the.world.is.flat-第52部分

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hundreds　of　former　farm　laborers　covered　head　to　toe　in　suits　looking　like　something　
out　of　NASA　are　performing　work　for　Bloomington…based　Donaldson　Co。　Inc。。。。　In　
Donaldson's　case；　the　company　has　twice　as　many　workers　in　China…2；500…as　the　1；100　
it　has　in　Bloomington。　The　Chinese　operation　not　only　has　allowed　Donaldson　to　keep　
making　a　product　it　no　longer　could　make　at　a　profit　in　the　United　States；　it　also　
has　helped　boost　the　company's　Minnesota　employment；　up　by　400　people　since　1990。　
Donaldson's　highly　paid　engineers；　chemists　and　designers　in　Minnesota　spend　their　
days　designing　updated　filters　that　the　Chinese　plant　will　make　for　use　in　computers；　
MP3　players　and　digital　video　recorders。　The　falling　disk…drive　prices　made　possible　
by　Chinese　production　are　feeding　demand　for　the　gadgets。　'If　we　didn't　follow　＇the　
trend＇；　we'd　be　out　of　business；'　said　David　Timm；　general　manager　of　Donaldson's　
disk…drive　and　microelectronics　unit。　In　Minnesota；　Global　Insight　estimates　that　
1；854　jobs　were　created　as　a　result　of　foreign　outsourcing　in　2003。　By　2008；　the　firm　
expects　nearly　6；700　new　jobs　in　Minnesota　as　a　consequence　of　the　trend。〃　


Economists　often　compare　China's　and　India's　entry　into　the　global　economy　to　the　
moment　when　the　railroad　lines　crossing　America　finally　connected　New　Mexico　to　
California；　with　its　much　larger　population。　〃When　the　railroad　comes　to　town；〃　noted　
Vivek　Paul；　the　Wipro　president；　〃the　first　thing　you　see　is　extra　capacity；　and　all　
the　people　in　New　Mexico　say　those　people…Californians…will　wipe　out　all　our　factories　
along　the　line。　That　will　happen　in　some　areas；　and　some　companies　along　the　line　
will　go　out　of　business。　But　then　capital　will　get　reallocated。　In　the　end；　everyone　
along　the　line　will　benefit。　Sure；　there　is　fear；　and　that　fear　is　good　because　that　
stimulates　a　willingness　to　change　and　explore　and　find　more　things　to　do　better。〃　
It　happened　when　we　connected　New　York；　New　Mexico；　and　California。　It　happened　when　
we　connected　Western　Europe；　America；　and　Japan。　And　it　will　happen　when　we　connect　
India　and　China　with　America；　Europe；　and　Japan。　The　way　to　succeed　is　not　by　stopping　
the　railroad　line　from　connecting　you；　but　by　upgrading　your　skills　and　making　the　
investment　in　those　practices　that　will　enable　you　and　your　society　to　claim　your　
slice　of　the　bigger　but　more　complex　pie。　
：：：：：　SIX　
The　Untouchables　
So　if　the　flattening　of　the　world　is　largely　（but　not　entirely）　unstoppable；　and　holds　
out　the　potential　to　be　as　beneficial　to　American　society　as　a　whole　as　past　market　
evolutions　have　been；　how　does　an　individual　get　the　best　out　of　it？　What　do　we　tell　
our　kids？　
There　is　only　one　message：　You　have　to　constantly　upgrade　your　skills。　There　will　
be　plenty　of　good　jobs　out　there　in　the　flat　world　for　people　with　the　knowledge　and　
ideas　to　seize　them。　
I　am　not　suggesting　this　will　be　simple。　It　will　not　be。　There　will　be　a　lot　of　other　
people　out　there　also　trying　to　get　smarter。　It　was　never　good　to　be　mediocre　in　your　
job；　but　in　a　world　of　walls；　mediocrity　could　still　earn　you　a　decent　wage。　In　a　
flatter　world；　you　really　do　not　want　to　be　mediocre。　You　don't　want　to　find　yourself　
in　the　shoes　of　Willy　Loman　in　Death　of　a　Salesman；　when　his　son　Biff　dispels　his　
idea　that　the　Loman　family　is　special　by　declaring；　〃Pop！　I'm　a　dime　a　dozen；　and　
so　are　you！〃　An　angry　Willy　retorts；　〃I　am　not　a　dime　a　dozen！　I　am　Willy　Loman；　and　
you　are　Biff　Loman！〃　
I　don't　care　to　have　that　conversation　with　my　girls；　so　my　advice　to　them　in　this　
flat　world　is　very　brief　and　very　blunt：　〃Girls；　when　I　was　growing　up；　my　parents　
used　to　say　to　me；　'Tom；　finish　your　dinner…people　in　China　and　India　are　starving。'　
My　advice　to　you　is：　Girls；　finishyour　homework…people　in　China　and　India　are　starving　
for　your　jobs。〃　
The　way　I　like　to　think　about　this　for　our　society　as　a　whole　is　that　every　person　
should　figure　out　how　to　make　himself　or　herself　into　an　untouchable。　That's　right。　
When　the　world　goes　flat；　the　caste　system　
2？8　
gets　turned　upside　down。　In　India　untouchables　may　be　the　lowest　social　class；　but　
in　a　flat　world　everyone　should　wantto　be　an　untouchable。　Untouchables；　in　my　lexicon；　


are　people　whose　jobs　cannot　be　outsourced。　
So　who　are　the　untouchables；　and　how　do　you　or　your　kids　get　to　be　one？　Untouchables　
come　in　four　broad　categories：　workers　who　are　〃special；〃　workers　who　are　
〃specialized；〃　workers　who　are　〃anchored；〃　and　workers　who　are　〃really　adaptable。〃　
Workers　who　are　special　are　people　like　Michael　Jordan；　Bill　Gates；　and　Barbra　
Streisand。　They　have　a　global　market　for　their　goods　and　services　and　can　command　
global…sized　pay　packages。　Their　jobs　can　never　be　outsourced。　
If　you　can't　be　special…and　only　a　few　people　can　be…you　want　to　be　specialized；　so　
that　your　work　cannot　be　outsourced。　This　applies　to　all　sorts　of　knowledge　
workers…from　specialized　lawyers；　accountants；　and　brain　surgeons；　to　cutting…edge　
computer　architects　and　software　engineers；　to　advanced　machine　tool　and　robot　
operators。　These　are　skills　that　are　always　in　high　demand　and　are　not　fungible。　
（〃Fungible〃　is　an　important　word　to　remember。　As　Infosys　CEO　Nandan　Nilekani　likes　
to　say；　in　a　flat　world　there　is　〃fungible　and　nonfungible　work。〃　Work　that　can　be　
easily　digitized　and　transferred　to　lower…wage　locations　is　fungible。　Work　that　
cannot　be　digitized　or　easily　substituted　is　nonfungible。　Michael　Jordan's　jump　shot　
is　nonfungible。　A　bypass　surgeon's　technique　is　nonfungible。　A　television　
assembly…line　worker's　job　is　now　fungible。　Basic　accounting　and　tax　preparation　are　
now　fungible。）　
If　you　cannot　be　special　or　specialized；　you　want　to　be　anchored。　That　status　applies　
to　most　Americans；　everyone　from　my　barber；　to　the　waitress　at　lunch；　to　the　chefs　
in　the　kitchen；　to　the　plumber；　to　nurses；　to　many　doctors；　many　lawyers；　entertainers；　
electricians；　and　cleaning　ladies。　Their　jobs　are　simply　anchored　and　always　will　
be；　because　they　must　be　done　in　a　specific　location；　involving　face…to…face　contact　
with　a　customer；　client；　patient；　or　audience。　These　jobs　generally　cannot　be　
digitized　and　are　not　fungible；　and　the　market　wage　is　set　according　to　the　local　
market　conditions。　But　be　advised：　There　are　fungible　parts　of　even　anchored　jobs；　
and　they　can　and　will　be　outsourced…either　to　

India　or　to　the　past…for　greater　efficiency。　（Yes；　as　David　Rothkopf　notes；　more　jobs　
are　actually　〃outsourced　to　the　past；〃　thanks　to　new　innovations；　than　are　outsourced　
to　India。）　For　instance；　you　are　not　going　to　go　to　Bangalore　to　find　an　internist　
or　a　divorce　lawyer；　but　your　divorce　lawyer　may　one　day　use　a　legal　aide　in　Bangalore　
for　basic　research　or　to　write　up　vanilla　legal　documents；　and　your　internist　may　
use　a　nighthawk　radiologist　in　Bangalore　to　read　your　CAT　scan。　
This　is　why　if　you　cannot　be　special　or　specialized；　you　don't　want　to　count　on　being　
anchored　so　you　won't　be　outsourced。　You　actually　want　to　become　really　adaptable。　
You　want　constantly　to　acquire　new　skills；　knowledge；　and　expertise　that　enable　you　
constantly　to　be　able　to　create　value…something　more　than　vanilla　ice　cream。　You　want　
to　learn　how　to　make　the　latest　chocolate　sauce；　the　whipped　cream；　or　the　cherries　
on　top；　or　to　deliver　it　as　a　belly　dancer…in　whatever　your　field　of　endeavor。　As　
parts　of　your　work　become　commoditized　and　fungible；　orturned　into　vanilla；　adaptable　
people　will　always　learn　how　to　make　some　other　part　of　the　sundae。　Being　adaptable　
in　a　flat　world；　knowing　how　to　〃learn　how　to　learn；〃　will　be　one　of　the　most　important　


assets　any　worker　can　have；　because　job　churn　will　come　faster；　because　innovation　
will　happen　faster。　
Atul　Vashistha；　CEO　of　NeoIT；　a　California　consultingfirm　that　specializes　inhelping　

U。S。　firms　do　outsourcing；　has　a　good　feel　for　this：　〃What　you　can　do　and　how　you　
can　adapt　and　how　you　can　leverage　all　the　experience　and　knowledge　you　have　when　
the　world　goes　flat…that　is　the　basic　component　＇for　survival＇。　When　you　are　changing　
jobs　a　lot；　and　when　your　job　environment　is　changing　a　lot；　being　adaptable　is　the　
number　one　thing。　The　people　who　are　losing　out　are　those　with　solid　technical　skills　
who　have　not　grown　those　skills。　You　have　to　be　skillfully　adaptable　and　socially　
adaptable。〃　
The　more　we　push　out　the　boundaries　of　knowledge　and　technology；　the　more　complex　
tasks　that　machines　can　do；　the　more　those　with　specialized　education；　or　the　ability　
to　learn　how　to　learn；　will　be　in　demand；　and　for　better　pay。　And　the　more　those　without　
that　ability　will　be　less　generously　compensated。　What　you　don't　want　to　be　is　a　not　
very　special；　not　very　specialized；　not　very　anchored；　or　not　very　adaptable　
person　in　a　fungible　job。　If　you　are　in　the　low…margin；　fungible　end　of　the　work　food　
chain；　where　businesses　have　an　incentive　to　outsource　to　lower…cost；　equally　
efficient　producers；　there　is　a　much　greater　chance　that　your　job　will　be　outsourced　
or　your　wages　depressed。　
〃If　you　are　a　Web　programmer　and　are　still　using　only　HTML　and　have　not　expanded　your　
skill　set　to　include　newer　and　creative　technologies；　such　as　XML　and　multimedia；　
your　value　to　the　organization　gets　diminished　every　year；〃　added　Vashistha。　New　
technologies　get　introduced　that　increase　complexity　but　improve　results；　and　as　long　
as　a　programmer　embraces　these　and　keeps　abreast　of　what　clients　are　looking　for；　
his　or　her　job　gets　hard　to　outsource。　〃While　technology　advances　make　last　year's　
work　a　commodity；〃　said　Vashistha；　〃reskilling；　continual　professional　education　and　
client　intimacy　to　develop　new　relationships　keeps　him　or　her　ahead　of　the　commodity　
curve　and　away　from　a　potential　offshore。'〃　
My　childhood　friend　Bill　Greer　is　a　good　example　of　a　person　who　faced　this　challenge　
and　came　up　with　a　personal　strategy　to　meet　it。　Greer　is　forty…eight　years　old　and　
has　made　his　living　as　a　freelance　artist　and　graphic　designer　for　twenty…six　years。　
From　the　late　1970s　until　right　around　2000；　the　way　Bill　did　his　job　and　served　his　
clients　was　pretty