Would you like some fries with that

This week, I have continued with my reading in Friedman's book. He talks about so many interesting topics. I read about one of these topics called comparative advantage. This is how you explain why some countries are better at doing certain things than other countries or regions. India and China are prime examples, but another country to keep an eye on is Ireland. China has transformed their country into an industrial powerhouse by focusing on certain aspects of trade. As a result, they have moved ahead of Mexico for imports into America, and earned the number one spot in many other countries around the world. However Ireland has put their focus on educating their younger generation, and they are doing so for extremely inexperienced amounts. Their thought is with a widely accessible education system their younger generation will become more interested in school and help further Ireland's growth in this flat world. It takes focus on a country's part to assist with growing and moving up on a global scale, whether it is a affordable education or motivating the next generation to want to succeed in specific fields or trades.

I would definitely consider myself a self-directed consumer. A good example that is discussed is Starbucks. They had to adapt to be better than anyone else, so they listened to their consumers and added soy milk as an option. Companies want your feedback and many times will reward you for your time. I always give my input when it is appropriate, such as a good experience or noting my opinion if I think a company could use some improvement in an area. You are no longer competing with your next-door neighbor or even the guy across town. Your competition is now the world. If you don’t learn to stay one step ahead of the consumer, someone else will, and before you know it a start-up coffee shop in a garage will overtake Starbucks.

I have always thought of Americanization and how amazing and comforting it is for me when traveling abroad. I have been to some amazing and beautiful places in this world and when the hunger bug strikes, I have multiple local cuisines to choose from, none of which cannot be bought at home. But all I wanted was a simple cheeseburger and fries, and wouldn’t you know, there was a McDonald's down the street. While all of this can be great, I don’t think we can consider globalization and Americanization the same as one. Globalization is a mix of every walk of life and is getting bigger. I do agree that America has played a big role in the ‘culture’ of globalization, however it really has been a handful of multicultural ideas that has created this flat world we call home.

This book has been a huge wake up call for me, and the issues we face in todays society. The crazy part is this book was written almost a decade ago, and Friedman nailed it on the head with the reality of this super fast-paced, constantly changing world.