In the not-too-distant past, every creative work – whether it was a song, a movie, artwork, poetry or an article for publication – had to be approved by at least one other person before the public could see it. Often the work had to be screened by layer upon layer of reviewers so only the very best accomplishments would rise to the top.
Throughout history, the gatekeepers kept us safe. They saved us from the bad people. But they also tried to save us from the boring and uninteresting, the radical and the off-balanced, the rumors and lies, and from the people who had a different opinion or, heaven forbid, a different agenda.
For businesses, the gatekeeper system was all about quality control, maintaining the image or brand of the company and producing the highest-quality products.
But the gatekeeper chokepoints for society are beginning to erode as people figure out ways to circumvent them. And they are finding great power in these emerging new forms of self-control.
Enterprising people have begun to find the keys to unlocking their future, and it’s a future that doesn’t include the barriers provided by gatekeepers. Publishing an article no longer requires the approval of an editor. Articles can easily be published on blogs or Web pages without ever needing someone’s approval. Videos and podcasts can be posted on iTunes or YouTube 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The true impact is far more significant than any of us can imagine.
The no-gatekeeper lifestyle means you can create whatever product you want and sell it to people around the world without ever having to get someone’s blessing.
When a gatekeeper goes away, it doesn’t mean there are no controls. Instead of an individual saying “yes” or “no,” either a market or a community will decide. For most, these market forces are viewed as being more democratic and, by default, fairer.
In essence, the true shape of a demand curve can be revealed once the gatekeepers are gone.
While people from generations past still believe we can’t live without gatekeepers, a new generation of freedom-loving entrepreneurs have made it their mission to find ways to circumvent controls. In their minds, a system with a gatekeeper is an opportunity waiting to happen: kill the need for gatekeepers, free the world and make money in the process.
Most important, the employment gatekeepers are going away. More and more people are beginning to find ways to create income without ever having to be employed. Bloggers, podcasters, writers, graphic artists, musicians, photographers, videographers, and thousands of other micro-business entrepreneurs are figuring out ways to generate revenue without having an employer control the paycheck.
Making money online, either as a part-time or full-time Internet entrepreneur, is becoming more and more appealing. New websites are springing to life on a regular basis with wealth-sharing mechanisms for the contributors.
Here are just a few of the best-known sites for making money online:
Each of these sites allows you to do what you enjoy while they take care of sales and distribution. Other entrepreneurs have begun finding micro-markets for seemingly insignificant online things like sound effects, generic video clips, ringtones, and MySpace personalities.
It’s not realistic to expect that all gatekeepers will go away. However, it is entirely reasonable to expect that all gatekeeping systems will go through a period of tremendous change.
Look for old-fashioned monopolies like electric, gas and water utilities to be dismantled. High-pain taxation systems like income tax are doomed and will be replaced with more efficient tax systems. Higher education continues to cling to its ivory towers, but these towers are destined to topple.
We live in a global marketplace, and every industry is fighting for new efficiencies and a distinct competitive edge. Since national economies are dependent upon revenue streams created in the business world, governments will be forced to keep pace with the new tempo of business.
In the end, the competition between businesses will boil down to performance efficiencies and the freedom a business has to create its own efficiencies. Governments with the least impediments will flourish as the businesses that support them come out the winners.
Thomas Frey is the executive director and senior futurist at the DaVinci Institute in Louisville.
