in the past 5 years and for salespeople there is less time to connect and make an impact. The best strategy is to become what I call a Hybrid Salesperson who is someone who manages sales, social media, marketing, customer service, relationships and helps customer find solutions - all in one package.
Here is an article from Hubspot that compares a traditional sales funnel with the modern sales funnel. (See pages 2 and 3 of the article)
You'll notice from the Hubspot article that sales used to be in control of the sales funnel but today that process at best is shared and sometimes the influence of sales is non-existant. The reality is the world of selling has changed and companies are finding they need to adapt.
Work Balance & Looking Outside the Box
As I seek out my next career or consulting project I’m looking for organizations that use cookie cutters more as a frame of reference rather than set in stone commandments. That’s part of the main reason why I’ve started the Work Balance Project because I'm interested in companies who look outside the box and have high standards for their business, customers and employees.
In a flat world I recognize that some day soon I may be working for a Chinese, Indian, European, American or Australian company. In fact location won’t even matter. That prospect is exciting!!
If you missed my Linkedin profile here is a list of my talents:
- Adaptable
- Teacher, Explainer, Story Teller
- Collaborator
- Team Player & People Skills
- Leadership & Mentoring
- Integration & Technology Proficient
- Ideas & Vision
- Flexibility
And one more: Fun!
Story Telling & Teaching
Of all these talents the one I relate to best is that of a story teller or teacher. For companies wanting to tell their story I’m great at getting a message across whether written, spoken or in person.
Gratitude
Earlier in the week I posted about gratitude and what I've learned is that gratitude is all their is. I feel an incredible appreciation for my life, my family, my health, living in the country that I do (Canada), the opportunities that exist out there in the world and the people that I meet both online and in person. The worlds is good and as much as the world has problems there's a lot more good going on than bad. This is good to remember.
The Weekend
The weekend is here. I’m looking forward to exploring the areas of work-life balance and finishing my World is Flat book. There are other books sitting on my table ready to be read. Maybe I’ll check out Twitter, do a little meditation, play my guitar and then go to the gym.
Maybe it's not too late to join the Flat Earth Society.
Have a great weekend.
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