Meet the New Economy--Warts and All
by Larry Wiener

In The Future of Success, political economist and Clinton administration labor secretary Robert B. Reich chronicles this new economy and helps readers to understand it. Read Larry's wonderful review of this new book on the economy, warts and all.

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Pros: Readable, thorough, thought-provoking. Well documented and clearly written.

Cons: So interesting I couldn't put it down or think about anything else.

The Bottom Line: A roadmap to the new economy with documentation and ideas for personal and sociatal responses.

Recommended: Yes

It’s a new economic world out there. The organization man of the 1950's was loyal to his corporation and his corporation is loyal to him. Now we become consultants after we are downsized and land a new job once we find a new niche. Many of us do more shopping online than in line and we go to closeout stores, dollar stores, and all kinds of other stores looking for deals.

In The Future of Success, political economist and Clinton administration labor secretary Robert B. Reich chronicles this new economy and helps readers to understand it.

His book reads well and is extremely thoroughly documented with examples from academia, his own personal experience and the experiences of people he knows. He explains the changes that are affecting our economic and work life readably and with authority. His book stimulates thought while it amuses. This is the first time that I have ever called a book on economics a page turner.

To give you an idea on what to expect, here are the chapter titles along with a brief comment on each.

The Age of the Terrific Deal Gone - The idea of a retail price. The options both online and in line allow us to shop for tremendous prices if we have the tenacity and the knowhow.

The Spirit of Innovation Things - Change at a blinding pace and we have to adapt with them.

Of Geeks and Shrinks - In this chapter, Reich describes two types of workers that will always be in demand, “geeks”, people who can develop new concepts, and “shrinks”, people who are in tune with what the public wants and can sell the idea of the geeks.

The Obsolescence of Loyalty - We used to be loyal to our employers and came to expect loyalty from them. No more. We also used to be loyal to the downtown merchants, but now if Wal Mart has a better deal, we flock to it.

The End of Employment as We Know It - While most of us were organization men and women, now we go through many phases of work. The ties are a lot loser.

The Lure of Hard Work More - And more of us are compelled to work harder for a variety of reasons. We have surpassed the Japanese in hours worked. This chapter explains why.

The Sale of the Self - During the organization man days, we were to be part of a team and not too self-promoting. Now we have to brand ourselves.

The Incredibly Shrinking Family - We have smaller families and we are spending less time with them. We subcontract out many family functions.

Paying for Attention - With more time spent working, less time with families, and less community stability, we are spending more on coaches, trainers, therapists, and other hired guns to take care of us.

The Community as Commodity - While the community used to be those in our town, now the community is often whoever can do something for us.

Personal Choice - Here Reich gives some thoughts on how to handle the choices and tradeoffs of the new economy.

Public Choice - Here you see the policy side of Reich. He suggests some public policy considerations that he feels are appropriate for the new economy.

After reading this book and the many articles I have read on the new economy, I’m not sure how much I like it. I love getting good prices online and at closeout stores like Marshall’s and Dollar Tree. I’m not so sure I like all the insecurity the new economy has, though I am personally shielded from it as a teacher. The social changes brought on by the new economy have boosted productivity, but we have paid some serious prices for that boost when you consider the disintegration of community, the stress level, and so many other costs. Reich really helps readers see that relationship.

As a citizen, I am concerned about the bipolar aspect of the new economy with haves and have-nots growing farther apart with fewer in the middle. I am bothered to see the new economy selecting against such virtues as loyalty, altruism, and community. Of course the new economy can change directions as quickly as it came upon us.

I know, however, that I need to understand the new economy to find my place in it and use it to my advantage. Professor Reich has explained the times very well. This book is a tremendous asset in understanding the often confusing times we live in.

Copyright 2001 by Larry Wiener