2022?

We continue talking about what the future will look like. No doubt we are all going to have to learn how to live again. The last decade climbed up a mountain at record speed. Then everything changed and the holes in the system that were gasping for air stopped breathing.

The road ahead will prove to be better for everyone because it has to be. The world of smoke and mirrors just ended. Businesses need to be profitable and worthy not just inflated with cash. That includes the public sector. Major change must take place and there are a lot of OpEd’s with a variety of smart ideas to help us get there.

Education costs are soaring. How about taking a whiteboard and rethinking the entire system, from bottom-up? The ability to take high school classes online with any teacher from any school would be game-changing. The best teachers would shine and the ones that aren’t so good would fail. How could a teacher teach 300 kids in a classroom? With a new model and support. Rethink the physical spaces. This might get rid of a massive amount of flab. The system needs to be toned and move into a brand new model.

Retail needs a total transformation. I am hoping we see the resurgence of small brands, neighborhood stores, and just more local. The era of the big brand fueled by private equity is over. The concept of growing, selling for too much to then slash jobs, redo and sell again is becoming stale. At least I hope so.

Cities need massive transportation changes in order to create a healthier city that has few cars. Some European cities have done a great job at this. People from outside the city have to be able to have better ways to enter cities so we can raise the price of getting in to exorbitant heights unless it is for delivery purposes. The long tail is a high ROI here.

The travel that we all did over the past decade will probably not return so quickly. After all, Europe has deemed us a parihana so we can’t go there. Personally I don’t blame them.

Most of all we need new leaders. The past is over in multiple ways. Everything has changed, we have zero idea what 2022 is going to look like but we can all think about it and begin to make the changes needed to get there. We need new people to execute from a Government level in order to take our country in a new direction. One that is bold and makes everyone part of a new economy. More than anything we all need to participate to become a more equitable place to live.