Monster waves birth in the open ocean, but tectonic business waves begin with consumer spending. Are you or will you be ready to ride the Monster Waves?
The massive waves of Portugal are a function of the Nazaré Canyon, a submarine valley 5,000 meters deep and 2,300 kilometers long that functions as a ripple polarizer. Ocean swells build up over thousands of miles and flow through this geological fault with a minimal dissipation of energy. I just read the last sentence and am wondering about the medium-term effects of edibles. Anyway, the greatest surfer in the world is just a freakishly strong swimmer with a fiberglass board — until the right wave comes along. The Nazaré Canyon generates the biggest waves, and therefore, the most potential for greatness.
Monster waves birth in the open ocean, but tectonic business waves begin with consumer spending. The combination of historic savings, government stimulus, and record asset appreciation is shaping a wave of consumer spending unlike anything we’ve seen since baby boomers decided consumerism was a virtue.
Professor Scott Galloway “The Sonic (Entrepreneurship) Boom“
My website has the tag line “What’s Next?“, with a key part of my role with clients being to support those leaders in looking out into the future. As part of that, I read, listen and learn widely, looking to see trends in areas such as economics, consumer behaviour, investment and more.
One of the weekly newsletters I always read is that from Scott Galloway, “No Mercy/No Malice“, often a blend of commentary on the human condition and human behaviour, and almost always linked to a) calling out herd behaviour amongst investors, as well as b) looking into his crystal ball around businesses and business areas ripe for investment.
The excerpt above is from his latest newsletter, which looks at the economic drivers that will create that monster wave, as well as highlighting three areas that will be ripe for dispersion linked to our new open-ness to both use of technology and dispersion of both physical locations and where and how service is provided. Scott has selected: HQ, Education, Healthcare and you can read more in his post.
I’ll simply touch on one today, being #WFA (Work from Anywhere), or as Scott calls it, HQ. He and I are aligned and committed to the recognition that there will be a massive wave in rebalancing between city centre “HQs” (and office space in general) and a huge shift to the suburbs and rural areas. Some will ride this wave, others won’t believe it is there to ride even when it stares them in the face as they sit back on the beach. Still others will wait until further down the diffusion of innovations curve and wait their time.
Are you or will you be ready to ride the Monster Waves?