When the world changes... social media, mobile devices and the world of work.

My friend Mynhardt posted the wonderful reflection below on how a few technologies are changing the way in which people work.  Here's a part of his post.

The very nature of business has changed.

Where before the successful businessman was a company orientated person, skilled in the management of policies, deadlines and documents, now the future of business lies more in being a community focused and relationally intelligent person, mastering the arts of connection, contributing and sharing.

Obviously, the tools needed to do the job well looks very different on opposite ends of this spectrum.  

We're moving away from spreadsheets, email, printed documents and telephone conversations, as these ways of communicating become increasingly slow, cumbersome and, dare I say weird, to an emerging group of young professionals in the workplace.

Here are 3 of the top tools transforming the way we relate to each other professionally:

1. Social networks - undermining our reliance on email and voice telephony for communicating, and also creating a new culture of always-on connection;
2. Mobile technology - fostering a whole generation of young people who are getting to know the internet through their phones, long before they find it anywhere else; and
3. Geo location services - as our connections are getting more global through our online links, they are also getting more local through the use of location based services, letting you know what's happening just around the corner.

Please read the rest of his great post here...

I agree with Mynhardt - indeed, I have experienced what he is talking about.  Most of my daily work life (and mission) is 'run' through my iPhone and iPad.  A large part of what I do as a coach, mentor and spiritual guide is done through social networking services.  I engage with friends and fellow sojourners through social networking services, instant messaging, skype and email.

This got me thinking about a comment that was made by someone the day before Mynhardt's post.  We were talking about what the internet was like when it first began (yup, I was at University before the internet! and in fact, I was also at University when the first Mosaic and later Netscape Browsers were launched!).  The conversation turned to how the internet was in 2005 - I asked her what was so different from then to now and she commented 'I can hardly imagine the internet without tabbed browsing and twiter'!

Indeed, the internet, and the new generation that were born after the birth of the internet, have grown up with short attention spans, multiple pages loading at the same time, a myriad of tasks being done all at one.  Together with this, there has been a radical paradigm shift on the internet from information to social.  I remember when I could visit just about every site on the internet (yes, all 100 or so sites) in a single day!  The first browsers only loaded text and they were realy just 'pushing' information onto the web.  Now, it is all about social interaction, curating information, finding what your peers and social circle find interesting and integrating that into your life.  Twitter, facebook, Yelp, Foursquare, Ping these are all social curation tools that personalize the internet to your social and geographical setting.

Indeed, the new world is changing.  I foresee a few changes in the world of work in the years to come.

1. Tasks rather than careers: We are raising people to be task focussed rather than career focussed.  Most young people will gain a skill that they will apply for various settings, clients, and locations.  For example you may be an editor that lives in Cape Town taking on editing work from all over the world, working on a project by project basis.
2. Location is criticial:  I mean this in two senses, first, the new generation is wanting context relevant applications for their lifestyle and needs - location is critical for one's personal life.  For example, if I search for Pizza, I want results that relate to the town in which I live, not some far off place like Chicago!  Second, location is also less important in other settings of life, like your work life.  I constantly hear young people bemoaning the fact that they have to 'go into the office' or 'go to work'.  Because they are used to work on individual tasks (and sometimes multiple tasks at the same time) they want to do it where and when their energy, attention and equipment best allows it.
3. Stimulation is key:  This is the first generation that I know of who have grown up on overstimulation. Since, as Mynhardt points out above, most internet access is gained through a personal, portable, device (smart phone etc.) most young people are accustomed to being constantly connected, having all their information at their fingertips, and being constantly engaged and 'entertained'.  I think that we shall find that fewer and fewer people will take on tasks that don't constantly keep them stimulated, challenged and engaged.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on some of the changes that are taking place in the world of work.  Also, I'd love to hear how you access the internet (primarily).  Is it on a desktop computer, a laptop, or a portable device?  Please also share what generation you are from!  I have a sense that 'older' folks like me prefer a screen and keyboard, younger people prefer a cell phone.