Introduction
Evolution is caused and effected by several factors -- environmental changes, personal trends and memetic development. I've identified the 10 personal trends which I feel are most affecting and evolving us. It is important to be aware of these trends -- and their affect on you -- even if you don't agree with or want them. They are the energy currents of what we call modern life. And, if you are a coach, it's likely that these are the things your clients most want, even if they haven't articulated them this clearly.

1. We are becoming much more selfish.
We are now willing to put ourselves first, even despite our role-programming not to do this. We know more of what we want and are willing to buy things, services and experiences "just because." We have more faith in ourselves and less faith in what we should be doing. Becoming selfish is evolutionary. And it's natural.
--Evolution is necessarily a selfish process.

2. We are less willing to wait for what we want.
We are more impatient and are demanding that services and goods be available to us immediately: instant fulfillment and gratification. We are less willing to have to 'earn' certain things in life, meaning that the notions of deserving and 'working for it' are becoming passé'. We have come to value our time on this earth and will only do business with firms who deliver the goods, services and results with minimal delay. (This is one reason coaching has become so popular -- it's results-oriented, meaning less delay.) Our impatience is evolving the business and educational world to deliver without delay. Impatience is good!
--The future is no longer worth waiting for.

3. We want more freedom in every aspect of our lives.
We want to work when we want to work. and not work when we don't want to work. We want to be single or married when we want to. We want less responsibility and more flexibility. We want fewer commitments and more time to explore. We want to feel like we're in charge at all times. We don't want restrictions, pressure or burdens. We want choice-on-demand. An organism which is not free does not have the room it needs to evolve by choice, because there is no option (and no time) to take risks, experiment or to discover.
--Freedom is essential for evolution-by-choice.

4. We want fulfillment and meaning, but of our own choosing.
Institutions and other cultural defenders have limited our choices when it comes to fulfillment and meaning, often with hooks about the future or what's good for 'society.' But the evolved person has infinite choice -- all they need is the permission to discover or create meaning in the form that fits best for them, even if it's the opposite of what has been held to be ideal. Ideals have become ordeals, as people wasted their lives striving to do what's right and good. Only you can rightfully select what gives you meaning. During the evolutionary process, you uncover this for yourself.
--Fullfillment is possible when a person knows who they are. Fulfillment occurs naturally during the evolutionary process.

5. We want to become all of who we are, not just make improvements.
Now that we don't have to spend so much time gathering food, making shelter and defending ourselves from rivals (aka striving for survival) we have more time to explore and discover just who humans are and who we are as individuals. Hence the popularity of the self-help movement, self-actualization, personal coaching, achievement and personality and strengths diagnostics. Your personal evolution can be accelerated via self-discovery and understanding because as you fear less, you can afford experiment more (aka take risks).
--Lifelong learning is just the beginning of our evolutionary path.

6. We are becoming parts of more networks, instead of just knowing lots of people.
Having a full Rolodex is still a very valuable resource in the business world -- it's who you know, not what you know that matters, as they say. But what has been occurring more in recent years, is the next evolutionary step of knowing people -- and that's having access to the networks of people that who you know knows. Thanks to the Internet, hundreds of thousands of common-interest-based networks have formed via email lists, newsgroups, etc., so all you really have to do is to be a part of 5 or 10 key networks and it's like having 100 full Rolodexes on your desk, with less work. If you belong to the right networks, you can gain immediate access to other networks.
--You evolve faster -- and with less stress -- if you are part of a flow. Networks provide that flow.

7. We want simplicity, yet with lots of comfort.
Voluntary simplicity has become a popular term. The stress of success has taken its toll and more people are opting out of the complicated life where more is never enough. They are now orienting around the themes of "less is more" and "nothing is everything." By simplifying and thus reducing stress and many distractions and overstimulations, people are able to rediscover themselves, practice extreme self care and maintain a sense of balance and well-being without having to work these into their daily to-do list. With simplicity comes ease and with ease comes a lightness and with lightness comes flexibility.
--You evolve faster when you are more flexible.

8. We are tolerating less.
We used to put up with bad service or shoddy products, but no more. The consumer has been liberated and is exercising his/her power in the marketplace. That's not really news, but what is an emerging personal trend is the fundamental unwillingness to suffer in any shape or form. Maybe it's because our societal self-esteem has increased significantly. Maybe it's because we are empowered as consumers. Maybe it's because the emotional/financial/opportunity costs of tolerating have become much higher. Maybe we're just wising up that having a perfect life is not only possible, but that it's our birthright. Whatever the reasons, it's healthy to tolerate less, because this evolves your environment and relationships. But keep the WD-40 (aka compassion) handy to reduce the friction this causes.
--You evolve faster when you are in the present. A toleration keeps one foot in the past (frustration about it) and one foot in the future (hope that the problem will go away).

9. We want to buy things directly, instead of dealing with intermediaries.
They say that 25% of all cars will be purchased via the web by the year 2001. Factory-direct shopping mails have become extremely popular. Ecommerce is just getting started but will eventually be the largest mall in the world, with all manufacturers selling their products from their websites. (Although this will take about 5 years to be universally true. For example, Levi Straus wants to sell you jeans directly, but doesn't want to turn off its retailers.) Why is this happening? Because intermediaries (distributors, traditional retailers, etc.) increase the price, consume time and limit choice. We now have a system (the web) that's become a catalog of all products and services. And with virtual 3D and other sensory-extending devices, you can soon feel the fabric of that dress, try it on virtually and see how it makes you feel -- right from home.
--By saving money on purchases, wasting less time and finding the exact right product each and every time, we humans will have more time to do what we enjoy the most, which itself is evolutionary. Plus, reducing the stress of traditional shopping is a boon.

10. We want to have a good time in whatever we are doing -- work, rest or play.
It's perhaps revolutionary for a person to want work to equal play, but this is quickly becoming the standard for the lucky, evolved ones. Some are changing careers, changing companies or changing lifestyles in order to enjoy the work they do instead of working/suffering hard now 'in order to' benefit later. "Paying your dues is wasting your life," goes the new thinking (well, okay, that's my own quote, but it fits, doesn't it?). The same is true for learning and education, hence edutainment. Who said you have to struggle to learn? Fun at all times, entertainment in all flavors, joy in every workplace are possible when a person is creative -- and envolved enough -- to conceive and implement this way of living.
--Suffering is pre-evolution because it is based in survival; pleasure is post-evolution because it is based in awareness.