In the 90's, I read a change management book called Managing At the Speed of Change, which later became a classic in the field.

In this new decade, someone needs to write a book called "Living at the Speed of Digital Change."  Photo by jpctalbot

It was just a little over two years ago that I started this blog, with one of the main themes being how technology is an enabler for turning an idea into a movement. I've been noticing how the standards are changing as technology advances. Here are a few examples:

• Instantaneous movements. Simon Young first introduced me to "flash mobs," where a group of strangers coordinated, through technology, an in-person gathering to make a point, promote a cause, or stand behind a common purpose (if nothing else, to give bystanders something to talk about for the rest of the day.) While quick to coalesce, these mini-movements were small and temporal. Now, with the power of social media and a compelling enough cause, national or even global movements can happen overnight. A few weeks ago, on National Public Radio's All Things Considered, they discussed how a movement to help Haiti sprung up quickly, with the help of social media. Using the text message, 90999, to donate $10 at a time, tens of millions of dollars were collected from cell phone users in a matter of a few days. Photo by The U.S. Army

NPR contrasts that to the tsunami relief efforts in 2004, when social media  platforms like Twitter and Facebook didn't exist. It took a lot longer to mobilize the hearts and minds (and wallets) around a cause.

Wisdom entrepreneurs: Is your story and cause compelling enough for others to pass on through social media, and create a movement?

• Social media is getting more use than email. A quote from the Economist magazine, citing Nielsen, a market research firm: "…since February 2009, [people] have been spending more time on social-networking sites than on email, and the lead is getting bigger."  To reinforce this idea even further, I recently re-read a NYT article titled, "Brave New World of Digital Intimacy" published in September 2008. The article explores the challenge of being on Twitter and following several hundred people. Now, less than two years later, this challenge seems rather quaint. The number of users on Twitter has exploded, as well as the many ways to use Twitter. Following thousands isn't uncommon for an average "twit" and avid users can follow tens of thousands.Social media has become part of the mainstream, rather than a new fad associated with the digerati. Photo by 7son75

Wisdom entrepreneurs: Meet your kindred spirits where they are. Don't rely on them to come to your site or to read your emails.

• The next frontier is mobile. I don't text. I don't have a smart phone. I'm an immigrant when it comes to mobile. And yet it makes sense that it would become one of the most powerful tools to emerge, as everything that we expect on a desktop moves to wherever we happen to be. I don't have to be at my desk to participate. I can be anywhere, doing anything. Photo by Michael(mx5tx)

Wisdom entrepreneurs:  Kindred spirits are even more accessible than you thought, if you factor in mobile.

• Think interactive, streaming data, not one-dimensional static pages. Michael Zeisser, Senior VP of Liberty Media, in a two-part interview for w3w3 Talk Radio, discusses how the Internet has evolved, from static pages to streaming data. The bar has been raised. Our expectation now is that something new is continually being presented, the new version of the ticker tape. Think Twitter or Facebook News Feeds.  In addition, I'm noticing how the best sites are using video to give that high touch, interactive feel. (Yes, it's a nod for me to do more of that as well. So far, I've dabbled in online video but have yet to make it a habit….)

Wisdom entrepreneurs: Start using online video as part of your communications toolkit. Get used to short bursts of communications (140 characters will do just fine…) to supplement a monthly newsletter or a weekly blog post.

This list makes me think I need to get crackin'. It also makes me wonder what tools we'll have two years down the road that we can't even imagine today.

What trends are you seeing in the changing landscape and how do you take advantage of them to turn your idea into a movement?