Essay 6

The United States of America has a hugely important foundation in trade.  It was one of the reasons our country was settled, and it is one of the reasons our country has thrived.  Although trade has evolved over the years (Boston Tea Party anyone??), the fact still remains that trading is a key element to American life and American traditions.  Free trade took over mercantilism with the American Revolution and the free trade policies that our country still follows today resemble the policies that began to take hold back then.

Doing a google search of free trade led me to the following definition: free trade is a policy in international markets in which governments do not restrict imports or exports.  Some governments however do use the practice of protectionism with the intent of promoting local employment.  I am in favor of free trade with minimal protectionism which to me is just another way that we can be forced to follow the rules and regulations.  And I rebel against all the rules and regulations!!!  I love all things foreign, so I don't understand how anyone could NOT want the entire world practicing free and open trade every day!  I think free trade is important because it drives competition.  Without free trade and without competition I could see us becoming lazy and complacent.

In order to continue to compete in this ever increasingly flat world you have to have the skills of what Friedman refers to as "The New Middlers".  These are the new middle class jobs in which you will need certain skills that are suited to the flat world.  Among those skills are playing well with others, you have to be able to communicate well and collaborate well with people of all different cultures and backgrounds, in addition to being able to adapt to change easily.  In this digital world where sometimes it seems like great change occurs just overnight, it will not benefit you if you are inflexible and incapable of adapting to change.  Also on Friedman's list were synthesizers, leveragers, explainers, orchestrators and passionate personalizers, and of course all of these skills must be displayed while being green.  We have learned nothing if we have not learned by now the importance of sustaining our planet!

This brings us now to CQ+PQ>IQ.  Directly translated that means: Curiosity Quotient plus Passion Quotient is greater than Intelligence Quotient.  On this I could not agree more with Friedman.  Passion has the capability of being infectious and motivating.  What easier way to make yourself marketable than if you were working in a field in which you felt passionate about?  I recently got a job at a plasma donation center and I could not for the life of me figure out why my husband was being so negative about my new position as a phlebotomist.  He kept saying things that indicated he did not expect me to last for more than a week.  Finally it hit me: it was because HE could NEVER do the job of a phlebotomist, so in his mind he didn't see how anybody could!  Fortunately for me the human body is one of my PASSIONS and something I have a great CURIOSITY about, so I felt incredibly LUCKY to have this job offered to me! I couldn't wait to start digging around in people's veins!  And because of that I have been enjoying every minute of my new position, looking forward to moving up and progressing within the company.  Living in a world where there are so many educational tools right at our fingertips, curiosity is an increasingly valuable trait to have.