Spawning the Social Equivalents of Steve Jobs

John Elkington

February 4, 2010

I missed this when it first came out in the New York Times, but picked it up via Facebook today. Tom Friedman suggests some of the things Barack Obama should now do to revive his Presidency. Here’s a brief sample of the op-ed article:

“Obama should launch his own moon shot. What the country needs most now is not more government stimulus, but more stimulation. We need to get millions of American kids, not just the geniuses, excited about innovation and entrepreneurship again. We need to make 2010 what Obama should have made 2009: the year of innovation, the year of making our pie bigger, the year of ‘Start-Up America.’

“Obama should make the centerpiece of his presidency mobilizing a million new start-up companies that won’t just give us temporary highway jobs, but lasting good jobs that keep America on the cutting edge. The best way to counter the Tea Party movement, which is all about stopping things, is with an Innovation Movement, which is all about starting things. Without inventing more new products and services that make people more productive, healthier or entertained — that we can sell around the world — we’ll never be able to afford the health care our people need, let alone pay off our debts.”

The Rework the World site on Facebook already has comments about how we should define entrepreneurship here, but the spirit of this piece ticks so many boxes on our agenda it’s hard to know which ‘Categories’ not to tick on Word Press.