This post and podcast are for informational purposes only, and are not intended, in any way, as financial, career or professional advice in any other areas. Please contact an appropriate professional with any questions.

(Headshot courtesy of Dr. Mark van Rijmenam, and used with permission.)

What will the metaverse become?

In his new book, “Step Into the Metaverse: How the Immersive Internet Will Unlock a Trillion-Dollar Social Economy”, future tech strategist and author Dr. Mark van Rijmenam says we have a choice. But, he cautions, we must act now.

Mark, who is known as “The Digital Speaker”, is the founder of Holland-based Datafloq. He’s also an international keynote speaker, as well as the publisher of the ‘f(x) = e^x‘ newsletter, which explores the future of work in tomorrow’s workplace. “Step Into the Metaverse” is his fifth published book.

Currently, Mark says, creators have a “blank canvas” to create an “open metaverse” that will benefit humanity.

However, he warns, “We only have one shot to make this happen, (or) we’ll wind up in a dystopian future.”

And in Step Into the Metaverse, he offers guidelines–including an extensive resource list which cites the 250+ interviews he conducted, in the course of writing Step Into the Metaverse.

Mark discussed the concepts he explores in his new book, including avatars, the use of immersive technology in education, and the next steps for individuals who want to work together towards an open metaverse.

In this edition of Over Coffee® we cover:

• A closer look at the challenge which the budding metaverse presents to creatives;
  

• A projection of the ways we may experience the metaverse, ten years from now;
  

• What future education may be like, due to the metaverse;
  

• Some of the ways augmented reality may appear in our daily lives, in the future;
  

• Mark’s experience as he wrote Step Into the Metaverse;
  

• The ways avatars can change behaviors–both in the virtual world and in the real one;
  

• Resources and skills to prepare for the evolution of the metaverse;
  

• A definition of non-fungible tokens (NFTs);
  

• Some of the dangers of the metaverse, and possible ways to avoid them;
  

• Considerations for the next steps for creatives working towards an open metaverse;
  

• A closer look at two new innovations and their implications for personal privacy.
  

Check out “The Digital Speaker” series with Dr. Mark van Rijmenam! You’ll find information on his videos, latest articles and his podcasts at thedigitalspeaker.com. And while you’re there, get a look at his free webinar on the future of work, as well as his four previously-published books!