The answer is that we are literally changing the way the world lives, works and learns.

Why would we want to do that?  Because the last time we changed the way we lived, worked and learned was at the start of the Industrial Age.  Back when life was a lot simpler.  And almost everything was linear. 

Sorry, Toto, we're not in Kansas anymore.  We’re in the Knowledge Age.  Things are faster and more complex.  The problems are staggering.  And we can’t solve today’s problems using Industrial Age thinking.  We need to bring the way we live, work and learn into the Knowledge Age.  Instead of moving raw materials, we move data and information.  Instead of producing durable goods, we produce knowledge, all for the greater good.

Changing the way the world lives, works and learns means that living, working and learning are no longer treated separately.  The boundaries separating them are vanishing.  Let’s take a closer look.

Living:  People used to live in nice, 3-bedroom industrial-age homes.  We were assigned a street address and a school district.  We were assessed a tax, “each according to his means.”  The Knowledge Age is the age of the sovereign individual.  Self-reliance is making a comeback.  People will no longer passively accept being wards of the state.

Working:  People used to migrate to where the work was.  Now the work migrates to them, if they have the talent to produce results.

Learning:  Assembly line learning is dying.  Just-in-time, customized, online, virtual classrooms are replacing outmoded, one-size-fits-all systems of mass-produced education.

A massive transformation of these three areas is occurring in the following ways:

Life 2.0:  Your primary aim as a thinking, sentient being is to make knowledge flow quickly and easily, so everyone can lead more productive and fulfilling lives.  This means discovering, organizing and sharing knowledge about all aspects of life, especially regarding health in mind, body and spirit.

Work 2.0:  The very notion of a job is passé.  Everyone is a free agent.  Instead of an employee climbing the corporate ladder, you are part of a peer community of practitioners and thought leaders.  Your position in the community reflects the value of your contribution.  For organizations, this means creating a more productive environment where knowledge workers can thrive.  Success will come to those organizations which grow along with their people.

Learning 2.0:  You grow, personally and professionally, by giving and receiving highly customized lifelong learning, coaching and mentoring.  The same goes for organizations.

It’s a flat world.  Welcome to the knowledge age.