Module 5: The World Convergence

Now that all ten flatteners have been acknowledged and explored in detail, Friedman enlightens us with the merging of these and the aftermath. This he calls the triple convergence. Firstly, we begin with all ten flatteners working on each other, providing new skills and therefore habits. This ultimately raises the bar of competition, education, achievements, business and potential. These new hits in technology and society spread nationally and globally, then connect. The biggest factor with the new rush in improvements and convenience discoveries in businesses and technology is time. Certain things have been around for a while, as with most of the flatteners, but just with time, more places have access to improvements in network, and businesses can have their chance to flourish.  Things need the chance to become available in mass production and advertised enough to become popular enough to make it “a thing.” Also, with time, recent efforts begin to utilize the phrase of “simultaneous improvement of complementary goods.” This is the instance where product can increase in value dependent on another product, as Friedman used paper versus pencil for an example. These two items ‘compliment’ each other in a way where if one were to be improved upon, the other would have to and would equally increase in value. Overall, productivity improves. This is what happens with two of more items that are seen as flatteners like the reviewed outsourcing, offshoring, uploading, insourcing, supply chaining, informing…etc.

Secondly, once a higher standard is set in certain departments, we come to recognize that the playing field has changed. The challenge now is for everyone to hustle and find a way to compete and keep up. With a new playing field comes a new way of doing things. There are two ways that determine the effectiveness of one’s attempt to climb to the top. “Horizontalization” is the term Friedman invents that describes the smart perspective of having your biggest focus on your desired outcome. By having a clear objective on creating your desired effect, thing are far more accomplished by finding necessary means and thinking outside the box. The opposite term, going vertical, would be someone who focuses in who is in control. This is limiting to the new playing fields rule of networking and being efficient.

Third convergence is the players on the field. And more specifically, new players. These rising players learn to compete, connect and collaborate with new tools. Particularly spotlighting young Indian students, they earned themselves a nickname of Zippies, being a rising generation of motivated, confidently driven people. The most important fact that comes from the rise of this source, is that your only limiting point will be your readiness to make use of the infrastructure. Rajesh made a nice point that what Indians have is ambition, and that is just one more step of providing a sturdy infrastructure for the future as the United States is getting a little too relaxed. So our challenge…is to raise the bar, a more uplifting approach to the rise in outsourcing. I personally agree with his optimistic perspective and I think it is neat how he solely focused on individual improvement versus the potential for a power-hungry future. This especially when he mentioned about not ruling the world, but creating opportunity for yourself, and his comparison of the world being a sport and needing us to be a team player in this new playing field.