The Sharing Economy

Thanks to technology, we are entering into a new era of social interaction with the sharing economy. The possibilities are limitless and AirBnB/Uber are prime examples. In China, you can now rent an umbrella or a basketball anytime you need them, when it starts to rain or if you are at a basketball court and just decided to shoot a few hoops. We can now share almost anything, even a couch in your living room. The Millenial generation is not too hung up about owning physical assets like cars and homes now as they can enjoy a more cost effective way of sharing resources within the society.

I had to send my car for servicing and new technical issues last week. It cost a bomb and I had to reconnect with Uber again for transport as the car was in the workshop. Uber had an offer at that time that gave me $4 off for the next 7 rides. Some of my short trips were free and it was so efficient.

I also recently discovered the world of station-less bike sharing platforms. My son was using them to take a ride from the bus stop to our home. Apparently, for this month of Aug (being National day month) all Obike rides were free! For the rest of the week, I started my morning run to the Botanic Gardens and then had a walk in the park (to satisfy my Pokemon Go addiction) before taking an Obike ride to my favourite coffee shop for brunch. Just yesterday morning, I went to the East Coast park for a walk and then used Obike to cycle around the beach area. Total cost : Zero. I used to rent a bike for $8/hour and obtained another hour free, ie. $4/hour. Now it is free… The existing bike rental shops are certainly going to get crushed now, like the taxi companies after Grab and Uber entered the market.

I expect more industries to be changed dramatically by the sharing economy going forward. Maybe one can even share stationary next time!

Sent my CV and cover letter to my Myanmar contact on Wed. Let’s see if this opportunity does develop further from here. It will be an interesting new chapter to my career if it happens, believing in the micro finance cause and seeing a visible positive effect on a country, leveraging on my past experience.