The illiterate of the future will not be the person who cannot read. It will be the person who does not know how to learn.
Alvin TofflerRead
To think that the new economy is over is like somebody in London in 1830 saying the entire industrial revolution is over because some textile manufacturers in Manchester went broke.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes that setbacks in one area do not signify the end of progress in a broader context.
Alvin Toffler's quote draws a parallel between the challenges faced by specific sectors during the industrial revolution and the misunderstandings surrounding the new economy. It suggests that just as the industrial revolution was not defined by temporary failures of textile manufacturers, the new economy is not doomed by isolated failures. Rather, it highlights the ongoing evolution and potential for growth amidst challenges.
In practice
A speaker at a technology conference discussing the resilience of innovation despite recent economic downturns.
The illiterate of the future will not be the person who cannot read. It will be the person who does not know how to learn.
Any decent society must generate a feeling of community. Community offsets_x000D_ _x000D_ loneliness. It gives people a vitally necessary sense of belonging. Yet today_x000D_ _x000D_ the institutions on which community depends are crumbling in all the_x000D_ _x000D_ techno-societies. The result is a spreading plague of loneliness.
Future shock is the disorientation that affects an individual, a corporation, or a country when he or it is overwhelmed by change and the prospect of change ... we are in collision with tomorrow.
The Law of Raspberry Jam: the wider any culture is spread, the thinner it gets.
If you don't have a strategy, you're part of someone else's strategy.
The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.
Iβve also been reminded recently that while as a society we are moving toward greater inclusion and equality for all people, the tide of history only advances when people make themselves fully visible.
Now let us begin. Now let us rededicate ourselves to the long and bitter - but beautiful - struggle for a new world.
It's easy to get rid of things when there is an obvious reason for doing so. It's much more difficult when there is no compelling reason.
We are not trapped or locked up in these bones. No, no. We are free to change. And love changes us. And if we can love one another, we can break open the sky.
We cannot change what we are not aware of, and once we are aware, we cannot help but change.
The innovations we need at our systems level require an understanding of business, psychology, and policy, but doing it with a deep, deep understanding of how our decisions create barriers for fairness and opportunity for some people.
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