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in-tray for signature before being put in the post box, two days for it to reach the recipient, two days for the recipient to draft and send a reply, and two more days for the reply to reach his desk – more than a week for a single exchange of business letters. Today, as CEO of his firm he types and sends his own emails, or a short message text on his BlackBerry if he's travelling, and he expects an answer later the same day, if not within the hour.
    And this CEO is not some 'young twenty-somethin?' exhibiting the impatience of youth. Increasingly we begin our workdays not fully rested, because we got to bed so late the night before,whether from trying to get overdue work done or to have a bit of social life in the midst of all our other commitments.When the alarm first goes off, we hit the snooze button and go into what my mate Dr Adam Fraser calls mathematician mode, calculating the absolute last possible minute we can get out of bed and not be late. Then we race to catch an express train or bus to the office. Whether it's a blessing or a curse, technology frees us from the need to interact with anyone as we board; we just insert our prepaid ticket in the slot. When we arrive at work we mill about restlessly, waiting for the express elevator. Then we spend the day responding to the hectic demands of colleagues and superiors.We have two-minute noodles for lunch. And when we get home, we pop our instant dinner in the microwave and stand there thinking, 'Come on now, I have not got all minute.'
    An exaggeration, perhaps, but I'm sure most people will agree it's only a slight one.
    Unless you want to go off into the bush and be a hermit, there is no escape from the nearly instant communication and feedback loops represented by email, SMS and mobile phones. Whether we're talking about countries, companies or individuals, events that happen on the other side of the globe can and do have an immediate impact on our daily lives.
    This is only half the story. It is not just that we want what we want faster, but that we change our mind about what we want more quickly.
    Consider that the average time from concept to product in the US automobile industry is down from between five and seven years (about ten years ago) to around two years today. And what is ironic about this is that the US automotive industry is considered to be among the least innovative and slowest to change on the globe. It is competing with companies such as Toyota who bring entire vehicle ranges (Lexus and Scion) and new value propositions (hybrid engines) to market while most of their rivals are still trying to digest the fact that there might be a significant near-term profit opportunity in mid-priced luxury cars, customisable cars for Generation Y or eco-friendly engines.
    Back in 1979, on its pre-PlayStation signature product, the Walkman, Sony went from product inception to product launch in under four months. Just recently, the PlayStation 3 has cost Sony millions because of delays associated with its launch. It was shown to the public at the E3 games convention in May 2005, but didn't hit the shelves until November of the next year.
    By the time they got to market, the Microsoft Xbox 360 had shopped almost 10 million units, and Sony, a company that was once famous for its speed to market and relentless pursuit of first-mover advantage, lost almost $2.3 billion because of the late entry.
    In summary, increased affluence and rapidly developing communications technology are compressing our expectation around time. If the late twentieth century was about doing more with less, then the early twenty-first century will be about doing more with less, faster!
    COMPRESSION OF SPACE
    Compression of the way we view space is shrinking the world. People no longer see geographical distance as a barrier to the way they do business. The world is the new market, especially in light of an increasing number of international free trade agreements.
    Distances have always been