I live in the Silicon Delta (Mississippi). Not a very densely populated place and certainly not known as a big tech hub, but it is an ecosystem of fabulous storytellers, delicious food and world famous music. From Faulkner to BB King to a number of award winning chefs, my own “little postage stamp of soil” has grown some of the world’s most creative minds, but it has long been a place that people move away from to find success. The great migration of people leaving their small towns starting in the early 20th century  to work more lucrative jobs in big cities comes to mind. 

Lately, I have been thinking how it will be interesting to see what if any population shifts occur post-pandemic.

Regardless of our personal opinions on how fast we turn businesses back on, I wonder if  a new great migration will occur. Will more and more people begin to leave the big cities to start over in more rural areas? One of the many reasons for such dense populations were people grouping together over decades around vertical interests to create #ecosystems. 

#Silicon Valley –> #techindustry

#NewYork –> #financeindustry

#LA –> #entertainmentindustry

I myself used to travel regularly to Silicon Valley. It was a way to refuel and get energy from that ecosystem.

Lately, I have heard many suggest that half the population of NYC will continue to work from home. These suggestions are clearly based on the availability of online meeting places like #linkedin, #zoom, #teams, #slack, etc that allow people to work more efficiently from home than ever before.

In Mississippi, we have access to the same fiber super highway and the same online tools as everyone in NY, SF and LA – yet the cost of living is about a third of these other cities.

Will people and companies shift?  Thoughts?