…take into consideration global networking, the Internet, and scarcity.

We actively observe–every day–as the ways in which we communicate, connect and work, continually transition, thus transforming life as we currently know it.  For us, this change is becoming a way of life.  We adapt and conform in order to make the most of this global networking transformation.  Our children, on the other hand, will not have time to adapt and  conform.  They will just be in it, no conforming necessary.  They will be born into a world that is both very expansive and at the same time extremely small and accessible.  They will be globally connected from the moment they are born, and this aspect will be a natural part of their every day life. 

So, give them a break–a head start, so to say.

My name was never highly ridiculed (I wasn’t one to take other kids’ harsh words to heart anyhow), but I do remember such comments as: “Go park your car Parke!” or “free parking today, eh Parke?”.  Ha Ha.  More than anything my name has been misspelled or mispronounced.  Most people leave the ’e’ off of the end, or they just can’t seem to say my name correctly.  They come close but don’t quite make it.  Example: The night before my wedding, during the rehearsal party, the lead singer of the band we hired proclaimed from on stage that “this one goes out to Part!”  Tragic, eh?  Here’s another: My now Father-in-Law called me Clark for at least the first 4 months of my dating relationship with his daughter–now my wife–still his daughter.  Again, tragic, but well worth it because he let me marry his daughter. Ha! 

Okay, so what’s the point Parkay?…I mean Part…I mean Parker…I mean…Parke!

The point is this:  New kids will need new names that give them exclusivity.  They will need a scarce yet still memorable name that gives them automatic #1 coverage on Google, Yahoo, Digg, Twitter, Facebook, or whatever other new search engine or social network that may be available at that time.  Think SEO not great, great, great, great grandma when you name that tiny, kicking, floating blob with its rapid heart beat and squishy brain. 

Trust me.  Your kid will thank you.

PS  The name is just a head start.  In order to genuinely stand out they’ll have to be spectacular.  I’ll leave that foundation up to you to form.

My wife is coming home from L.A. today, and it is my duty to get to the airport on time.  This entails keeping constant tabs on when her flight is leaving and arriving from her linking flight, Chicago.  It is very annoying / time consuming to have to go to the airlines flight status website and sign in time and time again in order to get up to the date info on her flight.  Instead use this trick:  Simply type the Airline and the Flight Number into the Google search bar, and Google will give you the departure and arrival times for that flight in it’s search engine.  Pretty nifty.  Google…making my life simpler one application at a time.

For more great Google tips click the Google image above.

If we ever expect our life or our company or our church or our relationships to progress to the next level; if we desire that our marriage develops into new realms of trust and love; if we ever expect to reach out and impact a broader market; if we want to put that latest great idea into action; if we want to be rich; if we want to help as many as possible; if we want to give it all away; if we want to decrease our negative environmental impact; then change is absolutely necessary.

Why did Facebook revamp its entire layout?  Why did WordPress totally turnover its Dashboard?  Why, when millions of people worldwide use your product or service every day, would you ever want to change a single thing!? Here is why:  They want to get better.  Why did Steve turn machine Mac into musical Apple?  He knew that in order for the company to grow (to be the best in the world!) it had to change, to be the change.  Why does Google come out with a new application almost daily (or so it seems)?  They realize that in order to stay on top, they must keep doing what got them there in the 1st place:  promote and initiate change.  Every year these companies change the way we do and see everything.

Want to get better at anything?  Get better at being willing to change.  Want to become a Visionary?  Train yourself to see the change before it happens and take advantage of it.