Increasingly, those countries that are focused on building “intellectual capital” through the brainpower of their people are going to be the most prosperous in the world. There will still be a place for natural resource rich countries such as New Zealand – largely due to the ongoing need for people to eat, but increasingly such resources will represent a diminishing comparative advantage in the global economy.
And this is why I continue to beat my drum that the New Zealand “commercial rule book” must be subject to intense scrutiny in the very near term – in conjunction with the work that the Small Business Council and Business Advisory Council are doing – to ensure that the number of rules that “enable” and “empower” the development, progression (evolution), achievements and prosperity of businesses markedly outnumber those that “curtail” and “prohibit”.
If you think I’m dreaming, then I invite you to watch this video (despite its relatively poor sound quality), narrated by one of the most acclaimed quantum physicists of the current era…
New Zealand needs to make some wise decisions right now in respect of improving the opportunity of businesses to innovate and evolve (in order to grow and realise scale-related advantages); or conversely (as per what the current situation reflects) continue to wrap our country up in so many restrictive rules that innovation remains subdued, mediocre and practiced by the minority only…and worse still, the quest and passion to innovate stops being a natural part of many Kiwis’ DNA.
What’s it going to be New Zealand ?