By Chris Covell
Many of us still mistakenly view the world as "Developed" vs. "Undeveloped" when in fact most of the rest of the world has already developed far beyond what we expect in our limited worldview.
Jump over to the GapMinder test to see if you can score better statistically than randomly guessing all the answers (i.e. "better than monkeys" as Hans Rosling puts it). Hint - the world average was below 33% correct with only A, B & C to choose from!
If you, like me, failed the test then you might want to take a look at the Factfulness book to update your outdated worldview.
I think about what these world facts mean for development across all continents in the coming decades -- especially for emerging markets in Africa and Asia. While there are undoubtedly still the big issues to tackle with in terms of safe drinking water, world hunger and disease; it is encouraging to learn that great progress has occurred in the past half-century to bring up the quality of life for billions of people.
This also means that in the next 50 years there will be a burgeoning new global middle-class who have cell phones and think more about their children's education or their next family trip more than how to eat tomorrow. I don't know about you, but I find that rather exciting and also thought provoking.
Sometimes we need an outside perspective to chart the right thought process. Contact the San Diego Consulting Group to see how we can help. Our expertise in business strategy combined with our deep IoT and technology background empowers our clients to unlock growth opportunities that create real market impact.
Did your test results surprise you? How did you do?
Chris Covell
San Diego Consulting Group