what’s your intent today?

I used to think I was a pretty well traveled guy until I met Parag Khanna. I used to think I was pretty well informed about various issues and global trends before I met Parag Khanna. I used to think I was pretty smart until I met Parag Khana.

Then I started spending time with the guy, talking to him, and realized - because I could hang with him in conversation - that I was pretty well-traveled, informed, and smart. And there was no shame in the fact that he traveled more, knew more about all this relevant issues, and was smarter. He was just that good. In fact, I soon became convinced that it was smarter to learn from Parag than to resent him. Because as the world flattened, economies collapsed onto one another, and global trends pulled and pushed geo-politics, more minds like his, helping to make sense of it all were in everyone’s interest. And, if I listened closely, hijacked a few of his theories, and later passed them off as my own, I sounded really wise.

No point much in my trying to summarize the conversation between myself and Parag who I now count as a good friend. Go ahead and listen to it yourself and draw your own conclusions. I can say, however, that I am convinced that we desperately need more creative thinkers like Parag working in the world of policy and diplomacy, sharp minds whose theories about the world are rooted in their subjective experiences and connections with real people dealing with real issues all over the planet. I had to read his newest book THE SECOND WORLD twice to really get it and then had to get him on the line to talk to him about it more to fully get it.

Here’s the thing: the world is changing and we all know it. You don’t have to travel that much, nor read the Economist every week, to know and feel how everything around us is transforming and turning itself inside out. The very definitions of nations - their first, second, and third world status – what makes them a super power or rogue nation – are in flux. We all sense it, feel it, and endure it at the most basic levels in our daily lives. To have the likes of Parag helping to make some sense of it, guiding us through it, and making an informed hypothesis about it every once in a while, is a good thing and I think you’ll enjoy it.

But enough of me trying to sound smart in front of my friend. See for yourself.

Buy Parag Khanna's new book The Second World here
Read more about Parag Khanna here