The Coming Job And Identity Crisis In America

Something is coming that will change the entire way we live our lives and nobody is really talking about it. There is a real possibility that we are on the verge of a real job crisis in America and for many, it could usher in a period of turmoil, poverty and political upheaval. This isn't a "doomsday piece," let me explain.   

Technology is rapidly encroaching into people’s lives and jobs. While the Internet can offer some incredible opportunity right now, the people who are not interested or invested are going to face a rough future. Why? Most of the jobs we train our kids for and the majority of the jobs that Americans have now are not going to be there in the future. The very near future, like in the next 5-10 years we’ll see the transition.   

Economists believe that about 80% of the loss in manufacturing jobs in the last few decades is due to technological advancements and robots.  As we move towards AI and take larger leaps in robotics, manufacturing jobs could almost vanish in America.   

Taxi companies are on the verge of going under due to ride share apps like Uber and Lyft.   Retail stores are closing around the nation and malls are starting to shut their doors as well.    

There are over 1.7 million people that drive for a living. The people that drive trucks and make deliveries, they could be out of a job soon too. With driverless cars being tested by Alphabet, Uber and the military, it won’t be long until they start taking the jobs of humans.  Amazon is testing drones to deliver packages.  

All of this adds up to one thing, a coming job crisis. Students in schools now are not being taught the skills they will need to find jobs in the very near future. There is going to be a big gap in knowledge and talent. I can see this happening first hand.

My son is eight years old and is finishing 2nd grade on Friday. Three years in school and he hasn’t been taught the right way to type yet. He is learning at home, but not at school. He has learned cursive before typing. In today’s workplace, nobody uses cursive but everyone types.   We are teaching the next generation of students the wrong things. 

Over the next five to ten years as robots and technology make millions of jobs obsolete, what is everyone going to do? Some will learn new skills and figure out how to make money online, but millions won’t. They will either expect checks from the government or try to develop some new skills and get into a new industry. The people that see the changes coming and can learn new skills now will be way ahead of the curve. Many won’t though.   

When millions of people lose their jobs, and realize that all the skills they have developed over a lifetime are now obsolete, they will lose confidence in themselves. So many people derive large parts of their identity from their jobs. When millions of people lose their jobs they will lose their identity. If those jobs are unwanted, then they will feel unwanted. It will be a very challenging time for millions of people.   

The best thing you can do if you think your job might be on the line is to learn some new skills. Really figure out how you can be an asset to a company that won’t go away during this transition. Get some online training or go to YouTube. I can’t even quantify how much I have learned from YouTube. I have literally made tens of thousands of dollars from what I learned by watching free videos. 

You can too.   

 There is a coming job crisis and it will be tough, but if you know it is coming then there is also a lot of opportunity. Be on the side of opportunity and figure out how you are going to transition your skills online.   

Any thoughts or questions please leave a comment!   I would love to hear your input.  This is my first post on Steemit, thanks for the support.

Walking Keys