In the last half of the 20th century in North America it was assumed that as an adult you had a driver’s licence and that you most likely owned or had access to a car. I know, I didn’t get my licence until I was 26 and that made me a very rare specimen indeed. The optimal way to get around our cities and especially our rural areas is by motor vehicle. Malls are being built that do not have any designated pedestrian or bicycle lanes. We still design as if everyone moves around by automobile.
Well it’s now the end of the first decade of the 21st century, the Web is over 15 years old and e-mail is much older than that. However, many in my generation (the baby boomers) are living as if the Internet is an interesting thing to have around or “surf” but not really essential, like a car is. I’ve noticed this especially with boomers working inside organizations. But things are changing and we see that most younger people own a mobile device and manage several networks on the Web – Facebook, YouTube, StumbleUpon, Digg, etc. For them, a car may be optional, but a mobile Web device is essential.
Understanding the Web today is like driving a car 25 years ago. You need it to get around, work and be social. It’s as important for individuals as it is for organizations. Think back a decade or two and imagine a business without a parking lot; today that’s getting a lot easier to imagine. The Web changes everything and Internet strategy can no longer be left to a few specialists to “do that Web thing”. We all need to get involved and learn by doing. You can’t become a driver without practice and the same goes for the Web. I would suggest that anyone who doesn’t have a learner’s Web permit had better get one soon. That’s especially true for my fellow baby boomers, many of whom are making the decisions at work.
Image by ndanger
Very true that the Internet, like most big-complicated-scary things, is best tackled one small step at a time. What do you think are the best “learner’s permit” first steps? In my family, email has been the most common first foray into the online world. Facebook, surprisingly, is probably second. Communication with all the generations has been a powerful motivator.
I’d say that first steps are dependent on the person. For example, I’d find out what’s important or what have they difficulty getting done. E-mail is probably a given, because it is ubiquitous. After that, feed readers, social bookmarks, Twitter, wikis, blogs or social networks might make the most sense.
The Table at the bottom of this post shows some tools for sense-making on the web:
http://jarche.com/2009/03/sense-making-with-pkm/
What a powerful analogy – I love this: “Understanding the Web today is like driving a car 25 years ago. You need it to get around, work and be social. It’s as important for individuals as it is for organizations. Think back a decade or two and imagine a business without a parking lot; today that’s getting a lot easier to imagine.”
Some folks in today’s organizations are still riding around in buggies, let alone ready for a learners permit!
As always, thanks for the excellent perspective.
@AmandaFenton
I couldn’t agree more with your suggestion that the first steps depend on the person. More important, how you explain those first steps depends on the person as well.
We’re all inclined to over-stress the technology, as if the number of doors or the size of the car’s engine was a determining factor for someone else’s trip. People who love tweaking their tools will naturally recommend tweakable tools, even though the other person may never go so far as to add a plug-in to Firefox.
My mother, who just turned 91, has no interest in or real need for a feedreader — but she regularly visits three blogs: one I created (for my “letters” to my parents), and two run by grandchildren. (I agree with Beth’s suggestion, but I don’t think Mom could quite cope with Facebook.)
I agree with Amanda, this is one of the best analogies I have seen for “boomers” like myself to become more “liberated” with regard to the Internet, not unlike when we got our driver’s license decades ago. My only mobile device is a cell phone and so far I just use it to talk – for a boomer that’s what phones are used for. All of my colleagues are Gen X that have Blackberries. Perhaps you are right, the time to get another license is long overdue.
i am 29years old and i do not have my learners permit yet. still to this day i struggle to read and remember what i read. i feel like i am stupid because i can not remember things. i love to drive i am just having hard time remembering, i have done the learners test 3 times in my whole life and i was so mad each time i did not pass i feel like a complete mess always thinking whats wrong with me ??
any suggestions
I would suggest lessons from an experienced driving instructor so that you can practice and learn by doing.