Are you ready to learn something today? I am forwarding you a link to a rather startling YouTube video. (It was supposedly a presentation made at this year’s Sony Executive Conference). I found it to be very informative, thought-provoking, and, frankly, hair-raising.
 
There is something to be learned here. So, please click the following link and take a look. It's just a few minutes long. (Don’t finish reading my email until after you’ve watched it.)
  
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cL9Wu2kWwSY

Did you watch it? In that case, to quote a line from the video…so what does it all mean? 
 
To me, it means that the world is changing far faster than it did in any of my experiences of the past…and even faster than the life I am experiencing now. As the video says, "These are Exponential Times." Business and life will never be the same.

In general, most people do not welcome change, but nevertheless, Change Is Here. The way we communicate, conduct business, socialize and even think will be radically impacted. It’s already happening. For example, five years ago, would you have ever believed that your daily newspaper could possibly become a thing of the past? 

What does this teach us? For one thing, that we can't take our industry or business for granted. I once attended a seminar where the speaker—a Boeing executive—made a remarkable statement. He said that, in a competitive society, if a company wants to stay in business, it must essentially destroy its own product. If it didn't create its next-generation replacement, the competition would. 

Metaphorically, businesses are often compared to ships. Small businesses are small, zippy PTs; large corporations are looming, ponderous aircraft carriers. Which one has the ability to change course rapidly? Yes, the PT boat. That’s good news for us. With the right attitude and people, small businesses have the ability to feel the waves, grab the wheel, and change course.

Today, it’s imperative that organizations have the right people, ones who can "feel the waves" and are willing to make changes. Technology has increased our communication capabilities, but at the expense of personal relationships. It is so much easier to email or text than to call someone on your cell phone or—Heaven forbid!—pay them a visit.
 
But, can you really achieve a vibrant exchange of ideas through texts and emails? (For example, my fingers are already tired from keying this in, and they can’t begin to keep pace with my brain.) Isn’t it more productive to have an actual, real-time dialogue, where questions are raised and answers are offered, and in the process, all kinds of thought-provoking ideas are explored?

So, did you know…
     •     You can learn more by getting out of the office?
     •     You can learn more by talking with other business owners?
     •     You really can change, when you have support from your peers?
     •     An exchange of ideas can create an epiphany?

I know, I know…I am hardly unbiased on this subject.  After all, I facilitate peer groups. But it is because of that experience that I can say with absolute certainty: Peer power is powerful enough to help you change with the times, even if you’re inherently resistant to it. It can give you insight and the initiative you need to actually make those changes necessary to your firm's survival. 

For more information about this concept, visit http://www.propres.com/. If you are interested in learning more of my thoughts, you can read excerpts from my book—or even buy it--at http://www.bestsmallbizsecrets.com/.