Our world is changing quickly. It is changing in ways that few would have predicted 10 years ago, and even fewer would have predicted 50 years ago. The pace of change is accelerating at a rapid rate. The implications of these changes are life-altering, not just for an individual or a family, but for a whole community.
The changes that are taking place are of a magnitude that is greater than any of us can fully comprehend. In fact, this is an era of such dramatic upheaval that it is almost impossible to get a handle on the changes that are ahead of us.
So, Let’s Make a List of What You Can Expect in the 5th Industrial Revolution:
1. There will be a shift from a manufacturing economy which uses machines to produce goods, to a service economy that uses robots to deliver services.
2. The shift from a manufacturing economy to a service economy will result in a shift from a high-wage economy to a low-wage economy.
3. A service economy will result in a shift from a low-skilled job economy to a high-skilled job economy.
4. A service economy will result in a shift from an economy based on ownership to an economy based on rental.
5. With a shift from ownership to rental comes a shift from an economy based on ownership of goods and property. To an economy based on ownership of services and intangible goods.
6. With a shift from ownership to rental comes a shift from a (net) zero-sum, paycheck-to-paycheck economy, to a (net) positive-sum economy.
7. With a shift from ownership to rental comes a shift from a planning economy to a learning economy.
8. With a shift from ownership to rental comes a shift from a need economy (where you need things to survive) to a desire economy (where you desire things because you can).
9. There will be a shift from a knowledge economy to a solutions economy.
10. The shift from a knowledge economy to a solutions economy will result in a shift from a commodity market. Which has a few players and a high barrier to entry, to a marketplace that has a large number of players and convenience will be the driver of decision making.
Drones And Bots
Where drones and bots were once the things in comics to the things that were marketing showpieces at trade shows. They are now in our restaurants serving us food, driving us around at tourist locations and doing inspection work on our behalf.
The drone age is happening under our feet and while it can be argued that it has always been there as a part of the computer age or the IOT age, it is fundamentally different and deserves its own age.
Drones are now responsible for working at heights, in confined spaces with no light or oxygen or dangerous chemicals, they fly across open mines to inspect equipment and save half a day of a mine worker that earns a small fortune. Drones are big business and are getting bigger. It is time to recognise them for their efforts and really consider the impact on the economy.
